Online shopping? - returns are sent to landfill

[razz]

Different people have told me that they order a number of different sizes or styles online, choose the items they want and return the rest. for a credit I couldn't figure out how this was sustainable longterm. There is always a cost.
This article indicates that the cost of inspecting the returned items is so high, the companies simply toss them into landfills or incinerate. Link below.

If you understood that the cost was trashing the returned items or causing more pollution, would you order so much online?

https://www.cbc.ca/radio/thecurrent/...eals-1.5393806

[Teacher Terry]

Well this is awful! I only buy clothes or shoes online that I have worn before and know will fit. Kohl’s is pretty consistent with sizes made by certain companies. I have returned a few things that didn’t fit but I take them to the store. I don’t buy a lot.

[iris lilies]

I don’t return anything.This is not a factor for me.


I suppose if I ordered something online and very expensive — generally not my buying pattern— And it did not work, I would return it.

Things I buy, regardless if they are online purchases or thrift store purchases, that don’t work for me are usually donated to a thrift store.

But I am horrified by the amount of packaging I consume by these dumb little purchases I have been making lately online.

[JaneV2.0]

I think I've returned one item to Amazon, of the hundreds I've ordered. I'm generally pretty good about ordering the right size of clothing, so haven't returned any of that. I can't imagine ordering several items to try on and return--that sounds like way too much work.

This story sounds questionable, as box-store retailers don't just throw tried-on clothing away...or do they? I've notices lots of Chinese-made items on Amazon lately--you can tell by the off-the-wall brand names--maybe they feature such low wholesale costs to be disposable? At any rate, there are plenty of thrift stores just waiting for unused merchandise.

[frugal-one]

Recently ordered a cell phone cover for the new phone I bought. Realized within 5 minutes that I ordered the wrong thing and immediately emailed the company to cancel. Paid by PayPal. I didn't get any response but received the item a few days later. Usually the company informs that an item has mailed. So, I called PayPal and they stated the company will send a return label by Dec 25. They consider this closed. I wrote back that if they never send the label it is not closed. Replied back it is closed no matter. Contacted credit card company, explained and received a letter stating this is permanently closed. Just looked at the credit card and at 1am another charge for this was put on the credit card. So, tomorrow will have to call again. I hate buying things online and only do so when I am forced to do so.

[SteveinMN]

I just read an article the other day -- but cannot find it now -- about how the wave of returns from on-line purchasing is being handled and is giving rise to a growing secondary market.

Amazon has their Warehouse, which sells primarily hard goods purchased from and returned to Amazon. Two of the businesses mentioned in the article are slibuy.com and blinq.com. slibuy seems to follow more of an auction model (but also handles some pricey stuff, like appliance returns from Home Depot); blinq simply resells stuff, including clothing. The article did state that low-cost items without an obvious future are tossed in a landfill because the expense of labor verifying the condition and that all the parts are there is higher than the cost of tossing it. I know our local Goodwill stores get a lot of Target closeout goods; I don't know if that's because Target has its headquarters and distribution warehouses here or it's a more formal arrangement than that. But kids' summer clothes and Halloween decorations have appeared already and the unsold Christmas stuff will be in soon, I would guess.

I do know that DW once ordered me a shirt on Amazon from China that drop-shipped in the wrong size. They sent her another shirt in the proper size and told her to just dispose of the first shirt; it wasn't worth the cost of sending it back to China (!). I know it would be difficult to accurately estimate the cradle-to-grave costs of every product, but I think commerce (and perhaps the world) would be quite different if manufacturers had to bear all of the costs of their products.

[rosarugosa]

I usually like to try things on before I buy them. I will sometimes order from Talbot's and return items to my local store if necessary. I've seen them tag my returns and put them out on the floor while I was still at the store, so those were not going in the trash. I've also ordered and returned to LL Bean (free shipping and return shipping when you use their CC). They sell returned items in their outlet stores. I was in one just the other day and some of the items have return ticket tags, so I don't think they dispose of returns either.

[pinkytoe]

Many of the online stores now have open box/returns sections. I think one can buy bulk lots of returned goods at amazon for a set price and then re-sell.

[ApatheticNoMore]

I figured they might just throw stuff away, I kind of knew it, so I'll just hoard in my closet forever as penance if I ever order anything wrong, I guess, seems how it goes. Thrifts might also toss (although obviously they don't toss everything or they wouldn't sell stuff at thrifts, but they toss a decent amount as well, I think). I do donate to thrifts even so, figuring at least there is a chance it will get used. The things I order online are generally not available at stores, it's seldom clothes.

[happystuff]

I work for a small online retail company that also sells on other marketplaces, including Amazon, Walmart, etc. We accept returns, and IF the returned item is unused, not damaged, etc (it passes our pretty strict inspections, actually), it will be repackaged and resold. Otherwise, we don't resell damaged or used items.

Selling our items on other marketplaces has become a nightmare! Sites like Amazon and Walmart automatically issue refunds (and then pass those charges on to us) upon notification by the customer regardless of whether WE ever get the item back or regardless of the condition. The physical locations that actually allow people to "drop off" their items to be returned to us - it's horrendous! Example, we sell on Walmart.com. Customer buys jeggings from us off that marketplace. Wrong size. Goes to Walmart, drops off item and walmart returns to us. BUT - Walmart has actually returned a pair of pants that we don't sell to us! Customer has already been refunded by Walmart, charged our company AND returned an item we can do absolutely nothing with AND we are still out the original item.

It's funny how some people will buy something off Amazon and think they are buying FROM Amazon, when it is actually a small business trying to survive. Many customers seem to have such an unrealistic level of self-entitlement and some will do some pretty nasty, dishonest things just to get something for "free".

After almost 15 years, I will admit that I'm worried whether the company will be around come Christmas next year.