The Surprisingly Complex Logistics of Product Returns

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Video written by Ben Doyle
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Пікірлер: 454

  • @DaCoSaNa
    @DaCoSaNa11 ай бұрын

    As a former amazon returns instructor & auditor, if you ever get a barcode sticker on your product that says "LPN-01234...", yea, that's not new - it's a return that's been evaluated as in new condition by the exausted Amazon worker trying to meet their processing targets while not pissing themselves.

  • @barneylaurance1865

    @barneylaurance1865

    11 ай бұрын

    Seems reasonable to call it new though - someone may have tried it out and worn it but that happens to clothes in shops, lots of things get tested before the final consumer uses it. As long as it hasn't had any damage or anything more than tiny wear and it wasn't used for more than few hours or days it's still new.

  • @racecarrik

    @racecarrik

    11 ай бұрын

    ​@@barneylaurance1865tiny wear = not new, simple as that. It literally has to be perfect for it to be "new", otherwise it's not new 😅

  • @whoareyouyouareclearlylost323

    @whoareyouyouareclearlylost323

    11 ай бұрын

    ​@@barneylaurance1865Yeah, but not ALL the clothes in a clothing shop has been weared once.

  • @iang0th

    @iang0th

    11 ай бұрын

    ​ @barneylaurance1865 Maybe. Or maybe they returned the item because it was in fact damaged, and the worker didn't really give it a thorough inspection, because they can't realistically do that. These days, a high proportion of products you buy new from Amazon are defective to begin with, so I can imagine that the bad ones might get distilled by the return process.

  • @whoareyouyouareclearlylost323

    @whoareyouyouareclearlylost323

    11 ай бұрын

    @@iang0thAgreed man, I used to be stationed as a re-packer and I can tell you that every day we would get a package who was damaged and was already 'fixed', we also got complaints from other hubs that we sent off damaged goods. 5 guys and 200 000+ packages. There is definitely something damaged.

  • @NoPegs
    @NoPegs11 ай бұрын

    I worked reverse-logistics for Apple for 4 years... The horrors defy description...

  • @Mister0Eel

    @Mister0Eel

    11 ай бұрын

    please, descript!

  • @NoPegs

    @NoPegs

    11 ай бұрын

    @compier "Apple brand accessories are automatically scrapped because zomg they might have been touched by human hands even if they are still sealed." Return a cable? Goes right to metal reclamation. Return a case? If no magnets in it it goes to the waste to energy facility. (Incinerator.)

  • @ginwilliams4202

    @ginwilliams4202

    11 ай бұрын

    Cockroaches in the returned merchandise, right?

  • @NoPegs

    @NoPegs

    11 ай бұрын

    @ginwilliams4202 Roaches in roach clips too...

  • @qwerty112311

    @qwerty112311

    11 ай бұрын

    @@NoPegswhat about the iPad I returned after using it for a week? Warranty replacement for some poor sap?

  • @yellowcrescent
    @yellowcrescent11 ай бұрын

    How timely. Just yesterday I got a cable from Amazon, bought as """New""". First red flag is that the entire front of the bag was covered in Amazon LPN labels (from when the item was previously returned or had another problem). Second was that the bag was full of dust, tiny rocks, and what looked like sheetrock dust (???). And the cable itself was torn apart with the wires half-cut. It was only like $18 so I figured Amazon would simply refund me. But no, they want me to return it again... I feel bad for whoever gets it next.... lol

  • @ThatGuy-fi9bm

    @ThatGuy-fi9bm

    11 ай бұрын

    The cable’s last wishes was to travel the world

  • @r8gg

    @r8gg

    10 ай бұрын

    They always want return, it's just to stop spamming, no doubt they will throw it away unless it gets incorrectly marked.

  • @noodlelynoodle.

    @noodlelynoodle.

    10 ай бұрын

    @@r8gg there's a decent amount of times when they just tell you to keep it and send out another one cause it's not worth their hassle getting something back that is basically trash to them cause then they have to process it and restock it if it's good enough to, throw it away themselves, or just throw it on a pallet of other returns and sell the pallet at a massive discount cause there's some decent stuff and some shit stuff in there. It's kinda a lottery but you can buy pallets of Amazon returns and there are entire companies where that's all they do is buy and sell return pallets from Amazon, there's one near where my mom moved to

  • @yellowcrescent

    @yellowcrescent

    10 ай бұрын

    @@noodlelynoodle.yep, exactly. this is what usually happens if I return a cheap item. However, last year my friend ordered a StarTech 25U server rack from Amazon. This item is pretty heavy (~70 lbs), and they usually dispatch it via UPS when I've bought them. However, this time Amazon XL dropped off a full-ass palette weighing 800 lbs in my friend's driveway... It look us a while to realize what happened, but I guess somebody messed up and accidentally sent him a whole palette instead of just one (the palette tag has a photo of the item). Anyway, he contact Amazon about it and they told him he was good to keep all of them. I assume this is because it would have been very expensive/not worth the cost to return freight the rest of the palette. lol. Still not sure how that happens.

