Holiday Returns: Obstacle or Opportunity?

Consider a scenario where a customer orders four items, but sends one back in the same shipping box. The weight may be less, but the retailer (or customer) will be paying more than they need to because of the box size. Retailers that pack free return labels with their holiday shipments could be blindsided by the cost of returns shipped after Dec. 29 or Jan. 1, when the changes take hold for UPS and FedEx, respectively. Same goes for shoppers who are picking up the cost themselves. They have to understand that size now matters, so returns must be packed efficiently rather than just picking an empty box. Retailers may want to consider diversifying their shipments with a provider that offers a solution that doesn't charge for dimensional weight to offset the costs.