What is a replenishment email flow?

A replenishment email flow is an automated sequence that triggers when a customer is likely to be running low on a consumable product they previously purchased. It is timed to the product's expected consumption rate: for a 30-day supplement, the first email sends at day 25. The goal is to prompt a reorder before the customer runs out and buys elsewhere. Unlike a broadcast promotional email, a replenishment email is 1:1: it references the specific product purchased, the date of purchase, and positions the reorder as a practical reminder rather than a marketing message. Klaviyo's internal data shows replenishment emails convert at 3 to 5x the rate of promotional emails because they arrive at the exact moment the customer has purchase intent.

How do I set up a replenishment flow in Klaviyo?

A replenishment flow in Klaviyo triggers from a Placed Order event filtered to the specific product or product category. The flow is delay-based: you set the first email to send X days after the order date, where X is based on the product's expected consumption period minus 5 days (to catch the customer before they run out). For a 30-day product, the trigger is day 25. For a 60-day product, day 55. The flow can have two to three emails: a heads-up at day 25, a reminder with easy reorder at day 30, and a subscription upgrade offer at day 35. The product data needs to include the consumption period, either as a tag in the product catalogue or via a custom property set at the time of purchase. Once the flow is configured, it runs automatically on every qualifying order. Chase Dimond's framework: replenishment flows should be built within 48 hours of setting up the trigger. The configuration is not complex.

What should a replenishment email say?

A replenishment email performs best when it is practical and direct rather than promotional. The subject line should reference the product by name and the timing: 'Your [Product Name] is probably running low' or 'Time to reorder your [Product Name]'. The body is short: acknowledge the purchase date, note that most customers run low at this point, and make the reorder frictionless: a direct link to the product page or a one-click reorder button. Social proof from other customers who replenish regularly increases the conversion rate. The second email in the sequence (at the out-of-stock date) can introduce a subscription option: 'Never run out, subscribe and save 10%'. Brands that include a subscription offer in the replenishment flow convert 12 to 18% of replenishment recipients to subscription within 90 days.

What if customers use my product at different speeds?

Variable consumption rates are the most common objection to building replenishment flows, and they do not prevent the flow from working. The solution is to trigger at the fastest reasonable consumption rate and let the customer opt out of emails they don't need, rather than not sending at all. A supplement that most customers finish in 25 to 35 days should have a replenishment trigger at day 25. Customers who use the product faster will have already reordered. Customers who use it slower will be reminded early: some will still convert, and those who don't will receive the day 30 and day 35 follow-ups when they are closer to running out. Alternatively, you can segment by product variant (30-day vs 60-day supply sizes) and set different delays per variant. Privy and Omnisend benchmark data confirms that even with variable consumption, replenishment flows generate 3 to 4x higher revenue per email sent than broadcast promotions.

Signal R2: Retention

Part of the Email & Retention signal group

No Replenishment Email Flow: Why Consumable Brands Lose Repeat Buyers They Should Keep

A consumable product runs out. If the brand is not there at the moment the customer is about to run low (before they search a competitor, before they walk into a retail store) the reorder goes somewhere else. A replenishment email sent at day 25 on a 30-day product converts at 3 to 5 times the rate of a promotional email. It generates $0.40 to $0.80 per send versus $0.05 to $0.15 for a broadcast campaign. Signal R2 is active when a consumable brand has no automated flow timing the reorder conversation.

Why the Replenishment Window Is the Highest-Intent Moment in Retention

A customer running low on a product they use regularly is not a customer who needs to be convinced. They have already made the category decision: they use the product. They have already made the brand decision: they chose you once. The only question is whether you make the reorder convenient before they default to another channel.

Klaviyo's internal data on consumable brand flows shows that a replenishment email sent 5 days before the expected out-of-stock date converts at 3 to 5x the rate of a promotional campaign to the same audience. The mechanism is not promotion: it is timing. The email arrives when the customer has purchase intent they were going to act on anyway. It simply routes that intent back to the brand.

