Kogan.com is preparing to implement a price rise on its membership program, promising customers more savings and extra value after net profits tripled to $10.2 million.
The e-commerce marketplace will lift the cost of its premium subscription, Kogan FIRST, from $99 to $129 on April 8 in a move that founder and chief executive Ruslan Kogan said was designed to give members even more bang for their buck.
Kogan.com founder and chief executive Ruslan Kogan.Credit: Eamon Gallagher
“We are continuing to increase the benefits that Kogan FIRST members get, and in order to keep the program sustainable and providing that huge amount of value to those customers, we have had to make a difficult decision of a price rise,” Kogan said.
“Yes, it’s better to not have a price rise, but they’re still making huge, huge savings across the board.”
More than 60 per cent of Kogan.com’s sales now come from Kogan FIRST members, or approximately 466,000 people among the online retailer’s 3 million customers. Kogan said the program was being continually expanded and had to be funded by a price rise as a result.
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“We’re giving away free shipping, express shipping, credits to those customers, they get 2 per cent cashback on exclusive brands, they’re getting double Qantas points, and we’re also giving away hundreds of thousands of dollars of prizes to Kogan FIRST customers,” he said.
“We haven’t had anyone be able to show us a better loyalty program than this.”
In November, consumer advocate CHOICE awarded Kogan FIRST a “Shonky Award”, accusing the $758.3 million company of tricking customers into signing up to the subscription without intending to.
