RETAILERS COULD SEE UP TO $114 BILLION IN POST-HOLIDAY RETURNS

by Christopher Blomquist Dec 09, 2021
Marcus Shen

The National Retail Federation predicts record-shattering holiday spending this year to reach between $843.4 billion and $859 billion.

Therefore it’s no surprise that a record amount of returns is also being forecasted.

Marcus Shen, COO of B-Stock, an online liquidation and overstock company, says that a massive $112 billion to $114 worth of merchandise will be returned post-holiday.

In addition, online shopping this holiday season is predicted to reach $226.2 billion. And since online purchases are returned at double the rate of in-store buys, retailers are also bracing themselves for a record number of dot-com returns. 

In a new report Shen and B-Stock found and are predicting the following:

  • 13.3% of all holiday purchases will be returned
  • $112- $114 billion worth of merchandise will get returned after the holidays
  • $43 – $45 billion of that will come from eCommerce returns alone
  • Online purchases are returned at double the rate of in-store buys  (20 percent compared to 10 percent)
  • Less than 10 percent of returns actually make it back to primary shelves
  • In Q1 of 2021, the top categories of returned merchandise included apparel, home and garden goods, consumer electronics, and toys
  • In Q1 of 2021, dot-com inventory increased 20 percent

Clearly ’tis the season to request gift receipts…