Online shopping? - returns are sent to landfill [Archive]

razz

12-15-19, 2:55pm

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/the-current-for-dec-12-2019-1.5393783/it-s-pretty-staggering-returned-online-purchases-often-sent-to-landfill-journalist-s-research-reveals-1.5393806

Teacher Terry

12-15-19, 3:18pm

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

12-15-19, 3:22pm

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

12-15-19, 3:34pm

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

12-15-19, 4:34pm

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

12-15-19, 4:55pm

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 (https://www.slibuy.com/) and blinq.com (https://www.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

12-15-19, 5:08pm

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

12-16-19, 12:51am

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

12-16-19, 2:10am

happystuff

12-16-19, 8:10am

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.

Gardnr

12-16-19, 9:06am

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.

Years ago when I was dropping off some items, I saw them tossing into a truck for a trip to the landfill. I said "it must be so frustrating to have people bring you their trash and then you incur the expense of hauling to a landfill. The response: we would rather people bring us anything in question. Yes, we take about 20% of what we receive to the landfill but it's fine. When in doubt, bring it. It's how we survive as a business AND help others.

ApatheticNoMore

12-16-19, 11:43am

It also occurs to me that reselling stuff through ebay, amazon marketplace etc., as used or whatever of course, even if it's hardly, might be a good way to go. It has a good chance of being made use of. But I don't really have much experience doing so.

Mind you that I've never done anything so ridiculous as buy several different sizes online and return part of them (and then I'd have to set myself up in business reselling the wrong sizes pretty much :)). I've just bought things online that didn't work out, mostly not clothes, as clothes are really hard to buy online, so I mostly steer clear unless I am buying a pair of something I already own. Works better for men maybe as the sizing is more consistent.

But even non-clothes, the truth is it IS a lot harder to evaluate things when buying online, you can't touch and feel the item etc.. The occasional impulse purchase sneaks in (what was I thinking?), and even if I've cancelled long before shipping, it gets shipped anyway (uh some of the companies out there are anything but well run, or maybe their business model is to ship all cancellations figuring few will return them) etc..

It's good to know some thrifts are making use of most donations, I read recently about Goodwill throwing a lot away but. I evaluate an item before donating, if it's obviously trash I'm not going to donate it.

iris lilies

12-16-19, 11:59am

Agreed ANM, it much harder to buy textiles online. I look for a certain weave and blend of fabrics. Recently there was a cute jacket on ebay, I loved the styling and I almost pulled the trigger on it but I looked at the up close picture of the fabric and it was a sweater weave. Even though the fabric content was accurately described that weave is not what I want.

I have a comforter on my bed right now that I bought at a thrift store. I love it. It’s light and smooth and soft. It probably has cotton in it, but maybe not? The tag is too worn to read. I even like the pattern, but that is secondary.Finding this comforter online would be impossible.

Teacher Terry

12-16-19, 12:24pm

Some people donate junk to thrift stores that should be thrown away. Goodwill gets so many clothes that they often ship them overseas and sell them by the pound. For years we had a great relationship with our local goodwill. They would let us place clients there for a trial work experience so we could evaluate if they could work. They would get a free worker for a few months since we paid the clients. Many times the client would end up being hired. They would hire people not likely to get a job in another place but worked well enough to earn their salaries. The 2 people running it were excellent. Then corporate in Sacramento fired them and sent people to replace them that promptly fired all the disabled workers. We quit using them for our trial work site and I have never donated to them again.

iris lilies

12-16-19, 1:08pm

My favorite Goodwill employs at least one youngish woman who I would call “ on the spectrum.” But she is the only one with a mild disability there that I have noticed. You have to talk with her to see it.

Given the thrift stores’ recent preference for organizing clothing by color, the right person with the right laser focus on color, perhaps someone on the spectrum, would be valuable.

The Thrift store closest to me is a Catholic one, Saint Vincent de Paul. They are now hanging clothing by size. That is very helpful of course, doh!

I do hate that all kinds of junk is donated to the thrift stores. When I took in a boxed Christmas tree to St Vincent de Paul store, the intake guy looked at it skeptically and quizzed me if all parts were there. I assured him I wouldn’t give anything to the thrift store that wasn’t whole and good because I shop there myself! He commented that a lot of people give them tons of junk.

JaneV2.0

12-16-19, 2:01pm

All the thrift stores around here sort by type, size, and color, and have as long as I can remember.

iris lilies

12-16-19, 3:26pm

All the thrift stores around here sort by type, size, and color, and have as long as I can remember.
Oh no, our goodwill did a gross sort by clothing type and that’s it.

Now Savers, they sort by type and size, but I hardly go there. Their pieces are a couple dollars more than Goodwill. I can’t afford that!!! :)

JaneV2.0

12-16-19, 4:47pm

Oh no, our goodwill did a gross sort by clothing type and that’s it.

Now Savers, they sort by type and size, but I hardly go there. There pieces are a couple dollars more than Goodwill. I can’t afford that!!! :)

Savers (Value Village here) is my favorite; we have lots of them, and only a few Goodwills.

SteveinMN

12-16-19, 7:35pm

I do hate that all kinds of junk is donated to the thrift stores. When I took in a boxed Christmas tree to St Vincent de Paul store, the intake guy looked at it skeptically and quizzed me if all parts were there. I assured him I wouldn’t give anything to the thrift store that wasn’t whole and good because I shop there myself! He commented that a lot of people give them tons of junk.
Relative to my earlier comment about local Goodwills getting lots of stuff sold by Target, I have a few things in our house which Target accepted as a customer return but which were missing bolts or other minor pieces. No idea how they got lost or if they were missing when the customer bought the item, but Target took the stuff back and, when they found out it was not saleable that way, gave it to Goodwill. Brand-new (or very close to brand-new) stuff. A trip or two to the local hardware store and I had myself a new item for a fraction of the cost it would have been even at Target. But, yeah, no surprise that people give thrift stores items which are broken or otherwise not fit for purpose.

Teacher Terry

12-16-19, 8:24pm

IL, I have gotten the same questions from thrift stores. I gave them a big suitcase and they asked what’s wrong with it. I said nothing it’s just to big for us old people to handle:))

rosarugosa

12-17-19, 6:43am

Our local SA just started sorting by size; we were speculating that competition from Savers down the street might have spurred this welcome change. For many years, SA was the only place around, but now we have 2 Savers, 1 Goodwill, and a couple of smaller local charity shops to choose from.

kib

12-17-19, 2:20pm

Tucson has got to be the thrift store capital of the country. I believe we have over 100 of them, probably more like 200 if you count consignment stores. I like the convenience of Savers, but I also like the store around the corner from me, a one-of-a-kind, because they're really dedicated to using what they get, and will give it away for just about nothing if it's not very nice. So I can go and get a huge bag of terrycloth rags for $1, or pick up a missing scrabble tile for $.50 from a game that might be missing a couple of pieces ... I'm sort of obsessed with not creating garbage, so at least for me, there's a place for the "crappy thrift store" as well as the nice one. (and also somewhere I don't feel bad donating something I wouldn't give to a higher quality place.)