@viques I think you'd be surprised at the cost of creating and dispatching the boxes. The postal costs alone will be very high, and the time and investment in getting the contents together, liaising with the supplier brands, procuring the packaging etc... at the moment we are getting all of that for free.
In the new scheme we are getting it for £15. It's not simply a question of "is that profitable at £15 per box and at what margin", but whether this very labour-intensive subscription programme is the most efficient way for Liberty to turn £15 of customers' money into revenue. I would imagine there are much easier ways for them to make money than this.
They will have increased cash flow with the monthly subs, yes, but these things are actually incredibly complicated to manage from a financial oversight and compliance perspective.
That leaves you arguing the case for such a scheme based on things like projected customer loyalty and increased annual spend, and brand-building. Again, there are probably more efficient ways for Liberty to build its brand, and marketing activities aimed at driving loyalty are notoriously ineffective.
Ultimately, many luxury brands like Liberty tend to be finding that they are better-off targeting the much wealthier 1% segment, who aren't that fussed about savings etc, rather than the more middle class "treating themselves" segments that may have been the bulk of their customer base in the past.
All in all, this isn't a programme that I'd have launched, as a marketer. I was absolutely delighted to partake in it as a consumer because it quite literally was too good to be true! The really dreadful thing is that they have caused more brand damage this way, by launching it and then pulling it, than if they had just never launched it in the first place.