٭٭٭ No Man Walks Alone - Official Affiliate Thread ٭٭٭ (a.k.a. I shouldn't have slept on it)

[kjb]

Ban multiple size orders and shorten return policy!

Y tho

 

[Pb924]

I get the appeal of the return policy and being able to order multiple sizes. But when combined you can have people holding stock for a month that will be returned and may not be as “fresh” as when dropped, or later in the season being restocked right when sale season starts and the shop could have potentially sold the item at full retail. I know there’s a lot of thinking that goes into the policy, and I haven’t given much thought to it other than a knee jerk thought that a 30 day free return period seems long. But I could be convinced otherwise and am admittedly not knowledgeable in online marketplace strategies.

 

[kjb]

Date night

DoppiaA sweater / Farnese belt / DoppiaA 5 pockets / Buttero Floyds

 

[gdl203]

Was this the full Inglese drop for this season?

No - it was most of the restocks fit the season, but we’re getting more new styles in the coming weeks.

Ban multiple size orders and shorten return policy!

I get the appeal of the return policy and being able to order multiple sizes. But when combined you can have people holding stock for a month that will be returned and may not be as “fresh” as when dropped, or later in the season being restocked right when sale season starts and the shop could have potentially sold the item at full retail. I know there’s a lot of thinking that goes into the policy, and I haven’t given much thought to it other than a knee jerk thought that a 30 day free return period seems long. But I could be convinced otherwise and am admittedly not knowledgeable in online marketplace strategies.

It is an issue we’ve increasingly been struggling with, as it seems that consumer behavior is continuously getting worse for retailers. Return rate keeps going up year after year as it seems that “purchasing” something is no longer really making a purchase. It’s getting a free ride to just check out something in person at home. A huge waste of our money and time, carbon, boxes, etc…

30 days is also probably too long. At least for our business. We received something recently where the customer logged in his return exactly 30 days after purchase (reason: “changed my mind”) then waited another 2 weeks to ship it back (at our cost, of course). These actions cost literally 0 cents to him. But, beyond all the costs of shipping back and forth, that’s 6-7 weeks when we cannot sell this item to someone else and you guys will find it at another store. 6 weeks is a long time in a season.

I think we need to modify our return policy as there’s no sign at all that customer behavior will regulate itself into something sustainable.

 

[krudsma]

Does anyone have good fit pics with the Rota Brooklyns? I bought a pair last summer and got them hemmed to a fairly standard length with a cuff, but now I'm wondering if I shouldn't go a bit shorter with no cuff.

 

[kjb]

Does anyone have good fit pics with the Rota Brooklyns? I bought a pair last summer and got them hemmed to a fairly standard length with a cuff, but now I'm wondering if I shouldn't go a bit shorter with no cuff.

May I humbly offer this one

 

[zissou]

No - it was most of the restocks fit the season, but we’re getting more new styles in the coming weeks.



It is an issue we’ve increasingly been struggling with, as it seems that consumer behavior is continuously getting worse for retailers. Return rate keeps going up year after year as it seems that “purchasing” something is no longer really making a purchase. It’s getting a free ride to just check out something in person at home. A huge waste of our money and time, carbon, boxes, etc…

30 days is also probably too long. At least for our business. We received something recently where the customer logged in his return exactly 30 days after purchase (reason: “changed my mind”) then waited another 2 weeks to ship it back (at our cost, of course). These actions cost literally 0 cents to him. But, beyond all the costs of shipping back and forth, that’s 6-7 weeks when we cannot sell this item to someone else and you guys will find it at another store. 6 weeks is a long time in a season.

I think we need to modify our return policy as there’s no sign at all that customer behavior will regulate itself into something sustainable.

It’s a real shame that people behave that way, as if the business is their solely for their benefit and not for its own. In all the years I’ve been buying from you guys, I think I’ve only ever returned a few things? I think either shortening the return period or charging a standard return fee should help. One thing I learned a long time ago in working with the public is that, if a service is free, many people literally don’t place any value on it.

 

[Henry S]

No - it was most of the restocks fit the season, but we’re getting more new styles in the coming weeks.



It is an issue we’ve increasingly been struggling with, as it seems that consumer behavior is continuously getting worse for retailers. Return rate keeps going up year after year as it seems that “purchasing” something is no longer really making a purchase. It’s getting a free ride to just check out something in person at home. A huge waste of our money and time, carbon, boxes, etc…

30 days is also probably too long. At least for our business. We received something recently where the customer logged in his return exactly 30 days after purchase (reason: “changed my mind”) then waited another 2 weeks to ship it back (at our cost, of course). These actions cost literally 0 cents to him. But, beyond all the costs of shipping back and forth, that’s 6-7 weeks when we cannot sell this item to someone else and you guys will find it at another store. 6 weeks is a long time in a season.

