As we ease into the new normal during the global pandemic, many of the things we used to do are looking a lot different. In retail, we’ve seen a shift in online shopping and many retailers have announced the closures of physical locations.
The stores that have reopened have new protocols in place to ensure the safety of employees and shoppers. Among some of the changes, there are more lineups, markers for social distancing, limits in-stores, and a lot of cleaning. It’s just the price we have to pay for the shopping experience we’ve missed over the past few months. But one thing we’ve been particularly interested in is how retailers are now handling store returns and exchanges.
Here is How 4 different retailers are approaching the in-store return and exchange process since stores have reopened.
Aldo Shoes
For purchases made online between February 1, 2020 and May 1, 2020, the return period has been extended to July 1. Items that are returned will be put into a 24-hour quarantine. Afterward, the items will be sanitized and put back into inventory. As per usual, items such as earrings, jewellery, and insoles are final sale.
WINNERS, Marshalls, and HomeSense
Like Aldo Shoes, all three TJX brands — WINNERS, Marshalls, and HomeSense — will be setting aside return merchandise for 24-hours, unless otherwise mandated by a province, before making it available for customers to purchase.
H&M
In a statement to Narcity, H&M said that returns will be isolated for 24-hours before it’s placed back onto the sales floor for purchase. In addition, H&M has extended its store return policy for online purchases from 30 days to 90 days, and in-store sale items, which were originally final sale, are now eligible for exchanges.
Saks Fifth Avenue
Saks Fifth Avenue is taking a four-part approach to reopening its Canadian locations, which includes new protocols for how returns are handled. During this time, Saks is putting its returns in isolation for a period of 48-hours. The luxury retailer is also offering curbside returns and a dedicated sales desk on the stores’ main floors.
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Whether something doesn’t fit, doesn’t look right, or wasn’t made properly, you have plenty of reasons to return an item you’ve bought to the store. It’s something as normal to you as sending a dish back at a restaurant, right? Well, not for much longer, according to the Wall Street Journal.
As we move farther and farther into the digital age, we are watched more closely than ever — and that now includes our returns.
You’ve probably heard of companies giving your information to third-party apps or companies, right? Well, even your return habits are being sent to a third party called The Retail Equation, and that information is being used by the stores you love to shop at.
The Retail Equation program helps stores to evaluate customers’ return behaviour and ban those who return too many products.
The principle behind the practice is this: major companies like Home Depot and Victoria’s Secret want to keep an eye on the frequency at which a single customer returns products. They’re looking for risks to their companies, since the numbers show that 92.5% of retailers have experienced a form of “return fraud.”
Essentially, they want to make sure they’re not being scammed.
Does a customer return things on a regular basis? How much do they get back, and in what form? These are all things that are now being monitored by your ID. The Retail Equation will build a shopping and return history using your identification to keep track of you. If something in their algorithm is triggered, they can deny you your money back.
“A Home Depot representative, Matt Harrigan, noted that to combat return fraud, the home improvement retailer uses the Retail Equation database only for returns made without a receipt,” reports NPR.
According to the NPR, retailers use it to prevent retail crime.”There were organized retail crime rings, and those crimes negatively affect the entire community.”
The problem, however, is that this database is not perfect.
For example, the Wall Street Journal reports, Best Buy customer Jake Zakhar ran into a snag in the system after he returned three phone cases to the big box store. Like many of us, he bought a few extra than he needed and planned to return the ones his sons didn’t want. However, upon speaking to an associate at Best Buy, he was told that he was banned from shopping and exchanging anything at Best Buy for a year.
There is some good news, however: The Retail Equation has a step-by-step process to help customers like Jake. Emailing them is the first step to appealing your case, and also to obtaining your Retail Equation Report.
Even so, some customers are still having trouble, as evidenced by TRE’s one-star rating on Yelp. One user wrote, “This company is the worst company I have dealt with in the last 20 years.”
The Retail Equation currently has a class action lawsuit against them.
Featured image:bellaellaboutique via Flickr
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