You want to give people as reason to go back to brick and mortar shopping? Because this is how you get people to go back to brick and mortar shopping.
this post was submitted on 26 Dec 2023
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The main issue is amazon and their insistence on allowing China to sell utter trash, knock offs, counterfeits, and lies.
Amazon used to require someone selling in the US to have a physical presence of at least like a small office building in the US in order to sell goods here. They got rid of that like 10 years ago and now you get bs brands like Liuxipon selling flashlights that are garbage with 300 fake 5 star reviews. Then if they get flagged enough or get enough real 1 star reviews, no problem. Now their company name is Lioxipan and they do it again.
Amazon turned itself into a trash heap.
We started shopping AliExpress instead of Amazon. At least you don't pay the high Amazon prices and are pleasantly surprised when something of decent quality arrives. Got the kids some flying spacemen drones. $1.99 each. They've been playing with them all day long. No complaints. AliExpress even refunded me on a few things that arrived broken, without having to return anything.
That’s exactly what I do because amazon basically sells the same stuff as aliexpress, only amazon insists on selling stuff in higher quantities to jack up prices.
Bigger quantities to up prices?
For example, let’s say I needed a clear container tube for something like lotion. And I only need one, or two. But definitely no more than 5.
Amazon will only sell something like 12 pieces for over $10, whereas on aliexpress, I’ll be able to purchase 1 or 2 for $0.33.
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As if they wouldn't just charge a "restocking fee."
I worked retail for 15 years, and the only time we charged a restocking fee was if we couldn’t sell it as new, and there was nothing wrong with it. If you returned it brand new, full refund. If you opened it and/or used it and decided to return it, 15% restocking fee. That seemed reasonable to me.
If you can see the item in real life and compare it to other products before you buy, you're less likely to need to return it.
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That is what they want. Offer free returns in store, and people will go to their physical locations and also buy something else.
That’s what kohl’s does in taking Amazon returns. They even give you a $5 store credit to sweeten the allure on your walk from the back of the store
Not to mention the additional traffic it generates, good for the corporate machine at large
That real estate isn't gonna pay for itself! Won't you think of the shareholders?
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Ok, but Amazon is 100% fake Chinese crap now, so don’t expect people to jump into buying that anymore without some idea that it can be sent back. Real brands don’t even sell on Amazon anymore.
What Amazon is that? That seems crazy.
I can find all my real brand of what I need in there, but I am not from America tbh.
I have the same experience unfortunately in Europe. Was looking for a new hairdryer the other day, and it's just endless pages of the same Chinese crap with made up brand names and fake customer reviews.
Gave up and drove to the store instead.
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You can order from a good brand, but that doesn't stop the counterfeiters from putting on a fake label.
Amazon does single-bin sorting of products sold by multiple sellers. So all of widget X get put in one bin and shipped regardless of the source. That encourages fake/counterfeit products because it's impossible to trace which of the hundred companies selling the product is actually supplying the fakes.
I watched a video somewhere on 18650 batteries, and the takeaway was that most of the batteries provided from Amazon (regardless of branding) are fake.
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it gets pretty bad when you're looking for something specific like cable crimps. louis rossmann dod a video on that.
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Gonna have a slight chilling effect on sales. People won’t buy stuff unless they’re 100% sure.
Or at least people will return to bricks and mortar stores for purchases of the types of items that get returned most often.
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As they should.
Shipping fees for returns isn't too bad, but if it looks like a retailer isn't standing behind the products they sell them they shouldn't be surprised when shoppers shop elsewhere.
The issue is that it's become too easy to buy a garment in 5 sizes and just return the ones that don't fit. Many of those returned garments don't get restocked, but instead end up selling downmarket where they can often end up in landfill. It wastes fuel, the retailer's money, and harms the environment.
I think there should be some consequence for return. Even just a few dollars. Maybe find a better way to size things accurately so people don't have to be so cautious.
If clothing manufacturers made clothes anywhere near standard sizes people wouldn't need to get 5 different sizes to figure out what the hell a Large is supposed to be.
In general I avoid buying clothes online. And I will avoid it much more if returns are difficult.
I mean sure, but everyone’s bodies are different. What drives me nuts is quality control. You can pick up 10 pairs of Levi’s that are 34x30 and each one will be different by probably over an inch. I have resorted to taking several identical pairs to the dressing room and keeping the one that fit the best.
Then everyone’s bodies are different. Some clothes will be cut differently and then fit differently. Basically, clothes shopping if you can’t get a few sizes online (or a few of the same sizes…) sucks.
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How often are returns defective vs just didn't want/didn't fit? If the item is defective you can't restock it. If the item isn't defective that's where more cost might come in to get the item back in circulation to be sold.
Click bait article that gets recycled every few years. Ain't happening...
So I work for home depot and we have started doing a restock fee for special orders. It has slowed down orders and returns that I think will continue as a trend.
So is the article a lie? "Eighty-one precent of merchants [AREN'T] now charging a fee for at least some methods of returns"(?)
Yeah, due to that video I'm stopping buying clothes online. I knew it was bad, but not how bad. I also had a recent experience with 3/3 items not fitting right, as well as a good experience in store. No reason to shop online.
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All shitty clothing stores, lol.
I just get my clothes at Walmart and pants at Old Navy cause I'm a thin and tall dude.
Honestly I don't blame them. If they try to resell the item it's probably going to be a 25-50% discount for being an open package.
They just mark it as new and sell it at full price. Had this happen with Amazon several times.
Eh, maybe with online services. I worked at a brick-and-mortar big-box store for awhile and almost everything that was returned that wasn't for extreme damage or being non-functional was put on a shelf with a large discount because we didn't have the space to store it and wanted it gone quickly since it what a shame to throw it away when someone could probably use it.
People were ordering five colors of an outfit, trying each one on once, then returning all but one of them. And then the rest just get thrown out because the company can't sell the clothing that has already been tried on.
Since when can't they sell stuff that's been tried on? Brick and mortar stores do it literally every day. Unless it's underwear, who cares?
With fast fashion, it's often just cheaper to throw it out then go through even the most basic of QC steps to ensure the product is still in sellable condition.
The fact that it is fast fashion is the issue. No labor cost since it's made by slaves. No material cost since it's basically sewn together with hopes and wishes. All you really pay for is the shipping.
If that garment you want to buy is cheap, odds are it's made with blood and paid for with climate change.
Yeah I realized after I said it that it was almost certainly fast fashion because those stores are all speedrunning worst practices of all time. I'm both too old and too much of a hippie to shop at any of those places, so I (try to) forget they exist.
You should avoid fast fashion not only because it doesn’t last, but also because a lot of it is made with slave labor.
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That was what all of their ads were, though: order what you like, try them on in the comfort of your home, anything you don't like for any reason - wrong fit, bad color, whatever - just return it! You can't get annoyed with the customers when this is literally what the merchants said they should do.
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That happens less often than the scamazon Chinese knock off crap being sold under fake 5 star reviews getting returned. Amazon needs to go back to companies being required to own office space in the country they're selling to in order to sell their goods there.
What do you expect with companies like Amazon, Zappos and such where their business model was buy try on and return. Then there is Walmart that would take anything back including empty paint cans if the buyer was unhappy with the color.
I agree. It was the companies' fault for offering it in the first place.
People ranting about Chinese crap, I suppose they think the shit they bought it's made in Finland..
Everything it's made in China you dumb bastards!!
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