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‘Returnuary’ Highlights the Brilliant and Bizarre of Holiday Retail Regret
- The holiday season is the golden quarter for eCommerce, where businesses pull out all the stops to maximize sales.
- Yet, as the festive glow dims in January, a challenge of equal magnitude looms above the retail landscape: the holiday returns season.
- This period has been named "Returnuary" by experts, as shoppers return the merchandise being sent back that is sometimes nothing to sniff at—literally.
- The rise of social media culture has introduced an entirely new category of returns: outfits worn once for the perfect Instagram shot and promptly sent back.
- Sophistication in the way returns are handled is on the rise, with innovations like reverse logistics and blockchain-based item tracking.
- Customers justify their actions with a belief that retailers have “built-in” profit margins to absorb returns, which can cut into already slim margins of smaller businesses and consume valuable time.
- Shopper returns made up $743 billion, or 14.5%, of the $5.13 trillion of retail sales reported last year, compared to 8.8% in 2012, which represents a jump of 60%.
- The PYMNTS Intelligence report “2024 Global Digital Shopping Index: SMB Edition” found that a frictionless returns process has become critical to customer retention as fast shipping.
- Building customer loyalty through a seamless returns process is no easy feat, but it’s an opportunity to reinforce customer loyalty, optimize operations, and innovate for the future.
- ‘Returnuary’ ultimately is more than a retail headache, and it highlights the evolving relationship between consumers and brands in the age of convenience.
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