  • @benstockton2285

    @benstockton2285

    10 ай бұрын

    I will buy this cable from you and give it a good home if you haven’t sent it back yet

  • @LegoMiniMovies
    @LegoMiniMovies11 ай бұрын

    Interestingly complex logistics. It felt like the music was a bit loud though

  • @pd9931

    @pd9931

    11 ай бұрын

    Try to return the video

  • @iLikeButter35

    @iLikeButter35

    11 ай бұрын

    Bad audio balancing, sounds like he's in a bathroom

  • @Azurethewolf168

    @Azurethewolf168

    11 ай бұрын

    @@iLikeButter35he is

  • @coffeebreak7668

    @coffeebreak7668

    10 ай бұрын

    @@iLikeButter35 In your bathroom, I wouldn't recommend checking

  • @ooooneeee

    @ooooneeee

    10 ай бұрын

    *Returns the video*

  • @leo_brooks
    @leo_brooks11 ай бұрын

    Sam was smart not putting that mug on sale. Cue 10000 people buying and returning it for the memes

  • @Henchman_Holding_Wrench
    @Henchman_Holding_Wrench11 ай бұрын

    And because of this, I'm frequently receiving "new" items when I paid full price for actual new products. I actually got returned aluminum foil that was dropped and haphazardly rerolled, stuffed back in the box, and encased in packaging tape with a Kohl's label. I paid for returned... aluminum foil...

  • @ginwilliams4202

    @ginwilliams4202

    11 ай бұрын

    Next time you buy it at the grocery store like a normal person.

  • @Henchman_Holding_Wrench

    @Henchman_Holding_Wrench

    11 ай бұрын

    @@ginwilliams4202 I do normally, but I saw a monster sized roll and wanted it.

  • @hamza-chaudhry

    @hamza-chaudhry

    11 ай бұрын

    ​@@Henchman_Holding_WrenchWhat you wrapping with monster sized foil?

  • @Descriptor413

    @Descriptor413

    11 ай бұрын

    @@hamza-chaudhryPresumably monsters

  • @MonkeyJedi99

    @MonkeyJedi99

    11 ай бұрын

    @@Descriptor413 YES! How else are you supposed to make slow-roasted ogre?

  • @mike140298
    @mike14029811 ай бұрын

    Damn, 40% returns on clothing? I already feel guilty about returning a pair of pants that's like 3 sizes too small even though my other pants of the same size (including a pair from the same brand) fit fine.

  • @ToastyMozart

    @ToastyMozart

    11 ай бұрын

    ​@@eligiobuddeA good amount of clothing do have dimensions listed _somewhere,_ but a lot of people don't want to deal with that so S/M/L get used instead. That and most clothes aren't exactly manufactured to tight tolerances.

  • @1008OH

    @1008OH

    11 ай бұрын

    And most clothes returns go straight to disposal, and because textiles don't recycle well at all, they're all basically just incinerated or tossed on a landfill. Try to not return clothes if possible as it's very bad for the environment

  • @whoeveriam0iam14222

    @whoeveriam0iam14222

    11 ай бұрын

    stupid clothing stores don't have all the things in storage so they tell you to order online instead. then you have to choose which size to buy based only on a number which has a different size for different brands or just how clothing is I guess so you have to buy different sizes and then send the wrong one back

  • @teelo12000

    @teelo12000

    11 ай бұрын

    I had the same problem. What is it with Amazon sizes being 3-4 sizes smaller than the label? When I ordered a 2XL what arrived was maybe what would be "M" in local stores here. When I can I look at the actual measurements, but theres plenty of clothes that simply don't list the measurements anywhere on the listing.

  • @cooltwittertag

    @cooltwittertag

    11 ай бұрын

    @@eligiobudde measurements are incredibly inconsinstent and usually dont represent the actual fit, thats the issue

  • @0151Master
    @0151Master11 ай бұрын

    It may not be for everyone, but I personally like to buy amazon warehouse deals or similar options. The product doesn't get thrown away, while I can save some money and sometimes it's like 30% cheaper and the only damages I experienced in the past was the box of the product itself

  • @joshhallam2253

    @joshhallam2253

    10 ай бұрын

    I bought one thing on Amazon warehouse and the item got lost and it never updated my shipping info and just said it had shipped and I completely forgot to get a refund. That's the only time something like that has happened with Amazon and I bet if I had called and explained, I could have gotten store credit at a minimum, but I didn't think about it until now

  • @r8gg

    @r8gg

    10 ай бұрын

    ​@@joshhallam2253It's amazon bro, if you go to customer service they'll refund you even 3 years later for issue

  • @MeongMeongMeow

    @MeongMeongMeow

    10 ай бұрын

    I’m an online seller and sometimes like to get products from supplier with boxes damaged from shipping. Provided that the contents are OK I sell them at a lower price, and I hope everyone’s happy as I can recover some value and the customers can save.

  • @abhi211-T

    @abhi211-T

    10 ай бұрын

    @@joshhallam2253you probably still can! Best of luck!

  • @martam307

    @martam307

    9 ай бұрын

    It depends on the items, but yes indeed. I got a roomba for 40% of OG price, I paid £200, when brand new was £550ish. Well, not roomba, some other brand, but you know, roomba. Item was described as complete, but it turned out it had missing brush and filter. I complained to Amazon, they gave £20 refund, then I paid £15 to buy missing parts, but it's actually even better, because I got 1 brush and 3 filters for £15, while item shipped with one of each. The item was used but it's just some electronics than rides the floor, I don't care. I got a very fancy roomba for a price of a low-mid budget one. It was a bit of a hassle and I couldn't use it straight away, but I completely do not care when I save 60% of the price. So savings on some items can exceed 30%! Aside from what you mentioned, saving waste, there's also one more reason. When I'm undecided or I want to try something out, I might buy used so I don't create 'used' item if I return it. Ie, I wasn't sure if I wanted to commit to Ubiquiti wifi stuff, because it was expensive and I wasn't sure I'll be able to see it's benefits... I bought 4 different Ubiquiti network parts, all used, I tried it out, and well, it wasn't quite what I hoped it to be. I returned them, but I feel less guilty about trying them out. In many cases, items met my expectations and I kept them.

  • @ccloutiutube
    @ccloutiutube11 ай бұрын

    Option 4 was the business one of my classmates was in: buying pallets at auction, breaking them down, and putting them on eBay. He was doing it at scale so he had to have a warehouse.

