‘Serial returners’ putting pressure on retailers

Do you often order something online and then send it back?

An estimated 30% of shoppers deliberately over-buy and subsequently return unwanted items, the survey found. For example you may buy a new dress and you order it in more than one size and keep the size that fits then sends back the other dresses.

Six in 10 shoppers say a retailer’s returns policy influences their decision to buy, and nearly half of these would not order an item if they had to pay to send it back.

But almost half of shoppers say that standardising clothing and shoe sizes would save them from having to order multiple items to ensure a correct fit.

Now 1 in 5 retailers have admitted that they have had to increase their prices to cover the cost of so many returned items.

Sharon Manikon, head of customer solutions at Barclaycard Global Payment Acceptance, said ”Today’s time-pressed shopper expects the process to be fast, easy and free – and that applies to both buying goods as well as returning them. Online spending will continue to rise and the need to keep pace with customer demands presents a dilemma for businesses needing to protect their bottom line. From developing universal sizing to offering virtual dressing rooms, the key for today’s businesses is to determine which innovations work best for them while ensuring they don’t lose out to their more savvy competition.”

Are you guilty of over ordering then sending back? Should retailers do more to ensure all clothing sizes are the same everywhere?