Inside Retail

JUNE 1, 2023

Growing consumer expectations of free delivery and free returns are placing pressure on retailers who on one hand recognise customer demand, but on the other are trying to reduce their operating costs. Another strategy, she says, is to automate fulfilment. This is especially true with women’s apparel, for example. “We’ve

Returns 234

Returns Shipping Promotions Fulfillment 234

Retail TouchPoints

JANUARY 3, 2024

Long viewed as a necessary evil, the retail returns process is emerging as an unexpected avenue for growth and customer engagement. In the rapidly expanding ecommerce market, projected to reach $3 billion in 2023, a significant 20% to 30% of online purchases end up being returned. Speed-to-restock is key in the returns cycle.

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Returns Drop-Shipping Customer Experience Customer Retention 265

Retail TouchPoints

MARCH 14, 2023

Returns are, like it or not, as much a part of retail operations as the sales themselves. The exact return rate varies among different verticals and individual retailers, but online sales consistently generate higher levels of returns compared to brick-and-mortar. That means you’re out of business.

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Retail TouchPoints

MAY 2, 2023

It’s meant to be quite simple for a shopper, but as an ecommerce retailer, you know it’s not that easy — especially if the customer changes their mind and wants to return said magical shipment back to your shop. What happens next, by way of return experience, most certainly impacts whether they will purchase from your business again.

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Retail TouchPoints

DECEMBER 26, 2022

Retailers know that despite high inflation and a volatile economy, consumer expectations are at an all-time high. Research shows that the majority of consumers want next-day delivery. Yet consumers don’t want to pay for speed. Single- or even two-warehouse fulfillment approaches force brands to choose between 1.

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Fulfillment Drop-Shipping Shipping Inventory Management 162

Retail TouchPoints

AUGUST 16, 2021

Returns provide brands and retailers the opportunity to delight their customers. market saw over $400B in returns in 2020. If this dollar value were a proxy for revenues, the returns channel would be the second largest global retailer behind Walmart. That is a significant amount of capital tied up in the returns channel!

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Retail TouchPoints

JUNE 29, 2023

In Amazon ’s latest moves to bolster its logistics and fulfillment network, the company has partnered with Staples to accept customer returns and is looking for 2,500 local business to join its new Hub Delivery network. Staples Joins Amazon’s Network of Returns Partners By July 31, 2023, all Staples U.S. Retail in a statement.

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Returns Fulfillment Location Planning 247

Retail TouchPoints

MARCH 24, 2022

Ask any retailer or consumer and they’ll agree on this point: ecommerce returns are a problem — albeit for diametrically opposed reasons. Meanwhile, more than three in four (78%) consumers say they’ve had an inconvenient online returns experience recently, per Pitney Bowes latest BOXpoll survey.

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Returns Drop-Shipping Merchant Services Shipping 311

Retail TouchPoints

NOVEMBER 8, 2022

In 2021, returns cost retailers a whopping $761 billion , or almost 17% of total U.S. This year the powerful combination of the special sale dates in Q4 (like Target, Amazon and Walmart holding October Black Friday events) and an increase in ecommerce holiday shopping means that this upward trend for returns will continue.

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Returns Markdowns Inventory Management Customer Experience 290

Retail TouchPoints

MARCH 28, 2023

For many years, permissive returns policies have been the norm in ecommerce. For the post-holiday season just past, it’s estimated that the total value of returned goods will be around $171 billion. retailers were revisiting their returns policies as of late 2022. With numbers like these, it’s no wonder that most U.S.

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Returns Home Furnishings Supply Chain Management Consumer 258

Retail TouchPoints

DECEMBER 7, 2023

The newly combined retailer has selected the Chief Returns Officer solution from Newmine , which has a predictive analytics functionality that will help the retailer quickly analyze and take corrective actions on why customers return merchandise.

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Returns Finance Accessories Consumer 254

Retail TouchPoints

OCTOBER 18, 2023

Online return fraud cost U.S. For every $100 in returned merchandise accepted, U.S. to return fraud, the NRF has calculated. While it is possible for shoppers to commit return fraud innocently simply by mis-reading the returns policy, a significant number of returns are the result of premeditation and malicious intent.

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Returns Payment Services Shipping Accounting 241

Retail TouchPoints

AUGUST 9, 2023

The idea of transforming malls into “mixed use” gathering spots has become popular, but an aerial view of these complexes provides an interesting perspective on another potential evolutionary path for the mall: as a fulfillment center. “ All those back-of-house loading docks are just perfect for fulfillment.