  • @minotaur470

    @minotaur470

    10 ай бұрын

    I got offered a job at a place that did that, doing computer part testing for eBay resale. Almost took it but they wanted me there long term and college got in the way 😔

  • @MisakaMikotoDesu
    @MisakaMikotoDesu11 ай бұрын

    I tried to return potting soil from amazon today, after my plant died, and Amazon didn't even want me to return the unopened bags, they just gave me a refund.

  • @EcceJack

    @EcceJack

    11 ай бұрын

    This used to happen to me relatively frequently (...when I returned things, which wasn't that frequent. But still), but not so much in the past couple of years. They want all the stuff (at least that I buy) back :D

  • @MonkeyJedi99

    @MonkeyJedi99

    11 ай бұрын

    The first time I got the "don't return it, just keep it" on something I was floored. This video, many years later, finally explains why that was the process.

  • @boarbot7829

    @boarbot7829

    11 ай бұрын

    That’s pretty mean as you, seeing as it’s definitely your fault that the plants died. Borderline theft.

  • @lurrielee2755

    @lurrielee2755

    11 ай бұрын

    I'm sorry to hear about that happening to your plants. :(

  • @nahuelma97

    @nahuelma97

    10 ай бұрын

    Hi, former CS employee here for 5 years. Some items are marked as not returnable based on what they are or what they're made of. Underwear, for example, if it's FBA, it's usually not returnable, even if it's not sold by Amazon. Other times it's because of the components, like batteries (the AA, AAA kind, not mobile phones or laptops). If you wanted to return soil bags, it was probably marked as not returnable due to it being something that "spills" if poorly packaged or due to possible flammability, if it's got any fertilizer or chemicals in general. Amazon can, theoretically, guarantee that that kinda stuff is shipped out correctly because Amazon is responsible for shipping it out, but they can't guarantee that it is shipped back to them correctly because you're simply a customer, so they're not willing to be liable for any kinda problem that may arise from something like that, be it a fire or damaging something else on the truck, or an employee slipping and getting hurt, whatever. It's just best for you to keep your dirt and everyone saves themselves a headache 💁🏻‍♂️

  • @catholiccontriversy
    @catholiccontriversy11 ай бұрын

    I went to a liquidator store once, it was "here's a pallet box of random thinga, $2 per grocery bag of stuff" or something like that. Lots of garbage, but people were biting.

  • @saveddijon

    @saveddijon

    11 ай бұрын

    You see a "box of random stuff" at an auction for 25 cents. Garbage, but for the perfectly good power cord. That's worth a $0.25 bid which wins the day...

  • @apache937

    @apache937

    10 ай бұрын

    Yeah. Just take the good stuff dump the trash right on the front door @@saveddijon

  • @Amphibax

    @Amphibax

    8 ай бұрын

    You buy ten pallets for 100$ and just hope one of them is worth 2000$ thats pretty much the whole business.

  • @danycashking
    @danycashking11 ай бұрын

    Don't buy the thing you don't actually need is the best piece of advice that more people should really follow.

  • @karl.63a1a0
    @karl.63a1a011 ай бұрын

    Wendover is spilling over to this channel

  • @joermnyc
    @joermnyc11 ай бұрын

    Family Guy put it best when Stewie explained to Brian how to refuse delivery from UPS, “Most of what America is now is just boxes going back and forth.”

  • @Zannerd775
    @Zannerd77510 ай бұрын

    This video is a 35-minute wendover production disguising as a 7-minute cheeky HAI video about funny packages.

  • @Wandering869
    @Wandering86911 ай бұрын

    I can say with complete confidence... That if those junk pallets were available where I am I would have a lot more useless shit

  • @justanoman6497
    @justanoman649711 ай бұрын

    So one time I bought a collector's item where the box matters from Amazon. There was actually two options, a "new" option and a damaged box option. I opted for new as the difference is fairly small. It arrived with a somewhat damaged box due to what appears to be the method of shipping(was packaged with other stuff on a separate order and not properly padded in between so the corner of the other stuff ran into the box best I can tell). I requested an exchange and returned my unit promptly Two days later, I got the exchange and... it seems to be damaged as my returned one in the exact same way. I can't say if it's the same unit one way or the other as I didn't take photos or anything and it's rather light damage but... it looked really similar. At end of that, I decided not to roll the dice and instead simply requested a partial refund equal to the difference between the damaged box option and the "new" option given that's what I ended up getting. I care about the box a little but not that much because I will be displaying it outside. To this day I wonder if they just shipped my return right back to me....

  • @nahuelma97

    @nahuelma97

    10 ай бұрын

    Amazon returns are usually sent to one of maybe 10 fulfillment centers, at least until March last year when I quit. Those fulfillment centers usually specialize in used items but don't ship out new ones, so, if your item was labeled as new when you bought it, it most likely came from a different FC from the one you shipped your return to. Additionally, return labels have standard shipping, not Two-Day or One-Day, since getting what you bought is more important than Amazon getting what you're returning, so the turnaround time on that doesn't add up. If it's any help (?) lol my 4+ years at the contact center have their benefits 😂

  • @jasondashney

    @jasondashney

    8 ай бұрын

    Amazon sold me a hardcover book FOUR times that came damaged cuz they put it in a large box with zero padding. The last lady asked me if I wanted partial money back and I said I wanted a book in perfect shape and she admitted it would probably come damaged again so I just took the discount because that one had the least amount of damage.

  • @jasondashney

    @jasondashney

    8 ай бұрын

    Amazon sold me a hardcover book FOUR times that came damaged cuz they put it in a large box with zero padding. The last lady asked me if I wanted partial money back and I said I wanted a book in perfect shape and she admitted it would probably come damaged again so I just took the discount because that one had the least amount of damage.

