CHANGING RETURNS NORMS
As shippers begin to make returns policies tougher in the face of escalating costs and dwindling warehouse space, the era of returns that would get shipped back for free with no questions asked may be ending. And consumers largely seem to be amenable.We found that as many as 60% of consumers are willing to drive to return an item in store, particularly if the alternative is paying for return shipping (figure 2). As BOPIS flattens, this may be the next foot traffic and profit driver for retailers through supplemental sales during the same visit. FIGURE 2: NEARLY 60% OF CONSUMERS PREFER TO RETURN ITEMS FOR FREE IN STORE When you return an item purchased online, which of these would be your preferred method of return?
8%
11%
22%
59%
The challenge for retailers is still how to reprocess returns profitably once they do get back to the store. But there are definite opportunities to streamline returns logistics. The National Retail Foundation expects $761 billion in products sold in the U.S. last year to be returned, which, at 16.6%, is more than double 2019 returns levels as a percent of total retail sales.
Free in store when the location is less than 30-minute drive away
Drop off for a small fee ($2 to $5) at a nearby delivery provider location such as a dropbox or a USPS, UPS, or FedEx store
Paid collected return from home for a fee ($5 to $10)
Drop off for a small fee ($2 to $5) at a nearby grocery store (e.g., Whole Foods)
Delivering on demand: How many days is too many?
4
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