Novel

Name: Novel
Brand: Novel
Rating: 1 (1 reviews)

AI Native

Your pass to loyalty. Push, shop, repeat—your brand goes omnichannel with wallet passes. No app, no problem.

Est 2021|Raised $7M|59 Ref Customers

LinkedIn 796|Website|FTEs 11|HQ Austin, us

MarketsCustomer Loyalty Software

Published Oct 14, 2026

01Common complaints

1) Procurement requires formal, publicly documented security/compliance certifications - If the buying organization requires SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001, or equivalent documentation prior to contracting and cannot obtain those artifacts under NDA from Novel, an alternative vendor with published certifications may be necessary. 2) Cost structure cannot tolerate per-pass monthly fees at scale - Merchants projecting very large installed pass counts (hundreds of thousands) should model per-pass recurring fees carefully; alternatives with different pricing models or custom implementations may offer more predictable TCO at scale. 3) Non-Shopify or multi-platform commerce requirements - The product's public documentation and integrations emphasize Shopify; organizations with multi-platform or non-Shopify POS environments should validate integration feasibility before selection. 4) Limited operational bandwidth for ongoing campaign management - Wallet pass programs require ongoing creative and operational activity (push campaigns, segmentation, A/B testing). Organizations seeking purely "set-and-forget" loyalty tooling without staffing to run campaigns may find simpler loyalty tools more appropriate. 5) Procurement processes that depend on extensive third-party review depth - If vendor selection requires a robust corpus of independent reviews on platforms such as G2, TrustRadius, or Gartner Peer Insights, the limited accessible coverage for Novel may be a procurement constraint.

Deal disqualifiers

Merchants not on Shopify or those requiring deep multi-platform commerce support without acceptable integration options
Organizations requiring publicly verifiable enterprise security certifications prior to procurement
Brands that cannot operationalize in-store scanning or lack retail staff processes to support wallet-pass workflows

Vendor-acknowledged public limitations

Wallet passes and certain documented integrations are currently focused on Shopify merchants, per vendor materials.
Shopify POS integration workflows include caveats (for example, some redemption flows require a product to be present in the cart under specific configurations).

Roadmap visibility

No detailed public product roadmap was identified in the reviewed sources.

Security and compliance gaps

No public SOC 2 or ISO 27001 documentation was discovered in the public materials reviewed.

Market perception risk

Automated domain and scam-checker sites may flag the domain using heuristic-based scoring; these systems are not authoritative security audits but can influence perception. Buyers should verify corporate identity and vendor communication practices as part of diligence.

02Why they buy

Unique selling points supported by public evidence

Wallet pass as a loyalty surface: the product stores loyalty status and tier information in Apple/Google Wallet passes.
Wallet push notifications as an engagement channel without requiring a dedicated branded mobile app (vendor-presented positioning).
Shopify POS scanning and documented Shopify-native flows for in-store identification and redemption.
Reported responsiveness from vendor support in merchant reviews and vendor materials.

Competitive caveats

Enterprise wallet engagement platforms may offer more extensive governance, analytics, and compliance documentation; API-first providers may offer greater flexibility for non-Shopify technical implementations.

03Field reports

Review platform availability and limitations

Mainstream B2B review platforms (G2, TrustRadius, Gartner Peer Insights) did not show a substantial, readily discoverable review corpus for Novel's wallet-pass product in the materials captured. The most actionable public review signal for the Shopify-distributed app is the Shopify App Store review set.

Shopify App Store reviews (limited volume, high ratings)

- At the time of data collection, the Shopify App Store listing for "Novel: Wallet Pass for Brands" included a small number of reviews with an overall top-tier average rating. - The review volume is small and concentrated at the top rating. Small sample sizes and platform-specific dynamics mean the rating should be interpreted cautiously. Representative merchant feedback summarized from public reviews: - Some merchants reported positive experiences with integration into Shopify and use of wallet passes for loyalty and push notifications. - Several merchants remarked on perceived responsiveness of vendor support and cited assistance with implementation or customization. - A subset of merchants indicated that the product matured over time and that communication from the vendor was helpful during early-stage usage.

