Replenishment Emails for Products That Run Out

A replenishment email reminds a customer to reorder something they're about to run out of, timed to how long the product lasts. If you sell coffee, skincare, supplements or pet food, it's the email most likely to turn a one-time buyer into a regular, because it arrives when the customer genuinely needs you. A second email can then offer subscribe-and-save so they never have to think about it again.

Audienceful ships this as the Replenishment / reorder reminder template: it starts when a Shopify order is paid, waits a month, sends the reminder, then pitches a subscription a week later. We make Audienceful, so we're not neutral. The template arrives paused with both emails written, and you can point it at just the products that run out.

This guide is part of our series on Shopify email flows.

Why reorder reminders work

A customer who loved your coffee will still run out on a Tuesday morning and buy whatever the supermarket has. You just weren't there when they needed more.

A reorder reminder email puts you there. Unlike most marketing email, it's useful: it saves the customer a trip and a decision, so it doesn't need a discount to work. And with consumables, you know roughly when each customer's next purchase is due.

The two emails

Email 1: the reorder reminder

The template's version reads: "If you're going through your last order at about the usual pace, you're probably starting to run low right about now." Then a Reorder now button, and a nudge to add a second item to clear the free-shipping threshold.

Example subject lines (ours, written for this guide):

• Running low? Time to restock
• Your coffee's probably running out about now
• Before you hit the last scoop

Copy tips:

• Show the exact product. A Product List block set to Dynamic pulls the items from the customer's original order, each linked to its page. "Reorder" next to a photo of what they already chose is the shortest path to checkout.
• Say "about now", not "you've run out". You're estimating, and wrong-but-confident timing reads as a bot.
• Give a reason to buy more than one. A free-shipping threshold or a larger size handles the "I'll order next time" delay.
• Skip the discount here. The reminder is the value. Save the offer for email 2.

Email 2: the subscribe-and-save pitch

The template's second email is titled "Never run out: subscribe & save 15%". It pitches a subscription on the customer's schedule, with 15% off every order and "skip, pause, or cancel any time."

Example subject lines:

• Never run out: subscribe & save 15%
• Want this on autopilot?
• Your favorite, delivered every 4 weeks

Copy tips:

• Lead with control. "Skip, pause or cancel any time" answers the fear that stops people subscribing.
• Match the offer to your subscription app. The email links to your subscribe page. Shopify has its own Shopify Subscriptions app, and many stores use a third-party one. The percentage and terms in the email must match what that app actually gives.
• No subscription offer? Swap email 2 for a bundle or larger-size pitch. If you put a code in it, create the code in Shopify, then add it to the email.

Time it to the product, not the calendar

The template waits one month as a sensible middle. A bag of coffee and a 90-day supply of vitamins need different waits: too early and the customer still has plenty, too late and they already bought elsewhere.

Work out the use-up time for a typical order, then send a few days before it ends. If you have repeat buyers already, look at the gap between their first and second orders in Shopify. That's your best guide.

These are starting points to test, not data. Pack sizes and habits vary too much for a universal number.

Then adjust from results. If most clicks on email 1 lead to a purchase days later, you're early. If customers reorder before email 1 even arrives, you're late.

One flow per product type

A store selling coffee and mugs shouldn't remind mug buyers to restock. In Audienceful, you filter the order paid trigger to specific products, so the flow only starts for orders that include them. Build one flow per product type, each with its own wait:

• Coffee reminder: trigger filtered to your coffee products, 2-3 week wait.
• Skincare reminder: filtered to serums and moisturizers, 5-7 week wait.
• Pet food reminder: filtered to food, wait matched to bag size.

Two details worth knowing. The filter matches when any item in the order is one you picked. And a Dynamic product block shows the whole order, not just the matched items. For a mixed order (coffee plus a mug), switch the block to Static and pick the coffee so the reminder only shows what runs out.

Skip customers who already reordered. Add a branch before each email that continues only if the customer hasn't bought that product recently, with a window shorter than the wait. For a 30-day wait, "no purchase in the last 21 days" works: the original order falls outside the window, but an early reorder doesn't.

Set it up in Audienceful

1. Install Audienceful from the Shopify App Store. Your account is created from the store and the plan is billed on your Shopify invoice. Customers, orders and your product catalog sync in, plus about a year of past orders from the historical import. Existing users can connect Shopify from the Integrations tab.
2. Apply the template. Open Shopify automations and pick Replenishment / reorder reminder.
3. Filter the trigger to the products this flow is for.
4. Set the first wait to that product's use-up time. Keep or change the 1-week gap before email 2.
5. Edit the copy and point the buttons at the product page and your subscribe page.
6. Add a Product List block, Dynamic for single-product orders or Static for mixed baskets.
7. Add the "hasn't reordered" branch, then switch it on. Templates arrive paused.

Then duplicate it for your next product type and change the filter and wait. You can change any part of the template. The replenishment reminder help doc has a click-by-click version.

How to measure it

Audienceful's revenue attribution gives each automation its own revenue line, using the last click within 5 days, with refunds netted and bot clicks excluded. Compare flows by product type: if the coffee flow earns well and the skincare one doesn't, its wait is the first thing to test.

For the full ecommerce playbook, see email marketing for ecommerce. Replenishment pairs with the Shopify post-purchase email (which sets up the first order) and the Shopify win-back email (for customers who stopped reordering anyway).

On price: at 10,000 contacts Audienceful is $79/month billed yearly ($99 monthly), against $150 for Klaviyo (list prices as of October 2026; try our Klaviyo pricing calculator for your list size). Paid plans include unlimited sends, and the Growth plan runs unlimited automations, so you can add a flow per product type as your range grows.

Audienceful is free up to 1,000 contacts, then paid plans start at $32/month billed yearly ($37.50 monthly) for 3,000 contacts. Install it on your Shopify store and switch on your first replenishment flow today.

FAQs

What is a replenishment email?

An automated email that reminds a customer to reorder a product they're about to run out of, timed to how long the product lasts. It's also called a reorder reminder email.

When should I send a reorder reminder?

A few days before a typical customer runs out. Estimate the use-up time of your usual order size, subtract a few days, and adjust once you see when people actually reorder. Audienceful's template defaults to 1 month after the order is paid.

Can I send different reminders for different products?

Yes. In Audienceful, filter the order paid trigger to specific products and build one flow per product type, each with its own wait and copy.

Should a replenishment email include a discount?

Usually not the first one: the reminder itself is the value. Save the offer for the follow-up, such as a subscribe-and-save discount that matches your subscription app.

Does a Shopify reorder email work without a subscription app?

Yes. Email 1 links to the product page and works on its own. Replace email 2 with a bundle or larger-size offer if you don't sell subscriptions.

Sources

• Shopify Changelog: The Shopify Subscriptions app is now in full release
• Klaviyo: Pricing