This morning subscription management platform Recurly announced results of the 2015 holiday season, which was exponentially successful for subscription merchants.

The results were drawn from a sample of 450 business-to-consumer subscription-based merchants who are clients of Recurly. The study period was two weeks long from Sunday, November 22 through Saturday, December 5, 2015, which included Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

Recurly reported the following results:

• On Cyber Monday, subscription-based merchants experienced a 230% jump in sales compared to other days during the study period.
• Same-store sales on Cyber Monday grew 83% compared to the previous year.
• From Black Friday through Cyber Monday, same-store sales grew 70% from the previous year.
• Three times more coupons were redeemed on Cyber Monday compared to other days during the study period.

“The popularity of the subscription model is largely due to the fact it benefits both consumers and businesses,” said Dan Burkhart, CEO and co-founder at Recurly, in the announcement. “Merchants reap the benefits of predictable revenue coupled with customer insights, creating opportunities to continually refine pricing, packaging and product offerings. Consumers enjoy the convenience of a relationship with the brands they trust most to deliver innovative products and experiences to them consistently over time.”

We had the opportunity to speak to Burkhart about these results and asked for his predictions for the 2016 holiday season.

“We expect this trend to continue, if not to exceed last year,” Burkhart said. “Increasingly companies that are consumer-facing are realizing that the holiday period is a big period of revenue that is largely coming from within their own subscriber audience. This is a wonderful thing to tap into for subscription companies seeking to grow their business.”

Frederick Felman, Chief Marketing Officer, said that the coupon redemption rate from subscription box companies this year was significant.

“Some folks were very effective at using those types of promotions, driving traffic and closing business on Cyber Monday,” Felman said.

“At holiday time when all of us are digging in to figure out the most appropriate gifts for our loved ones, there is a moment when we all think about the brands and services that mean the most to us and our lives,” added Burkhart. “It is a wonderful indication of brand sentiment If you have such a favorable rating from your own customer that they will then turn around and tell others or give others the experience by way of a gifting opportunity during this period.”

Insider Take:

These results support the idea that the subscription economy – and subscription boxes – continue to grow. Subscriptions make great gifts from a number of standpoints. They are effortless to give, are ongoing and thoughtful, especially when a current customer gives a subscription gift to a loved one. As Burkhart points out, this shows brand loyalty and serves as a testimonial to the value of the gift.

Subscription merchants can leverage this loyalty as a marketing tactic and use it to drive sales throughout the year, but particularly during the holidays. As we explained in our recent article, “The Keys to Subscription Box Success: Convenience and Curation,” successful companies recognize these opportunities and use them to their advantage. They take everyday items and make them extraordinary by turning them into an experience subscribers look forward to.

“I think the companies that are blowing this out of the water are the companies that are taking the hassle and drudgery out of shopping for baby formula or grabbing razors, those things you just don’t want to do,” said Felman. “The successful companies are the ones who are providing incredibly rich, curated experiences that deliver and delight subscribers, or offering them something unique, fun or beautiful on a monthly or weekly basis.”

For more on subscription box success, click here. For more on Recurly’s holiday 2015 report, click here.

Editorial Note: Recurly is a sponsor of Subscription Insider. That sponsorship is independent of our editorial coverage.