How Suntek AI Helped The Outset Drive Higher-Value Orders with Personalized Cart Upsells
A personalized cart upsell turned the cart into a place to find more skincare products that matched what shoppers already had - without slowing down checkout.
The growth opportunity was to increase how much each order was worth - by recommending the right product exactly when shoppers were most ready to buy.
Clean skincare for sensitive skin, built around simple routines.
The Outset is a premium skincare brand focused on gentle, effective formulas designed with sensitive skin in mind.
Its assortment spans everyday skincare essentials including cleansers, serums, moisturizers, masks, SPF and lip care, alongside travel sizes, refills, value sets and build-your-own sets.
At the center of the brand is a simple routine-led philosophy: help customers care for their skin with products that hydrate, soothe and support the skin barrier without unnecessary complexity.
Grow order value without making the cart feel like an ad.
The goal wasn't to show more products - just the right product, with the right offer, at the right time.
Limited basket expansion
Shoppers often checked out right after picking their main products, missing easy cross-sell chances.
Generic upsells reduce relevance
The brand needed recommendations that matched each shopper - not the same products for everyone.
Merchandising needed to scale
The system had to handle new launches, campaigns, and changing promotions - without rebuilding it every time.
Built a personalized cart upsell layer around customer intent.
The system looked at what was already in the cart, plus the brand's priorities, to decide which product to recommend - and what discount to attach.
Personalized product pairing
Recommendations were matched to what was already in the cart, so the offer felt like part of the same routine - not a random add-on.
One relevant offer at a time
A ranking rule made sure only one offer ever showed at once - always the most valuable one the shopper qualified for.
Flexible promotional tiers
Different pairings could carry different offer levels, giving merchandising teams more control over what's offered and when.
Launch, learn, expand
The rollout began with a focused set of pairings, then expanded after early customer behavior validated the approach.
Designed to feel native to the shopping journey.
Launch small. Validate behavior. Expand what works.
The rollout was intentionally progressive. Once early results showed shoppers were engaging, the team expanded to more products, more pairings, and more offer levels.
Prove the mechanic
A focused initial rule set established whether customers would engage with contextual offers inside the cart.
Broaden product discovery
Additional pairings and offer tiers increased coverage while maintaining relevance and adoption.
Momentum continues
Early August data pointed to stronger cart upsell engagement and higher-value baskets. Because August represented only a partial month, it is treated as a directional signal rather than included in the headline growth numbers.
Measurement note: Headline AOV and adoption metrics use completed post-launch measurement periods. August 1–26 is shown only as an early directional indicator. The AOV comparison is observational: it compares orders that engaged with cart upsells against orders that did not, and should not be interpreted as an A/B-tested causal lift.
Turn high-intent moments into measurable ecommerce growth.
For The Outset, the cart drawer now does more than hold items before checkout - it's a place to recommend the right product, to the right shopper, without slowing anyone down.