I think we need to modify our return policy as there’s no sign at all that customer behavior will regulate itself into something sustainable.

In my opinion, a 14-day return window would be more reasonable than 30 days, but as a user of a forwarding service, the 30-day policy works great for me. It allows me enough time to receive the parcel and decide if I want to keep it or not (and return it at my own expense). Without this option, every purchase would be a final sale for me.

I know my situation is not common, but if the return policy changes and doesn't provide a solution for my needs, I might have to limit my orders to exclusive items only.

 

[tmyk]

@gdl203 How about a compromise i.e. 14-day return window for refund, 30-day return for store credit?

Also I wouldn't mind a nominal $5 (or similar) return fee, especially on sale items. I think you said earlier you guys don't have problems moving merchandise that's final sale, so I feel like a shorter return window and a small return fee wouldn't affect sales too much on sale items.

I definitely think you guys can afford to be more strict on deadlines for getting things in the mail after requesting a return. I've never done anything like the problem customer you describe, but sometimes I know I'll be returning something after a couple days but still don't manage to get it in the mail for a week or two.

 

[45bur]

I see no reason why someone should need to keep an unworn item for 30 days. I'm in Canada, so I don't get free returns. For the number of times I end up returning something (usually due to sizing issues), it's no big deal at all. I think that NMWA treats its customers better than most retailers, even to its detriment.

 

[professor]

I’d pay $99 a year for free shipping both ways and a 30-day return window. Call it NMWA Prime.

[Sarcasm fully intended.]

 

[gdl203]

In my opinion, a 14-day return window would be more reasonable than 30 days, but as a user of a forwarding service, the 30-day policy works great for me. It allows me enough time to receive the parcel and decide if I want to keep it or not (and return it at my own expense). Without this option, every purchase would be a final sale for me.

I know my situation is not common, but if the return policy changes and doesn't provide a solution for my needs, I might have to limit my orders to exclusive items only.

I understand the predicament but it’s not really possible to design a return policy that takes into account all cases and exceptions.

The best policies need to be simple and fair.

I’m leaning towards (1) reducing return window from 30 to 14 days, and (2) introducing a return processing/shipping fee TBD (likely around $8 or 9, which is half of our average shipping cost).

If our returns software allows it, I’d like to incentivize faster returns by waiving the shipping fee entirely on orders returned within 7 days - but this may introduce more complexity than needed?

We’re definitely not going to allow returns on final sale items though - that just makes our business impossible to manage from season to season.

 

[professor]

I understand the predicament but it’s not really possible to design a return policy that takes into account all cases and exceptions.

The best policies need to be simple and fair.

I’m leaning towards (1) reducing return window from 30 to 14 days, and (2) introducing a return processing/shipping fee TBD (likely around $8 or 9, which is half of our average shipping cost).

If our returns software allows it, I’d like to incentivize faster returns by waiving the shipping fee entirely on orders returned within 7 days - but this may introduce more complexity than needed?

We’re definitely not going to allow returns on final sale items though - that just makes our business impossible to manage from season to season.

This strikes me as totally reasonable. I was just looking at the return policy of another retailer being promoted by SF this morning, and this proposed policy is still more generous than theirs.

 

[philosophe]

Shrinking the return window seems eminently reasonable, as does some return fee or an incentive for speedy returns. 30 days is a long time to make a decision about an item of clothing. Personally, I sometimes really benefit from ordering two sizes, but I would not mind paying a small fee for the privilege.

 

[mypants]

Hopefully @gdl203 you are talking about 14 days of order delivery, and not purchase date?

As a Canadian customer, I don’t recall the last time I received an order in less than ~30 days… it now normally takes 2.5-3 weeks before no man gets into the mail system and then about 7 days to get to me, once that happens.

Fortunately, I’ve only returned maybe 4 or 5 things out of hundreds of items I’ve purchased from nmwa. Because I’ve always had to pay for my own return shipping and mostly eat the duties and taxes (the refund paperwork on those just suck!), I’m very careful with choosing the right size and picking things I know I truly want. I’ve never purchased two sizes for example. In those cases that I had to return, I’ve also put it in the mail within a day or two. It doesn’t take weeks to figure this out…

Anyhow, it would be a shame to not be able to return things in those very rare cases I need to, or pay an extra fee on top of me already paying the shipping back etc.

On the other hand, I’m likely not your typical customer. But I’m probably a desirable one. Perhaps there is some room for flexibility in your policies for people who aren’t first time customers just kicking the tires?

(Final $0.02 - 30 days after receipt is a crazy long time to decide if something fits and you like it. Who can’t figure that out in a day or two? A week or two is generous, despite whatever Amazon etc might do. )

Tough choices, pulling strings and all.