To address the frustration that 79% of shoppers under 30 year old experience with returns, retailers are refining their return processes for better customer satisfaction, particularly during the holiday season. The National Retail Federation noted a return rate increase to 16.5% last year, prompting retailers to shift focus to managing the high volume of returns. The pandemic has exacerbated this issue as consumers got used to buying multiple options for later return.
Gartner warned of the potential trillion-dollar scale of the problem, with returns significantly eroding profit margins. In response, retailers are becoming more strategic in their return policies.
Pitney Bowes, in collaboration with PackageHub, has launched a network for hassle-free returns at nearly 1,000 locations without the need for boxes or labels, directly competing with Amazon's return services. goTRG reports that 59% of retailers now adopt 'keep it' policies for financially impractical returns, a substantial increase from the previous year. Some retailers, like H&M, are differentiating their return charges based on loyalty program membership to encourage customer retention.
Meanwhile, services like Uber and ReturnQueen are offering convenient pickup options for returns, with ReturnQueen also offering a subscription model for unlimited return pickups, highlighting the ongoing evolution in the retail sector to make returns less of a burden for consumers.