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Fulfillment Shopping Shipping Consumer 217

Retail TouchPoints

APRIL 11, 2023

Ecommerce has revolutionized retail shopping, with consumers trading in the poorly lit dressing room experience for the comfort of our own bedrooms. For some, however, this trade-off comes at the price of navigating frustrating and, at times, confusing return policies.

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Returns Customer Retention Consumer Shopping 259

Retail TouchPoints

JANUARY 10, 2023

DoorDash has introduced Package Pickup, allowing consumers across the country to have the service deliver up to five return items per trip to UPS, FedEx or the USPS. Consumers can attach prepaid shipping labels to their returns or send a shipping QR code directly to their “Dasher” via the DoorDash app.

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Returns Drop-Shipping Wholesale Shipping 249

Retail TouchPoints

APRIL 12, 2023

Amazon has reportedly instituted a new fee for certain returns at UPS stores as the ecommerce giant aims to reduce the impact of return costs, according to Seeking Alpha. The charge only occurs if return options at Whole Foods , Kohl’s or Amazon Fresh locations are closer, or just as far as, the nearest UPS store offering returns.

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Retail TouchPoints

MARCH 6, 2024

Retail’s busiest returns period may be in the rearview mirror until next year, but rising ecommerce order volumes have caused returns management to become an aspect of ecommerce and omnichannel business that warrants a dedicated year-round strategy. Returns are a major cost of doing retail business of any kind, but especially online.

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Customer Experience Returns Shipping Consumer 259

Retail TouchPoints

MARCH 10, 2021

Fulfillment was a key driver during the ecommerce-driven final quarter of 2020. Amazon will remain the retailer to beat, but fulfillment strategies like buy online, pick up in-store (BOPIS) and curbside are only becoming more important. Omnichannel and Store-Based Fulfillment Are Bigger Than Ever. Amazon’s Q4 revenue hit $125.56

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Fulfillment Drop-Shipping Apparel Shipping 258

Retail TouchPoints

MARCH 24, 2021

With returns of online purchases rising 148% in 2020 based on year-over-year comparisons, according to the National Retail Federation , retailers are seeking to improve the shopper’s experience while also streamlining the many elements involved in processing returns.

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Returns Fulfillment Management Consumer 216

Inside Retail

JUNE 1, 2023

Growing consumer expectations of free delivery and free returns are placing pressure on retailers who on one hand recognise customer demand, but on the other are trying to reduce their operating costs. Another strategy, she says, is to automate fulfilment. This is especially true with women’s apparel, for example. “We’ve

Returns 130

Returns Shipping Promotions Fulfillment 130

Retail TouchPoints

OCTOBER 4, 2023

Uber has introduced a package return service that provides consumers with live tracking within the Uber app. Uber will charge a flat $5 fee for returns, but only $3 for members of the Uber One loyalty program. Uber will charge a flat $5 fee for returns, but only $3 for members of the Uber One loyalty program.

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Returns Supermarket Location Consumer 162

Retail TouchPoints

MAY 11, 2021

It’s becoming increasingly clear that returns have costs that go well beyond the financial. 5 billion pounds of returned goods end up in landfills and 15 million metric tons of carbon dioxide are emitted in the transportation of returns, according to research conducted by reverse logistics solution provider Optoro.

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Returns Consumer Shopping Accounting 301

Inside Retail

SEPTEMBER 25, 2021

Australian consumers have the world at their fingertips and can order from all across the globe, not only from the large international e-commerce companies but also from specialist retailers – be it fashion, electronics or sporting goods. It’s the fulfilment of orders that is the key variable in what Dematic does,” explains Tomasiello.

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Consumer Fulfillment Sporting Goods Returns 246

Retail TouchPoints

MARCH 14, 2024

Meeting Luxury Consumers Where They Are (Image courtesy Whitman Family Development) The COVID-19 pandemic brought about many changes in the U.S., Meeting Luxury Consumers Where They Are (Image courtesy Whitman Family Development) The COVID-19 pandemic brought about many changes in the U.S., and then to Greenville, S.C.

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Shopping Consumer Drop-Shipping Shipping 282

Retail TouchPoints

FEBRUARY 21, 2024

Online shopping is now easier than ever before, enabling consumers to purchase everything from socks to a dining room table from a computer at their home to a mobile phone in an airport terminal. The ease of online shopping also gives consumers the ability to comparison shop more quickly, showing them more options in less time.

