Email Breakdown #98: Western Rise Part 2

(NOTE: This is Part 2 of a series. Read Part 1 here.)

Some people overthink email marketing. Particularly, their “regular email schedule.”

Maybe with a little more structure (such as what products you’re promoting that week) if you’re a bigger brand.

Regardless, this mental model helps me pump out money-making emails for clients across niches — health supplements, golf, apparel, finance, and more.

And what do you know…

Apparel brand Western Rise does the same thing!

And the list goes on.

However, one email stuck out to me.

It encouraged high-AOV orders via buying several items at once.

If I was in the market right now for travel apparel, I probably would have bought.

But, in the meantime, I broke down the email to show you its secrets (and give Western Rise a little love.)

Check it out…

Table of Contents

About Western Rise The Email: A “How-To” That Encourages Several Purchases The Subject Line and Preview Text: The Body Copy Takeaways What to Do Next

About Western Rise 

Western Rise is an apparel company on a mission to “make quality apparel for the modern one-bag traveler so they can carry less and experience more.” 

The brand calls itself “a brand for the modern traveler.” It focuses on making lightweight yet durable and stylish apparel for male travelers.

The company was founded by Will and Kelly Watters (a husband-wife duo) in 2015. 

Both were avid travelers and understood the need for quality clothing that could balance aesthetics, sophistication, and function while traveling.

Both have backgrounds in textiles, too. So they combined their love of travel and industry knowledge to create Western Rise.

Western Rise also has a “Find My Fit” tool on the site to help you find the best items for you.

Finally, Western Rise publishes blog content (the blog is called the “Journal,” I like it) around travel wardrobes, such as “What to wear in XYZ destination” or “Outfit ideas for ABC event.”

Such content builds trust and shows expertise while offering natural selling opportunities.

Lesson in there!

The Email: A “How-To” That Encourages Several Purchases

Western Rise’s email is an educational one on “capsule wardrobes.” 

This is like a “minimum viable wardrobe” — a small collection of thoughtfully curated items that can be easily mixed and matched.

The result is you only need a few clothes to have a lot of outfits and keep things fresh. My type of thing!

Here’s the email:

Yeah, it’s a long one. But at first glance, the email is divided into clear sections.

There’s a good balance of copy and images for an apparel brand. Definitely leans toward visuals, but it appears the copy supplements those visuals.

And, as you’ll see, this helps sell the items depicted.

The Subject Line and Preview Text: 

The subject line gets right to the point:

Simple. The reader knows what they’re getting when they open.

And, besides the title case, it almost has a “dashed off” feel. This adds a bit more of an informal, friendly, helpful vibe…

Vs. a more “workshopped”, “marketing-y” subject.

The preview text expands on the subject with benefit copy:

A strong subject/preview complex overall.

The Body Copy

Like Western Rise’s last email (and many eCom apparel companies), this email opens with a hero section:

(Lol oops, I let the alt-text show when I screenshotted this.)

An image of someone wearing (what I assume is) Western Rise clothing + “Pack Light” conveys what this email is all about.

Not just a general capsule wardrobe… but one you can travel with.

That hits a big audience goal: Being able to pack a complete set of stylish yet travel-friendly clothes without checking 3 bags.

The copy builds on the implied theme immediately:

The first two sentences shift a common “wrong” belief. 

You don’t have to give up style to pack light. You just need the right pieces to maximize the number of outfits.

The second paragraph then hits a pain point I have dealt with. I pack half my clothes in one giant checked bag (that my friends all make fun of me for — hey, I get a free checked bag!)…

So it’s nice to hear that I don’t need to do that if I have “a few versatile essentials.”

I like how the last line fleshes out the benefits of the capsule wardrobe. Look just as sharp (or better) with less “packing stress” and more space in your luggage.

If Western Rise were more text-focused, I bet they could build on that. Maybe something like “not hitting the 50lb weight limit in the airport” or “no need to even check a bag.”

But the copy is good as-is.

That leads us to the last paragraph and CTA:

That’s a nice, punchy line that sums it all up. It’s kind of like “work smart, not hard.” “Bring better, not more.”

Western Rise then nudges the reader to their Full Guide to building a capsule wardrobe.

But the email continues for those who want more of a “snapshot” or perhaps some product recommendations:

Each makes sense. 

Clothing that resists wrinkles from packing, holds up to travel and wear, and serves multiple functions will work best.

But the thing I love here is that this section implies Western Rise’s clothing meets these requirements.

After all, there’s a “Shop Versatile Gear” button below the three symbols.

That’ll get people who can resist “analysis paralysis” more. But there are those, like me, who just want to be told what to buy.

I don’t know traveling clothing well, so if Western Rise handed me my choices on a silver platter, I’d buy them!

And that’s where the next section comes in:

Look at that — short-sleeve tee, long-sleeve tee, hoodie, pants, and joggers. 

Assuming you can wash and dry your clothes while traveling, these options (plus underwear and socks, duh) probably translate to several outfits.

Plus, each product has “Why” copy next to it, explaining how the outfit fits a capsule wardrobe while letting Western Rise drop in some benefit copy.