  • @nahuelma97

    @nahuelma97

    8 ай бұрын

    @@jasondashney yeah, that kinda thing happens sometimes. It's as much of an annoyance to you as the consumer as it us to us getting the call, cuz there's really nothing else we can do. There's no way to communicate with a fulfillment center and give notes on how they package an item, because they don't actually choose how to package an item. Neither option is possible within the system. They simply pick up the item and pick up the box that's automatically assigned to it. The only way to send communicate an error like that is to remove the item from public listing temporarily and submit a ticket to a department I honestly don't know the name of, with a comment explaining that several orders (listing all order IDs, mind you, not just saying "a ton of customers") have had the same problem and replacing the items has simply caused for the issue to repeat. That's something that is available as an option, yes, but it's time consuming. It can take up to 2 weeks for it to be completed, or at least that's how long it took back when I was still working at the call center. It's called pulling the Andon Cord, which is the usual name for any process that completely removes a product or part from manufacturing or, in this case, shipping, in order to examine the processes that are leading to the failure of its proper delivery, be it internally or to external customers like in your case. Is this too long a comment? Maybe. But I always hated treating customers on the phone or on chat like they're too stupid to understand things 😂 nothing I hate more than not being explained how stuff works, so there ya go. Feel free to ask me more if you'd like to know 😂

  • @jasondashney

    @jasondashney

    8 ай бұрын

    @@nahuelma97 I thought my case was funny because I was buying a book. Amazon started as a book seller. Who would think it’s a good idea to put a hard cover book in a box that is way way bigger than it? Shake my head, and I do thank customer service people who have a head on their shoulders and aren’t idiots. I try to make a point of asking for their managers so I can put in a good word for them because they are few and far between.

  • @scurty2
    @scurty210 ай бұрын

    This concept is so weird to me. I haven't returned an item once in my 15+ years of online shopping. I guess I can understand clothes not fitting, but 800+ billion per year is just crazy.

  • @another_day4783

    @another_day4783

    10 ай бұрын

    You must have returned something, they so much rubbish stuff out there

  • @MichaelfromtheGraves

    @MichaelfromtheGraves

    10 ай бұрын

    I once exchanged a pair of shoes. Other than that, I'll just give something to a friend if I don't like it. I just don't order things I'm not completely confident about.

  • @ilychan3580
    @ilychan358010 ай бұрын

    Honestly this would be a better wendover video with the amount of depth that exists here

  • @eduardoayala7508
    @eduardoayala750810 ай бұрын

    I work at accounting and it’s all about cash flow. Letting a client return a product means that you retain that client for future purchases and all the cash that it entitles. I don’t know this as a fact but I can assume that Amazon or other companies can calculate how much cash or income “x” customer can generate in the long run. So I think it’s all based on future cash flow and client retention. 😊

  • @Jaunty_Jeff
    @Jaunty_Jeff11 ай бұрын

    Im as surprised as much as this is complex that there were videos 2 days in a row

  • @soundscape26

    @soundscape26

    10 ай бұрын

    And now 3 with the mistakes video.

  • @joshuaevans6295
    @joshuaevans629511 ай бұрын

    Nothing surprising about it. I've always wondered how the effort involved in product returns could possibly be worth it the cost, and had a nagging suspicion it was often trashed.

  • @vitsadelhole

    @vitsadelhole

    10 ай бұрын

    if you know what to buy and have good suppliers its incredibly lucerative

  • @christinecrawford
    @christinecrawford10 ай бұрын

    I have those stackable cats! They're adorable and figuring out how to stack them different ways helps ease my work stress.

  • @karenbencke8407
    @karenbencke840711 ай бұрын

    I looked through my Amazon returns (and yes, Amazon because of the free returns, I had some recent bad experiences with not free returns, especially when i ordered the same thing in another color and it didn't fit and then I had to pay to return it...) and most of my returns are clothes. Sure, I'd love to shop in person, but many (most?) stores only carry plus sizes online. Plus I use public transportation in an area where it is available, but not great, so getting to those stores is also a hassle. And I'd love for sizes and measurements to be accurate, but in my experience they aren't and often don't cover everything, like sleeve length, never mind just how things fit on different bodies. So that leaves me with the option of buying online and returning because im certainly not going to keep all those sun hoodies I bought just to find the one that fit and didn't turn see through when wet...

  • @AceZephyr1
    @AceZephyr111 ай бұрын

    I'd buy that mug, but knowing me, I'd probably end up returning it.

  • @TimBryan

    @TimBryan

    11 ай бұрын

    underrated comment right here

  • @TheMerchantGuild

    @TheMerchantGuild

    11 ай бұрын

    Underrated? the video has been out for 8 minuets@@TimBryan

  • @Chickenbreadlp
    @Chickenbreadlp10 ай бұрын

    One thing I've seen is that some brands with their own stores when they get a return they do what's called a "manufacturer refurbishment", which is basically they make it so that the product is basically new (besides maybe some minor visual defects) and sell it for much cheaper. Harmon/Kardon and JBL for example do that. Not only do you save tons of money, you're also getting basically a brand new product for often more then 30% off...

  • @tncorgi92

    @tncorgi92

    10 ай бұрын

    I bought a refurb paper shredder, used it for 6 months and it died (bad switch). Asked the manufacturer if they would sell me a new switch and instead they sent me a whole factory-new shredder, no questions asked, for free and didn't want the old one back.

