It may be January, but the holiday shopping season isn’t over just yet. The National Retail Federation is forecasting close to a billion dollars in returns for those holiday gifts that just weren’t right. That also means extra work for the U.S. Postal Service. An estimated eight hundred million packages were expected to be shipped between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Postal Service spokeswoman Debra Fetterly says that doesn’t count the returns…
“We're still busy until, like, the middle of January for customers who want to return packages, it's a lot easier these days. We have click and ship which customers can get online to make their labels, whether they're sending something for the holiday gifts or if they're returning something,” she said.
If you plan to make returns in person, there are other ways to make the process easier. You can shop from stores that offer gift receipts, and you can buy gifts from retailers that offer a generous return policy. Gift receipts are purchase receipts that show what you bought, just not the price you paid. You can request to have one printed when shopping in person. Most national retailers offer them if you simply ask for one.
"I do gift receipts for everything I buy, even if I'm sure they'll love it," said Michelle Price of Honest and Truly. "Also, I tape the gift receipt to the item. There's nothing worse than having to dig through a pile of receipts in the store trying to find the right one only to realize you don't have one for the item you're trying to return."
Not only do gift receipts make returns easier but they also ensure that the person gets the gift's value. For instance, if you bought something and it gets marked down after the holidays, someone returning it without a gift receipt or any receipt for that matter will get the lesser amount returned to them or applied to an exchange. With a gift receipt in hand, the return value is the original purchase price. If you plan to return things through the mail, USPS Spokeswoman Deborah Fetterly says there are ways for customers to help a busy January go smoothly…
“So I encourage everyone to go to usps.com and see exactly what needs to be done. But it's not a problem. But I would say until mid January, we're helping, with customers who need to return whatever,”
According to Civic Science, an opinion research firm in Pittsburgh, a survey at the end of the 2023 holiday season found that nearly 1 in 3 U.S. adults who received gifts plan to make a return or exchange. That was up nine points from the previous year. Of the group, half of those aged 25 to 44 - or Gen Z and millennials - planned to return or exchange a gift. In many instances, the Civic Science research showed that brand was crucial to these gift recipients. For instance, if someone wanted a new pair of Ugg boots but got a knockoff brand instead, they will likely bring them back. A recent survey by the website ShipStation shows over fifty percent of Baby Boomers think retail returns should be free of charge. Just over thirty percent of Gen Z’ers agree.
