Bracketing and paid returns: what is changing in e-commerce in Italy

United States

Let's start by giving you some context: it all stems from the phenomenon of compulsive purchases and returns in the United States which generates a significant impact on company balance sheets. In 2022, CNN said 17% of goods purchased in the US were returned. An increase compared to 2019, in which the return of goods was around 8%. An increase that is not only reflected in terms of costs for companies, but which inevitably affects all of us at an environmental level.

And this is how Amazon began to change the rules, or rather the return policy, making them paid. A move copied by many other fashion companies such as Zara, Abercrombie & Fitch, H&M and Anthropologie with commissions reaching 7 dollars (much higher than the American e-commerce giant).

Europe

The first country to join the abolition of free returns was the United Kingdom, as revealed by the New York Post (and relaunched by la Repubblica), where 81% of retailers introduced an additional cost for returning products. In this case, Zara has started charging £1.95 for the return of items purchased online through collection points managed by third parties (e.g. post offices), a policy similarly adopted by Asos.

Italy

Amazon has announced that returns are currently still free within 30 days and no changes are expected in the near future, except for some items, such as CDs, DVDs, eBooks and alcoholic beverages.

In the fashion sector, here is what the return policies will be for some brands:

• Zara Italia: confirms that the return remains free only if you bring the item to the store, while home collection costs €4.95.
• H&M Italia: free returns for all members, otherwise there will be a charge of €2.99
• Abercrombie & Fitch: from 24 January 2024 it will be possible to return or exchange garments and accessories only in boutiques or via a specific courier
• Yoox: confirm that the return will be subject to payment.

At this point we asked ourselves: will it be enough to make returns subject to charges to combat the phenomenon of bracketing, the habit of consumers buying the same or similar products in different sizes in order to keep only one?
Well, not really.

The ease with which consumers return a product is not strictly linked to its cost (or not). Suffice it to say that customers who purchase medium-high range products are not formalized by a figure applied to the return, which is a sustainable (or negligible) cost compared to the purchase cost.
It seems clear that we are faced with a situation in which customers are not completely discouraged from paying for returns, and although the problem is reduced, much more is needed to combat it.

So, what are the solution?

To mitigate bracketing losses, e-commerce retailers are implementing a variety of strategies. Below, you will find some solutions that we have recommended to our customers and that are currently in use:

• investigate the reason for the return: it is not enough to report a wrong size, but it is useful to ask for more information. “Was the item too big or too small? Was the color unrealistic to the photo?” these are just some of the questions to investigate the return;
• survey: submit a survey to the customer to understand what can be improved in the entire customer journey process;
• additional infos: to help the customer, information can be added regarding the height and size of the model so as to have a parameter to base on;
• AI: a simple size guide is no longer enough. Artificial Intelligence is now more than fully accepted, so we can rely on the correct assignment of the size through smart sizing;
• virtual assistance: not just chatbots. Live chat and video calling services where it is possible to answer all customer doubts in real time are increasingly expanding.

In short, all the panic generated in the first days of the year is less serious than it seems. As you may have guessed, it remains a free choice for the company to decide whether or not to charge the cost of the return, but we would like to make a small note on shipping costs: the company can decide whether or not to charge them to the customer, but in the event of a return they must always be refunded (unlike duties, for which the rules of the Consumer Code do not apply).

— 11 January 2024