  • @8stormy5
    @8stormy510 ай бұрын

    Experienced a clearly resold item once from a Target of all places. Bought two assemble-yourself chairs and one of them was horribly mangled with screws stripped so badly they could only be turned with pliers. I can't believe a thing like it passed inspection but it went straight back to seller. The other was a prebuilt computer whose motherboard freakin' shorted ten months in

  • @Mooooov0815
    @Mooooov081510 ай бұрын

    I used to work in the return center for a online clothing store in Germany. People are worse than you would imagine

  • @sizalobuhlemkwananzi1802
    @sizalobuhlemkwananzi18028 ай бұрын

    As a new student in Business with Logistics and Distribution, it is great to learn how as customers we affect business with returns, as some items can not be used for resale.

  • @veczw
    @veczw10 ай бұрын

    Just wanted to say thanks for making proper captions for this video. Especially with puns and other jokes involved the Auto-captions would be brought past their limit.

  • @rockinmoshin
    @rockinmoshin11 ай бұрын

    I hate buying things online and I avoid it like the plague, but I NEED to know it's the right item and NOT a rip off of some sort. Amazon has burned me more times than I care to admit.

  • @Michael75579
    @Michael7557911 ай бұрын

    Do people really return so much stuff that they've ordered? Over the years I've only cancelled two Amazon orders. The first was because the courier the seller used was unbelievably useless. When I called them to see what had happened to my order a few days after the delivery date they claimed to have tried to deliver it twice, but there was no notification of either of these attempts. While we were in the middle of an email chain trying to arrange a third delivery attempt they announced that they'd sent it back to Amazon. I immediately cancelled the order and sent an explanation of why I was cancelling to Amazon, the seller and the courier company. The second was entirely my fault. I ordered a duvet but realised the day before it was due to be delivered that I'd accidentally selected single instead of double. Amazon cancelled the delivery and the order without any objections, and I put in another order for the correct size. Given what I know of the weirdness of clothing sizes, there's no way I'd order online. Like most people I've got clothes in multiple claimed sizes that all fit, so there's no way I'm buying anything without being able to check the size in person first.

  • @waffles3629

    @waffles3629

    11 ай бұрын

    I've ordered clothes online, but only because I already owned the exact same item in the same brand, style, and size. Somehow that doesn't even work sometimes. Like a store once only had color of pants in my size in the style that fit my body. So I just ordered three more in different colors. All four pairs were different sizes despite having the same number on them. Quality control was clearly awful. I felt bad about returning them despite that literally not being my fault.

  • @InternetSlavicMan

    @InternetSlavicMan

    8 ай бұрын

    I would guess I've only returned 2 or 3 items in the past 5 years, which were probably electronics that were DOA (Dead on arrival). People just buy too much to fast without actually thinking about the purchase.

  • @venabre
    @venabre10 ай бұрын

    Meanwhile in Latin America people are actually creating new businesses off of the liquidated stuff. They buy it in bulk and then just sell it at a regular, physical shop, and at discounted prices compared to the rest of the market. I actually have fun going to those stores because you have absolutely no idea what you will find, so it's a surprise every time.

  • @WiSims
    @WiSims10 ай бұрын

    I had a friend who use to manage a physical store in a mall for Casper mattresses. One thing he told me that stuck is when they accept returns (generous return policy btw) the vetted them, "refurbish", and "give to charity" which would be a HUGE tax write off.

  • @JeffO-

    @JeffO-

    10 ай бұрын

    Tax write offs are only so big though. They're still losing money.

  • @WiSims

    @WiSims

    10 ай бұрын

    @@JeffO- sure its not gonna be 25%+ profit, but if they're doing it in significance its gotta be moving the needle enough to matter to the bottom line.

  • @JervisGermane
    @JervisGermane8 ай бұрын

    My employer is an Amazon contractor, and I *am* our returns department, so I was excited to see this video. I could tell a ton of stories, but I'll keep it to three things. First, a correction, at least from our position as contractor - we don't actually lose much on returns. If something is good to sell, we resell it, and if it isn't, we sell it back to the manufacturer for credit (or cash, sometimes). That said, the main two things I'd want the whole public to know about returns are these: One, the most important thing to include in your return is some explanation of why you're returning it. And be honest. We don't care if you dropped it, your kid stepped on it, your dog chewed it up, whatever. It doesn't affect your credit, but we need to know so we sort it correctly. One and a half, I suppose, is make sure your return is identifiable. I can't tell you how many people have scratched out or removed every identifying feature of a return, such that I can't figure out which sale order it corresponds to. And those people don't get their money back. Two, if you're reporting something damaged in shipping, send in a picture of the shipping label! That's the equivalent of making sure you have your receipt when you take something back to a physical store. This is where we really *do* lose a lot of money, because the manufacturers don't cover those. Those are claims filed with the shipping company. And if we don't have a picture of the shipping label, we have no chance at all of getting the claim paid.

  • @kbieniu7
    @kbieniu711 ай бұрын

    Watching HAI videos, I got feeling like people in the US do shopping only on Amazon and nowhere else.

  • @Merennulli

    @Merennulli

    10 ай бұрын

    The guy behind HAI doesn't let his writers out of the writing cage, so they all have to shop on Amazon. It's not representative of the rest of the US.

  • @nahuelma97

    @nahuelma97

    10 ай бұрын

    The US has a population of 330 million, approximately. Amazon has more than 100 million Prime customers in the US alone, and there are many other customers in the US who are not Prime. So yes, it seems that way because at least 30% of the people in the US use Amazon for online shopping, which saw a drastic increase in the share of overall shopping styles since the pandemic

  • @Merennulli

    @Merennulli

    10 ай бұрын

    @@nahuelma97 That's not the same as "only on Amazon and nowhere else", though. Amazon represents 38% of US online sales and only 3.3% of US retail sales.

  • @tsotate

    @tsotate

    10 ай бұрын

    He lets them out of their writing cage, but then he chases them all around the world, committing crimes.

