Consumers are returning more goods they bought online than ever – but more than a third say that retailers do not make it easy for them to do so.
Returns management platform Rebound questioned 1,000 people in the UK this January and found that 42% of millennials – aged between 18 and 35 – now return more purchases than they did two years ago. Overall, 90% of respondents said that returns were important in their shopping decisions, and 49% said they were very important.
That said, more than a third (35%) said that retailers did not make it easy for them to send items back, and 60% of millennials, and 46% of all respondents, said they had stopped shopping with a retailer because the returns process was hard or unclear.
Some 62% said they would use a courier service to return an item if that option was available, while 9% said they had no communication about returns from the retailers they bought with at all.
“It’s clear that the role of returns in the shopping journey has never been more important, particularly for millennial consumers, yet retailers continue to ignore it,” said Graham Best, chief executive of Rebound. “It’s essential that retailers take a long look at their services and iron out their consumers’ returns pain points. Some elements, like better communication, are easily fixed but to really turn the dial, retailers need to give their returns lifecycle a full review and make it a boardroom priority. We’ve seen brands like Asos create an amazing returns service, leading from the top with a dedicated head of returns, which has undoubtedly paid off.”
Ben Richardson co-founder and marketing director at Freestyle Xtreme, said: “For our business, having a solid returns process in place is a key differentiator. This focus has led to a number of advantages for our business, including better customer retention, increased overall sales and more opportunities to develop our brand internationally.”