Negative reviews and other complaints

- A very small number of negative signals were identified in public sources, including a very low-rated complaint on a third-party review site alleging spam outreach behavior. This complaint relates to outreach and communications rather than core wallet-pass technical functionality, based on the available information. - Public commentary about review authenticity in the Shopify ecosystem creates baseline diligence risk: platform reviews can be noisy, and some third-party commentary indicates that Shopify App Store reviews may be subject to manipulation. This observation does not confirm manipulation of Novel's reviews, but it reduces the confidence level of any interpretation that treats perfect scores as conclusive evidence of broad satisfaction.

Summary themes from customers (why buyers chose the product)

Common selection drivers that appear in vendor materials and merchant reviews include:

Ability to deliver loyalty status and balances through a wallet pass rather than a dedicated mobile app
Use of wallet push notifications as an additional engagement channel
Integration with Shopify ecosystems (Shopify POS scanning, Shopify account integration)
Vendor responsiveness and customization assistance reported by some merchants

Inferred churn drivers (not directly evidenced)

Based on product characteristics and public materials, potential reasons for customer churn or departure could include:

Low consumer adoption of wallet passes leading to weak ROI compared with existing loyalty/email/SMS channels
Cost growth from per-pass monthly pricing at large installed base sizes
Limitations for non-Shopify merchants or multi-platform commerce strategies

Vendor/press case-style claims

- A press item referenced a luxury leather goods brand that adopted Novel's wallet pass technology and, according to the article, reported a substantial year-over-year lift in Black Friday revenue attributed in part to referrals and push campaigns. Critical evaluation: - The cited media report is not an independently audited case study: methodology details, control groups, attribution models, and concurrent marketing activities were not disclosed in the reporting reviewed. The result should be treated as directional and illustrative rather than definitive proof of causal impact across other merchants.

Merchant-sourced outcomes

Merchant comments in public reviews describe increased engagement and perceived conversion improvements from push notifications and easier loyalty enrollment. These reports are qualitative and subject to selection bias among reviewers, but they provide voice-of-customer signals about perceived value.

04Best fit

Company size

Likely best fit: mid-market merchants on Shopify — small-to-mid-sized teams with established order volume and an active retention program. The product may also be applicable to larger omnichannel retailers on Shopify Plus where specific integrations are required.

Industries/verticals

DTC retail categories such as apparel, beauty, accessories, and specialty retail show the most evidence of fit in public materials.

Roles and personas

Decision makers: Head of Retention, Director of CRM/Lifecycle, VP Marketing, Ecommerce Director, or operations leadership in smaller teams.
End users: lifecycle marketers, loyalty managers, and retail operations staff responsible for in-store workflows.

Pain points addressed

Reducing loyalty friction associated with native app installs
Providing an additional push notification channel that does not require a branded app
Enabling omnichannel identification and attribution for in-store and online customers via wallet passes and POS scanning

05The pitch

What the product does (core value proposition)

Novel is a B2B retention and loyalty engagement product for Shopify merchants that issues branded Apple Wallet and Google Wallet passes ("wallet passes"). Core capabilities documented by the vendor and observed in public materials include: - Displaying loyalty program information (points, tier, balances) in a wallet pass - In-store identification and redemption via Shopify POS scanning - Wallet push notifications as an engagement channel (presented by Novel as a channel distinct from SMS) - Referral and distribution mechanisms using links and QR codes The vendor positions wallet passes as a lightweight engagement surface that can be used in place of a dedicated branded mobile app for some loyalty scenarios.

Target market and positioning

- Primary: Shopify-based direct-to-consumer (DTC) and retail brands seeking wallet-based loyalty, in-store enrollment, and an alternative engagement channel beyond email/SMS. - Likely buyer personas: ecommerce and retention leaders (CRM, lifecycle marketing), loyalty managers, and founders/operators for smaller brands. - The company uses a marketing tagline to describe the product's role in loyalty programs and emphasizes integrations with existing loyalty platforms rather than a full replacement of those platforms.

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