Chase Dimond, one of the most cited email operators in DTC, describes replenishment flows as the highest-ROI email automation for consumable brands: not because of sophisticated copy or complex logic, but because the timing does the work that no amount of promotional incentive can replicate.

"We built the replenishment flow in a day. Day 25 trigger on a 30-day product. No discount. Just a reminder with a reorder button. The flow generates more revenue per send than any campaign we run. It doesn't even feel like marketing: it feels like customer service."

The Three-Email Replenishment Sequence

A complete replenishment flow for a 30-day consumable has three emails, each with a distinct goal:

Day 25

The heads-up email

Subject: 'Your [Product Name] is probably running low.' Short email. No offer. Just a genuine, practical reminder that most customers are running low by this point. Include a single reorder button. Conversion goal: immediate reorder from customers with low inventory. This email typically captures 40 to 50% of the total replenishment flow conversions.

Day 30

The reorder reminder

Subject: 'Almost out of [Product Name]?' Sent on the expected out-of-stock day. Slightly more urgent framing ('most customers are out by now') with a reorder button and optionally a small free gift incentive to make the transaction feel rewarding rather than transactional. For customers who didn't open the day 25 email, this is the primary conversion email.

Day 35

The subscription upgrade offer

Subject: 'Never run out again.' For customers who have not yet reordered. Introduce a subscribe-and-save option: 'Subscribe and save 10%, we'll send it before you run out.' Klaviyo and Privy data shows that 12 to 18% of customers who receive this email in a replenishment flow convert to subscription within 90 days: a recurring revenue conversion that would not have happened with a broadcast promotional email.

What a Complete Replenishment System Looks Like

A replenishment programme that captures the majority of reorder potential has these elements:

Consumption period defined per product.

Every consumable SKU has an expected consumption period recorded: as a product tag, a Klaviyo custom property, or a simple lookup table. The replenishment flow trigger uses this value to calculate the send date per order.

Flow triggered from order data, not campaign sends.

The flow is a Klaviyo automated flow triggered by a Placed Order event filtered to qualifying products: not a segment-based campaign. This means every qualifying order automatically enters the flow without manual configuration each time.

Subscription offer included in the third email.

The replenishment flow is the single highest-converting moment to introduce a subscription option. A customer who has already reordered twice is more likely to subscribe than a customer prompted by a broadcast email. The third email in the flow exists specifically for this conversion.

Flow suppressed for customers who have already reordered.

Once a customer places a new order, they exit the replenishment flow for the previous order and a new flow instance starts for the new order date. This prevents the email from arriving after the reorder has already been made, which degrades trust.

Revenue tracked per flow send in Klaviyo reporting.

The replenishment flow should have its own revenue attribution in Klaviyo. Seeing $0.60 per send versus $0.08 per send on broadcast campaigns is the data that makes the case for building additional flows and reducing promotional frequency.

Benchmarks to Know

3–5×

Higher conversion rate vs promotional broadcast email

$0.40–0.80

Revenue per email sent from replenishment flows

$0.05–0.15

Revenue per email sent from broadcast campaigns

12–18%

Of replenishment recipients converted to subscription with right offer

48 hrs

Estimated time to build a replenishment flow in Klaviyo

Day 25

Optimal send timing for a 30-day consumable product

Related Signals

Low Repeat Purchase Rate

R1 covers the post-purchase sequence that drives the second purchase in the 72-hour window after delivery. R2 covers the replenishment flow that drives the repeat purchase at the expected consumption date. Both are required for a complete retention system: R1 for non-consumables and early re-engagement, R2 for consumable reorders.

No Win-Back Sequence

Customers who miss the replenishment window become lapsed customers. R3 covers the win-back sequence for customers who are 90+ days without a purchase: the recovery layer for replenishment failures. A complete retention system has R2 (replenishment) and R3 (win-back) working in sequence.

Frequently Asked Questions

What to Do Next

If your brand sells a consumable product and you have no replenishment flow: every reorder your customers place is going wherever they happen to search next. Most of those searches are not back to your store.

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