How this shoe brand grew online sales 79% with Meta ads

Written By Megan Winter
Listen on Apple
Listen on Spotify

When Carol opened The Shoe Garden in Brisbane in 2012, she was recovering from burnout and building something she knew women needed: fashionable, colourful shoes for longer feet, starting at size 10. Mainstream retailers offer women with longer feet very few options, so Carol's customers don't just buy shoes from her. They light up, and some even tear up, when they finally have real choice.

Carol's niche and loyal customer base still didn't make marketing easy. After radio ads and other efforts that didn't deliver, she started working with Lume Marketing in 2024 to run Meta ads. Comparing the year before ads with the last financial year, the results were:

  • 79% growth in online sales

  • 45% increase in new customers

  • Around 600% return on ad spend

In 2026, Carol went a step further. She completed our 8-week program and now runs her own ads, handling the tracking, analysis and optimisation herself.

In this episode, Megan and Carol talk about:

  • How Carol built a business serving an underserved niche

  • Why consistency and repetition keep you top of mind with customers

  • Why Carol first chose to outsource her ads, and what made her ready to take them back in-house

  • How one-on-one training lets you apply what you learn to your own data and circumstances, beyond the general advice that's everywhere

  • How Carol's historical data from her time as a client gave her a head start when she took over

  • Why you need to either learn to run your ads well or hire experts, because doing neither stalls growth

Learn more about working with us:

The next 8-week mentoring program where you'll learn to run Meta ads like a pro is opening soon. Apply Now.
Hire us to run your ads. Learn more.
Learn how to run your own ads. Click here.

Learn more about your host:

Megan Winter is a meta ads expert, an experienced ADMA and AMI-awarded marketer and founder of Lume Marketing.

As an early-adopter of digital marketing and social media advertising, she has consulted to global brands owned by Heineken and Lexus, has taught hundreds of small business owners at The Facebook Ads Academy, and presented on digital marketing at Bond University.

Now, her passion is helping ethical, purpose-led brands achieve more income and impact with high-performing meta ads.

Connect with Megan on Instagram@meganwinter orLinkedIn

Loved the pod?

  • Leave a review and you may just find yourself getting a shoutout on the pod.

Megan Winter
Next

Agency or DIY? When to Hire (or Fire) Your Meta Ads Agency