Introduction
Total holiday retail sales are expected to grow by nearly 10% this year. Survey data shows many people are ready to go back to stores–but that doesn’t mean the explosive digital trend is reversing any time soon. By Deloitte’s conservative measure, e-commerce sales will grow by up to 11–15%. Retail executives expect even higher online growth—up to 35%.
As total sales accelerate, so will overall returns. One primary reason is that during the holidays, returns can spike up to 30–40%, and with eCommerce return rates being higher than in-store return rates, this digital acceleration will only feed into the (growing) problem.
Consumer shopping habits have permanently shifted, forcing retailers to manage an exponentially growing number of unwanted items. Additionally, they’re faced with mounting forward- and reverse-supply-chain challenges coupled with unprecedented staffing shortages this year.
With the holidays and peak returns season approaching, retailers must prepare to manage returns more efficiently. To do this, omnichannel organizations must:
• Enhance reverse supply chain strategies
• Implement returns management software
• Utilize the secondary market
• Rethink returns policies
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