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Shipping Drop-Shipping Returns Comparison Shopping 225

Retail TouchPoints

SEPTEMBER 25, 2023

While we’ve returned to some sense of normalcy, the VUCA [volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous] proposition has become a reality,” said Dr. Thomas Goldsby, Professor and Chair in Logistics in the Supply Chain Management Department of the University of Tennessee. Retailers have to right-size consumer expectations.

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Returns Supply Chain Management Fulfillment Customer Experience 299

Retail TouchPoints

DECEMBER 16, 2022

The decline occurred despite muted inflation of just 0.1% , according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Consumer Price Index (CPI). The National Retail Federation (NRF) and Appriss Retail projected that the 2022 returns rate will remain at 16.5%, nearly even with the 16.6% Additionally, the online return rate fell from 20.8%

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Returns Home Furnishings Department Stores Customer Experience 279

Retail TouchPoints

MARCH 3, 2023

Consumers now look for personalization throughout their interactions with a retailer at multiple touch points. Industry leaders with expertise in customer experience have provided their stakeholders with 3X higher returns than the retailers that lack this expertise. Value added services have their own charm. Advanced customer support.

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Consumer Customer Experience Fulfillment Employee Engagement 232

Retail TouchPoints

NOVEMBER 8, 2022

Overstock.com is piloting a new returns program with UPS that will allow Overstock customers to schedule doorstep pickup for returns of unwanted items with no re-boxing required. . Initiatives like this one with UPS can go a long way in generating repeat business from our customers.”.

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Home Furnishings Returns Marketing Consumer 256

Retail TouchPoints

SEPTEMBER 3, 2020

Returns are a cost of doing business for any retailer. In the wake of COVID-19, returns are receiving serious (and necessary) attention for several key reasons: Retailers are spending more processing returns in stores. For retailers struggling to avoid bankruptcy or emerge from it, a growing returns quagmire could be deadly.

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Returns Merchant Services Department Stores Shipping 330

Retail TouchPoints

DECEMBER 29, 2023

The humble sneaker has long been a staple item in closets everywhere for consumers of all ages. A multi-node fulfillment strategy, based on decentralizing fulfillment processes by taking advantage of micro-distribution centers located close to customers rather than operating out of a single warehouse, can be particularly impactful.

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Apparel Fulfillment Returns Fashion 235

Retail TouchPoints

NOVEMBER 18, 2020

Mall operator Simon is launching a program that will allow consumers to quickly drop off returns from approximately two dozen brands at participating locations. More than 300 brands use the platform for online returns, including many that are also retailers in Simon properties.

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Returns Location Consumer Customer Experience 244

Retail TouchPoints

AUGUST 30, 2021

Retail rode strong into Q2 2021 as shoppers returned to stores even as digital sales remained elevated. The spring and early summer was an optimistic time for many consumers who finally emerged from lockdowns looking to refresh their wardrobes and find items suited for smaller local outings during the warmer months.

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Consumer Fulfillment Department Stores Sporting Goods 316

Inside Retail

MARCH 19, 2024

Tara Daly, senior director of product marketing at Loop Returns , shares with Inside Retail advice on getting started in the US market, some tips on cross-border shipping and logistics – including managing returns in a way that builds customer loyalty – and how to drive repeat business. Begin with baby steps, she advocates.

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Planning Shipping Returns Customer Retention 290

Retail TouchPoints

OCTOBER 6, 2023

With the bustling holiday shopping season nearing, many brands have spent the last several months assessing their operational strengths and weaknesses, particularly in logistics and fulfillment. 4: Return rates. Returns are an inevitable part of retail. shoppers returned more — and earlier — than in the previous holiday season.

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Fulfillment Returns Shipping Promotions 276

Retail TouchPoints

AUGUST 28, 2023

billion consumers worldwide. For the back-to-school season, 42% of consumers say they are spending more, but 57% are trading down for lower prices,” said Caila Schwartz, Director of Consumer Insights and Strategy for Retail and Consumer Goods at Salesforce during an Aug. trillion in online sales. 22, 2023 briefing.

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Returns Fulfillment Shipping Checkout 220

Retail TouchPoints

APRIL 19, 2021

To overcome supply chain disruptions, many online retailers are already making changes to their existing fulfilment operations. Over one-third (37%) are assessing and implementing new technology solutions to increase supply chain efficiency, whilst 33% are splitting inventory to base fulfilment in existing UK and European facilities.

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Fulfillment Supply Chain Management Management Promotions 149