  • @FastSloth87

    @FastSloth87

    10 ай бұрын

    @@nahuelma97 Around 50% of US online shopping is done through Amazon, about 4% of US retail in general.

  • @Pistol2040
    @Pistol204010 ай бұрын

    Whoever writes these is hilarious. Truly entertaining. Bravo.

  • @iluvpandas2755

    @iluvpandas2755

    10 ай бұрын

    His writers who are payed in gumballs

  • @alexlandherr
    @alexlandherr10 ай бұрын

    I recently bought a combination Blu-Ray + UHD Blu-Ray box and 5/6 of the way in watching it on my PC I get a whole bunch of read errors that aren’t dependent on dust on the data side on one of the UHD discs. When I check more closely it’s a minute scratch close to center of the disc that prevents it from playing. So now I’m about to return it all the way from Stockholm, Sweden to Las Vegas, Nevada USA. I just hope Amazon gives the option of getting a playable equivalent of the Blu-Ray box.

  • @Hadar1991
    @Hadar199110 ай бұрын

    It surprises me how American buying habits differ from my home country. I am from Poland (European Union) and you can return a product for 14 days, no questions asked as long the package has not mean open (I mean product package, not the box their send it in). If you opened a product then depending on a kind of the product you may return it or not. You have opened package of underwear? You cannot return it. The same with groceries, clothing*, personal hygiene products etc. If you opened a product that is not on the list of products that cannot be opened, then you still cannot use it, so you cannot by TV, use it for two weeks and resend it. The only time I resent some products is was when they have been broken from not my fault. And customer always pays for the return unless the return is due to product failure or from the seller fault. And to be honest I think this systems is better, it just seems more sustainable, eco-friendly and prices don''t go up due to absurd return rates. On the other hand all not-single use products in European Union must have at least two year warranty, which American companies like Apple really doesn't like and tried multiple times go around it. :D By opening a pair of trousers/shirt/etc I mean cutting of that paper card with information about the product. If you just put on the piece of clothing to check if it fits you can resend it as long those paper thingies are intact.

  • @jeffkadlec8264
    @jeffkadlec826411 ай бұрын

    I live in Alabama, and it's funny you make that reference. I know SEVERAL PEOPLE who buy bundles of mostly junk in order to make a few extra bucks. And yes, I live on Alabama!

  • @DeannaEarley
    @DeannaEarley10 ай бұрын

    We deal with some returns at work, and for safety reasons (tampering, etc) any return from an end user is destroyed. We have a large dumpster of product that gets collected and crushed every few days!

  • @TS_Mind_Swept
    @TS_Mind_Swept10 ай бұрын

    I don't know about "redoing the future", but planning for a better one definitely helps

  • @midnightdoggo
    @midnightdoggo11 ай бұрын

    This video was posted 5 minutes ago and I am here for it

  • @TheAmyrlinSeat
    @TheAmyrlinSeat10 ай бұрын

    I actually would buy one of those mugs. I have a special spot for it in my mug collection.

  • @Late5555
    @Late555510 ай бұрын

    I've now ordered some stackable cats... 😐 I didn't know I wanted some stackable cats. The point of this video was *really* lost on me, wasn't it 😂

  • @WyvernYT

    @WyvernYT

    10 ай бұрын

    I also want to know more about the stackable cats.

  • @RektalReptil
    @RektalReptil10 ай бұрын

    I am in e commerce and I can tell you if we would make returns not free the selling price could be 30 % lower for sure. (Given the category) Now the question is, do you return so often that it would be more expensive or would it be less expensive for you?

  • @Soguwe
    @Soguwe11 ай бұрын

    You can even return sextoys I've done it twice, one used that turned out to be broken and one unused but that arrived at my home weirdly lubricated I feel sorry for the shlub who had to handle that On the other hand, sextoy shops will just take back anything that is even remotely blemished, even if it only were cosmetic, no questions asked Which is good for companies in the industry of _stuff i shove up my butt_

  • @alexrowaan7326
    @alexrowaan732610 ай бұрын

    I know people who used to buy stuff off Wish, ask to return it, and take advantage of their "here's your refund, keep the stuff" policy. If you know a company will do it, it's a very easy system to abuse. I leave the ethics up to the reader as an exercise

  • @j.p.obregon1415
    @j.p.obregon141511 ай бұрын

    I'm waiting on that mug to show up on the HAI merch site, Sam...

  • @petersmythe6462
    @petersmythe646210 ай бұрын

    That implies that 31% of customers would be indifferent to whether a product requires you to pay return shipping, which is actually a shockingly high number of economically irrational consumers out there.

  • @bonaaq86

    @bonaaq86

    8 ай бұрын

    if it's cheaper that way I could consider it, otherwise hell no lol

  • @ricequackers
    @ricequackers10 ай бұрын

    The 40% return rate on clothes is probably why Zara charge for returns now but you can return for free in their stores. Unfortunately for me, who works fairly close to a Zara store, it means that I wind up having to carry all of the wife's clothes that she wants returning. Women definitely do be shopping.

  • @waldevv
    @waldevv11 ай бұрын

    I can't be the only one who has never returned something. Maybe a couple of times on things that I bought from local stores and ended up faulty right out of the gate but I've never shipped anything back

  • @Merennulli

    @Merennulli

    10 ай бұрын

    Do you keep things that were faulty right out of the box if they were shipped, or have you just never had a manufacturer defect come via shipping?

  • @ishashka

    @ishashka

    10 ай бұрын

    I think I've only returned something once, a graphics tablet. It turned out it didn't work well with Linux and it wasn't cheap, so I sent it back. But usually I'm too lazy to return stuff, so even if something's not quite what I expected I keep it.

