SportsShoes.com is a UK-based online retailer selling sports gear for runners, gym-goers and hikers. It built its native app with the help of apps specialist, One iota, focusing on building stable foundations first. Since going live, the app has attracted close to 300,000 downloads and, at peak periods, can account for up to 20% of total revenue. Jon Cleaver, CTO at SportsShoes.com, discusses the importance of developing an app that felt like a community and loyalty space for runners.
SportsShoes.com has built its native app into a core part of its digital strategy, using it to deepen customer loyalty, improve commercial performance and reduce reliance on paid acquisition, without increasing internal headcount or compromising brand control.
The UK running specialist, founded in 1982 and now a £100 million+ business, developed the app as part of a broader shift away from legacy systems towards a composable digital architecture. Working with apps specialist, One iota, the retailer focused on building stable foundations first, ensuring the app could sit cleanly on top of its existing commerce, content and search infrastructure.
Jon Cleaver, CTO at SportsShoes.com, said: “The app was always part of the vision, but we were realistic about timing. When I joined, the stack wasn’t ready. We took the decision to rebuild our core architecture first, knowing that if we got that right, the app and future channels would follow much more smoothly.”
That approach paid off. Since going live, the app has attracted close to 300,000 downloads and, at peak periods, can account for up to 20% of total revenue. App users consistently outperform web-only customers, with higher conversion rates, higher average order values and increased purchase frequency.
Cleaver added: “What’s stood out is the quality of engagement. The app isn’t just another buying surface. It’s where our most valuable customers choose to spend their time. That changes the economics. We’re no longer repeatedly paying to reacquire people who already love the brand.”
Rather than treating the app as a transactional tool, SportsShoes.com has focused on creating value for its Ultra members through exclusive content, competitions and experiences, alongside deeper integrations with partners such as England Athletics, parkrun and Vitality. Eligible customers can automatically access discounts and benefits within the app, reinforcing loyalty while opening up new audiences.
For SportsShoes.com, working with One iota offered a way to move quickly without sacrificing flexibility or control.
Joe Till, CEO at One iota, said: “This is a great example of a retailer being clear about outcomes rather than chasing an app for its own sake. SportsShoes.com invested in the right foundations, which meant the app could integrate seamlessly into their ecosystem and deliver real commercial impact, not just engagement metrics.”
The app has also given the business a direct communication channel through push notifications, allowing SportsShoes.com to speak to customers without over-reliance on third-party platforms. Messaging is used selectively, with a focus on relevance rather than volume.
Looking ahead, the team plans to build on this foundation with more personalised experiences and enhanced product discovery, using richer customer insight to keep the app aligned with how runners actually shop and train.
Cleaver took the time to speak to Intelligent SME.tech about the changes.
Why was it important for SportsShoes.com to shift away from legacy systems to a composable digital architecture?
We’d reached a point where the legacy platform was starting to limit what we could realistically do as a business. We knew we wanted to launch a native app quite early on, but the technology underneath simply wasn’t built to support it properly. Rather than trying to bolt something new onto ageing infrastructure, we took a step back and rebuilt the foundations first. Moving to a composable architecture gave us much more flexibility, not just for the app, but for future channels and experiences too. It meant we could choose best-in-class platforms for areas like commerce, search and payments, while building APIs and infrastructure that would scale with the business over time. That also gave us the right foundations to work with One iota and build the app in a much more scalable and efficient way.
How difficult was it to rebuild the core architecture?
It was definitely a major project and something we approached very carefully over several years. We started the transformation around four years ago and took it in stages rather than trying to replace everything at once. First, we transitioned our international sites, then rebuilt the UK website, and after that launched the app with One iota around three months later. The biggest challenge was really making sure we were building infrastructure and APIs that could support multiple channels properly long term, not just the website. There’s more work and planning involved upfront, but it puts you in a much stronger position for future growth and innovation.
In what way do app users outperform web-only customers?
The app customer is by far our strongest customer commercially. We’ve seen higher conversion rates, stronger average order values, more repeat purchases and better lifetime value compared to web-only customers. In some periods the app has driven up to 20% of the business, which exceeded our expectations massively considering we launched from a standing start. Part of that is convenience because the app is always there in someone’s pocket, but a big part is also that our most loyal customers naturally gravitate towards it because of the additional value and experiences we offer there through the One iota-powered app experience.
Tell me more about the exclusive content and experiences offered on the app.
We were really clear from the beginning that we didn’t want the app to just be another place to buy products because customers can already do that on the website. Working with One iota allowed us to create something that felt much more like a community and loyalty space for runners. So we offer exclusive competitions, giveaways, early access opportunities and experiences you can’t easily get elsewhere, including things like London Marathon entries and exclusive kit opportunities with major sporting brands. We also put a huge amount of focus into educational and editorial content around running, training and product advice. Often the first thing customers see isn’t ‘buy this shoe’, it’s content designed to genuinely help them as runners.
What have the partnerships with England Athletics, parkrun and Vitality looked like?
Those partnerships have become a really important part of our wider growth and loyalty strategy. Through the One iota app, we’ve been able to integrate those relationships directly into the customer experience so members can easily access and redeem discounts or partner benefits. But it’s also bigger than that because those organisations connect us directly into really engaged running communities. It gives us access to new audiences while also strengthening the relationship with existing customers who already identify strongly with those brands and communities.
What plans do you have for the app?
The next phase is really about making the experience more personalised and intelligent. We’re looking at how we can better understand customer interests and behaviours so we can make communications and recommendations much more relevant on an individual level. Push notifications are a huge opportunity there, but only if they’re genuinely useful and timely. We’re also exploring how technologies like large language models can improve product discovery, particularly in running where customers care about very specific technical details like cushioning, stability and terrain. Working with One iota gives us the flexibility to keep evolving the experience without having to completely rebuild the foundations every time we want to introduce something new.