So now the reader knows EXACTLY what to add to their cart!

And then, of course, another CTA button.

Yet we have more:

This addresses yet another customer mind-state — the people who want the bare minimum.

In other words, some shirts and pants. 

So this block recommends the brand’s choices for those.

Oh, this could also target the more style-minded DIY readers, too. People who just want a foundation off which to customize their own wardrobe.

Lastly, notice the symbols. They’re a bit different than the earlier ones but still convey the benefits of the clothes for traveling.

Onto the next section, a blog post link:

This button/block links to the same capsule wardrobe guide (I think) as the earlier button. 

That way, readers who want to learn more about capsule wardrobes don’t have to scroll to the top.

Excellent user-friendly design. That certainly translated to more click-throughs and reads.

But hey, a familiar block is next:

Yes, Western Rise sent this during their Warehouse Sale. So they figured they might as well remind people of it.

It pairs well with the email. Readers now know they can put together an entire capsule wardrobe for less.

That encourages a lot more orders as readers look to get their capsule wardrobe pieces during the sale.

Let’s finish up with the footer:

Framing your SMS list as an exclusive club makes it feel cooler to be a part of it. That drives signups.

But people are already skeptical about signing up, just like with email (and maybe moreso).

No one wants a bunch of marketing texts they don’t value.

Even more so for SMS. Those notifications are even more annoying than email when irrelevant to you.

Hence the “Joining the club” framing and the promise to supply SMS members with first dibs/knowledge on discounts/deals.

Takeaways

Here are some big takeaways:

1. The Copy Mechanics

Belief-shifting

Western Rise uses language like “Achieving Goal X doesn’t have to mean Suffering Loss Y” and then proposes a different way of thinking.

For example: “Packing light doesn’t mean sacrificing style—it means being smarter about it” and then elaborating on what “smarter” means (5-7 versatile pieces).

This puts the customer in the right frame of mind to buy. It also makes them like the brand more because they feel less stressed about “missing out” on outfits when packing light.

“Pain point relief”

Western Rise says “You’ll save space, cut stress, and still look sharp wherever the journey takes you” in the 2nd paragraph of the main body copy. 

That relieves the pain points of packing for travel while balancing style.

“What to look for” features

I love how Western Rise uses those icons that say “Wrinkle-Free,” “Durable,” and “Multi-Functional.”

It conveys helpful info about what a capsule wardrobe consists of, whether or not the reader buys from Western Rise.

And yet, it preframes the reader that this brand’s clothes meet these needs… setting up some bigger purchases.

Product-Benefit copy

Each product Western Rise highlights contains a sentence or two of benefit-driven copy explaining why the particular piece fits a capsule wardrobe.

For example, the X Cotton Tee: “Why: A perfect layering piece or standalone option, this tee is breathable, soft, and stylish.”

The reader can see its versatility and imagine where it may fit into their capsule wardrobe.

2. The Email Structure

This email’s structure is as follows:

1. Hero section
2. Educational body copy
   1. Belief shift
   2. Educational info
   3. Segue sentence
3. First blog post CTA
4. Icon feature preframing
5. First store CTA
6. Full selection of relevant product recs
   1. Copy + image
7. Truncated selection of relevant product recs
   1. Image + CTA buttons
8. Second blog post CTA
9. Sale Reminder
10. SMS list signup CTA

Seems complex, but it’s not that complex. You can add or remove pieces as needed.

3. The Overall Strategy

The big strategy takeaway is twofold. One general, and one more specific:

Educating the customer

Western Rise educates the customer on a particular topic. A topic fairly niche to Western Rise, too. 

This builds trust and improves their perceived authority/expertise. Even if a customer doesn’t buy now, they’re more likely to do so later.

But that brings us to the second strategic takeaway…

Educational topic selection/High-AOV orders

Western Rise chose a topic that lent itself to orders of high order values. 

A capsule wardrobe, after all, consists of “5-7 items,” per Western Rise. The reader trusts that, because they see Western Rise as the travel apparel authority.

And then Western Rise lists 5 of their products that together make a good capsule wardrobe.

And so, many customers will happily buy all 5 to save themselves all the hard thinking and searching.

(If not, they’ll at least buy the 2 products positioned as the “foundation” later in the email.)

Genius!

That’s not all:

5-7 items for an entire wardrobe sounds a LOT simpler than buying like 30 items from different brands NOT dedicated to travel clothing and struggling to pick which outfit to bring.

All of a sudden, forking over like $400 to never have to worry about travel outfits again sounds quite compelling.

You don’t even NEED the Warehouse Sale they were running. 

But that sale certainly helps move more products and gain a bunch of new happy customers who are easier to re-sell to on the back end.

What to Do Next

1. Get on my email list using the signup form below for more Email Breakdowns and other helpful marketing content.
2. Share this with someone who might find it helpful (or entertaining).
3. Reach out to me if you want help writing emails like this one.
4. Check out Western Rise to put together a wardrobe that lets you travel in comfort and style!