  • @Jodsderechte
    @Jodsderechte10 ай бұрын

    I love the small gimmic of the Blender Software being in there at 3:59 great stuff editor

  • @cassieoz1702
    @cassieoz170210 ай бұрын

    Returning pretty much anything here is at your own expense unless the product is faulty. Even then, you often have to pay to post back and HOPE they'll admit they screwed up and refund.

  • @klassicneo
    @klassicneo10 ай бұрын

    Shout out to Malaysia, this is how Sam gets me to recommend a video to my colleagues lol

  • @revcrussell
    @revcrussell11 ай бұрын

    They should just reward people that don't return goods with lower prices or something.

  • @nahuelma97

    @nahuelma97

    10 ай бұрын

    When a store sells you something, the implicit contract involves you giving them money and them giving you a working product. You not returning something doesn't happen because you're kind. It happens because the store correctly fulfilled its contract with you. Why should the store compensate you for them having fulfilled their part of the contract?

  • @revcrussell

    @revcrussell

    10 ай бұрын

    @@nahuelma97 While there is no implied term in the sales contract. Amazon clearly advertises free, no hassle, returns for any reason. Amazon would be clearly estopped from not taking your returned goods.

  • @mtrps_
    @mtrps_11 ай бұрын

    im just happy he said Malaysia in this video ❤

  • @akirasakuchi
    @akirasakuchi10 ай бұрын

    Honestly the whole concept of returning things casually is alien to me. Where I live, you can only return the item if its damaged when you received it. You also need to provide an "uninterrupted unboxing video" to prove that the item is indeed broken when you got it out of the box and not just swapped with a similar one.

  • @tklalmighty
    @tklalmighty10 ай бұрын

    Having previously worked for several years on the tech side of the logistics arm of an e-commerce company, I can definitely say that solving for how to handle returns properly absolutely sucks.

  • @traumgeist
    @traumgeist10 ай бұрын

    You really like that stock footage of the confused looking man with the beard and glasses.

  • @cyzcyt
    @cyzcyt10 ай бұрын

    2 times the gdp of Malaysia. Now I know why it's so hard to return things in Malaysia. It's better now, but there was a time where to even put an order in to buy stuff you had to pay for full without any expectations of return. It's ridiculous

  • @Nightriser271828
    @Nightriser2718283 ай бұрын

    I worked in cell phone reverse logistics. I've seen pretty much all of these paths.

  • @NONO-hz4vo
    @NONO-hz4vo11 ай бұрын

    I wish sellers had an option to never use returns in exchange for a discount. 99% of the time I know exactly what I want and rarely have I returned anything. For MFG defects I will just go through the warranty of the manufacturer.

  • @Ron-rs2zl
    @Ron-rs2zl11 ай бұрын

    Ordered a wall clock from Amazon and it wasn't the right model,so I requested a return label and got another clock to return.

  • @JuraIbis

    @JuraIbis

    10 ай бұрын

    This is my favorite comment of all time on youtube.

  • @cityraildude
    @cityraildude10 ай бұрын

    I think part of the reason why people want to return things is because they worry that the company will think will you're lying, as where if you're return the product, they know you're not lying

  • @limboonsiew5552
    @limboonsiew555210 ай бұрын

    weird to hear about Malaysia GDP index(?) as an example for something in a video that just so happen to be posted on its Independence Day.

  • @Marconius6
    @Marconius610 ай бұрын

    I can confirm I would be buying way less stuff if not for the option of returns: the main reason for me is that some of the stuff you get is just, y'know, a bit shit. But it's hard to tell until you actually get it in your hands... And of course for clothes, well, you can't exactly try pants on in an online store.

  • @logans3365
    @logans336510 ай бұрын

    They don’t mind free returns because they increase the price to sell you a return with every product, instead of only when you actually need it.

  • @bountygiver2

    @bountygiver2

    10 ай бұрын

    And people really don't mind paying slightly more for the peace of mind of able to return it. It's the same reason that if i am buying second hand stuff it better be really significantly cheaper.

  • @thebrownguy79
    @thebrownguy7911 ай бұрын

    I work for the UPS store and the majority of our business (now) is doing Amazon returns. I love scaring people who return too often that Amazon is going to revoke their return privileges

  • @nahuelma97

    @nahuelma97

    10 ай бұрын

    And with good reason. Return rate is a thing on your Amazon account that's used to assess if you're being abusive with your returns or not. If a customer keeps returning stuff without valid reasons, sooner or later they'll be flagged and they will not have the option to start a return through self-service and will instead have to contact customer service, and customer service will have to filter their return request to see if it's legitimate or not, and may even reject it altogether, with the only viable alternative being contacting the product's manufacturer

  • @joesfather9122
    @joesfather912210 ай бұрын

    2:56 my favorite movie!

  • @Anankin12
    @Anankin1211 ай бұрын

    Why is it that in the latest video the music is so much louder as to be annoying, while in older video it was ok?

  • @macsnafu
    @macsnafu10 ай бұрын

    My mother tried to buy me some shoes online. The first time, I received the wrong size shoes. The second time, I receive 3 shoes that were the wrong size. Third time was the charm, one pair of shoes, the right size.

  • @tonycrabtree3416
    @tonycrabtree341610 ай бұрын

    It's called Reverse Logistics, not Reverse Supply Chain. You guys crack me up. I mean, they've written books about it. The reason you don't use supply because you are not intending on it being a part of supply plan.

  • @Being_John
    @Being_John11 ай бұрын

    When I first got my job I’m in now I had to fix the returns dept. I hated it.

  • @travisolander4749
    @travisolander474911 ай бұрын

    Great video. But tell your editor to turn the music track down at least 50%.

