A study undertaken by Simon-Kucher & Partners at the request of het Financieele Dagblad (2022) concludes that increasing numbers of webshops are obligating consumers to pay for returns. This is largely due to increased prices in the logistics sector, the costs of a return, and the increasing extent to which returns are made. A combination of these factors means that large e-commerce players are starting to feel these costs in their financial results, for instance causing bol to terminate 300 jobs next year to cut costs, and Asos and Zalando to issue profit warnings in the summer of 2022.
Mark Helder (Director at Simon-Kucher) presents a market movement regarding the cost of returns, shifting from the corporation to an individual consumer to safeguard profitability. Alternate, Zara and Boohoo have already started charging consumers for returns on small orders, to ensure profitability per order.
Het Financieele Dagblad (2022) concludes that consumers have been too spoiled in recent years and the era of free returns and shipping is over.
This trend in the e-commerce sector shows the importance of SizeBuddy for webshops of all sizes. SizeBuddy helps online consumers find the right clothing size based on what they are wearing right now. This way, SizeBuddy reduces returns, increases revenues, and contributes to customer satisfaction.
Curious about the possibilities of SizeBuddy for your webshop? Contact us.
You can read the entire article from Het Financieele Dagblad here:
Comments