Loop data: North American e-commerce return rate increased by 41%

Returns platform Loop aggregates return data from hundreds of online retailers , and retailers saw a 41% increase in online order returns during the 2020 holiday season. The data measured more than 1 million return orders between November 30, 2020 and January 20, 2021 , and compared them to the same period last year.

The period with the highest return rate is the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day, with an average daily increase of 70% in consumers initiating returns compared to the daily average from September 24 to November 24 .

Another reason for the increase in returns in 2020 could be a rise in “bracketing,” where consumers buy multiple versions of the same item (usually clothing) to try at home and then return the ones they’re not happy with , according to a recent survey of 161 U.S. consumers who returned an item at least once between April and September 2020 .

Delivery software provider Narvar conducted the survey in September 2020 and found that consumer preference for delivery increased by 22 percentage points between 2017 and 2020 .

Younger and wealthier consumers are more likely to be surrounded, with 30% of consumers under 30 saying they are surrounded, and 66% of shoppers with a household income of more than $100,000 saying they are surrounded.

The “ encirclement ” exists in most online retailers, as many online clothing retailers offer free shipping and free return shipping. According to data , 75.4% of the top 1,000 clothing merchants offer free shipping in some capacity, such as a minimum order amount, while 39.9% of clothing merchants offer free return shipping .

The data shows that 41% of people cannot grasp the size well due to weight changes, 31% said they usually try them on in stores but cannot go to physical stores due to the epidemic, and 21% of consumers are shopping online for the first time or trying to buy on a new platform.

Whether good or bad, the return experience can have a lasting impact on consumers and their future purchases, according to Narvar. The survey found that 76 % of first-time shoppers who returned a product and said their return experience was "easy" or "very easy" said they would shop with that retailer again. But 33 % of returning shoppers who said their return experience was "difficult" or "very difficult" said they would not shop with the retailer again.

Consumers who found returns easy provided their perspectives: 46% said they were able to return items at a convenient location ; 43% said they were notified when a refund was received ; 38% said they received an immediate refund ; and 32% said they were kept up to date on the status of their return.

Loop

E-commerce

North America

return the goods