  • @agn728
    @agn72810 ай бұрын

    To be fair that return value attributed to America is highly over-inflated due to the return fraud issues retailers face. It's still an obscene number lol

  • @adrewster
    @adrewster10 ай бұрын

    Because of the title it took me like 4 minutes to realize this was an HAI video not a Wendover video

  • @unneccry2222
    @unneccry222210 ай бұрын

    5:43 i heard it as bike sized horses and at this point i can believe you would say this

  • @joeym5243
    @joeym524311 ай бұрын

    Just dont try to return food, they really dont appreciate it

  • @macmedic892

    @macmedic892

    11 ай бұрын

    Particularly if it’s entered and exited, whether up or down.

  • @lightdark00

    @lightdark00

    10 ай бұрын

    You better bet I bag up diarrhea and take it to the restaurant that made it possible, for a refund!

  • @moth.monster
    @moth.monster11 ай бұрын

    I bought a liquidation box once. Made the money back and then some selling a good chunk of the stuff on eBay, as it just had damaged packaging. Only one thing was actual garbage (a pair of used earbuds someone clearly swapped for a new pair before returning) I still have a bunch of Apple Watch straps sitting around that haven't sold, but they're still on eBay. They don't take up much space, so I just keep them around. Occasionally someone will buy one.

  • @barneylaurance1865

    @barneylaurance1865

    11 ай бұрын

    How much work was selling on eBay? Would you still have made the money back if you had paid yourself a reasonable wage for it? Doesn't mean it's not worth doing occasionally if you don't mind the processes of selling on eBay.

  • @andriadaisy
    @andriadaisy10 ай бұрын

    You actually can resell a mattress. I got a $3k mattress for $1k bc it had been returned. They send it through a whole sanitation process so it’s clean and just as good as new.

  • @cashnelson2306
    @cashnelson230611 ай бұрын

    Whoa, Woot! still exists? Now that's a throwback.

  • @TechyTechz

    @TechyTechz

    10 ай бұрын

    And it’s owned by Amazon now

  • @dukeofurl01
    @dukeofurl0110 ай бұрын

    If returns is so costly and tedious, you would think retailers would do something about their quality control. Though there will always be things like people ordering the wrong size, color, etc. Also people trying to rip off the retailers.

  • @DogsRNice
    @DogsRNice11 ай бұрын

    3:59 one of those blenders isn't like the rest

  • @frtzkng
    @frtzkng10 ай бұрын

    The costs of return is calculated into most sale prices, so they offer it for free and don't even mind if you just return broken items that you swapped with a new one you ordered. Just don't do this a lot.

  • @starburst23
    @starburst2310 ай бұрын

    What I'm really hearing is that we're all paying 10-25% more for returns.

  • @areyukittingme
    @areyukittingme11 ай бұрын

    To HAI writers: please make Sam say more "OOOH". pls its my birthday in 3 days time, its all i ask for

  • @fathomstars
    @fathomstars10 ай бұрын

    30 seconds into the video and I went "I bet Ben wrote this one"

  • @chrisbeynon8700
    @chrisbeynon870011 ай бұрын

    Love this video!

  • @TheChrisLeone
    @TheChrisLeone10 ай бұрын

    It is a disaster. My warehouse in New Jersey gets returns for a Chicago warehouse all the time

  • @FacterinoCommenterino
    @FacterinoCommenterino11 ай бұрын

    Today's Fact: The first ever website to be taken down by the FBI, in 1995, was a website run by a hacker group called 'The Legion of Doom.'

  • @deleted-something

    @deleted-something

    11 ай бұрын

    What did they do

  • @carltonleboss

    @carltonleboss

    11 ай бұрын

    Nice

  • @jbird4478

    @jbird4478

    11 ай бұрын

    @@deleted-something They plotted against the Super Friends to take over the world.

  • @Mister0Eel

    @Mister0Eel

    11 ай бұрын

    Hey, I saw you yesterday! I'll be looking out for your comments from now on ;)

  • @Snoborder95

    @Snoborder95

    11 ай бұрын

    Good commenter, keep up the good work

  • @josephdarcymcnaughton414
    @josephdarcymcnaughton41410 ай бұрын

    You need to do a video on why the word "pickle" is nowhere to be found on any major brand pickle jar labels.

  • @NolePTR
    @NolePTR10 ай бұрын

    There's a place near my parents that liquidates returns. They sell everything for $5 or $10. You can get a DJI there if you're lucky.

  • @Homer625
    @Homer6257 ай бұрын

    Here i am watching this video after i received a leaky bottle of wood floor cleaner (half of it leaked out in the package) from Amazon, initiated a return thinking they would just send me a new bottle, but nope. They want me to return the entire bottle of cleaner which by this point has completely leaked out. Can't wait to see the look on the UPS employee's face when i return an empty plastic bottle

  • @FujheiTyecuteki
    @FujheiTyecuteki11 ай бұрын

    Does Half as Interesting like fishsticks?

  • @user-eg1sw2dz7g
    @user-eg1sw2dz7g9 ай бұрын

    Maybe online shopping isn't as great as we all think. Am now definitely putting in more effort to spend my money locally on durable things that last, it's amazing how many ways one can replace online spending, although not always unfortunately

  • @RetroGameSpacko
    @RetroGameSpacko11 ай бұрын

    I reship less than 1%. I simply dont wanna do that.. I rather keep a shit product and learn from my mistake than retourning it.

  • @michaelz.7140
    @michaelz.714011 ай бұрын

    only 40 % returns on clothing? I would assume it is more akin to 80 %.

  • @OrangeC7
    @OrangeC710 ай бұрын

    "The best way to undo the past is to redo the future" Ok, Oogway

  • @GauravHarsule
    @GauravHarsule10 ай бұрын

    Anyone else thought this was a Wendover video when they saw the title of the video?