Why brands are prepping new return policies for Q4

A joint survey by Happy Returns and the National Retail Federation in 2025 found that retailers expect about 17% of their holiday sales to get returned.

Joe Vancena, vp of marketing at Loop, said he’s seeing more brands institute temporary return policies to fit with the demands of the holiday season. A standard 30-day return window, for instance, isn’t necessarily long enough to accommodate the holiday season and associated travel. And gift givers may want to ensure that they’re only purchasing from places where someone doesn’t have to pay anything to make an exchange.

The right policy can make or break customer acquisition and retention: Loop’s latest survey data shows about 58% of consumers say they have walked away from a brand over its return policy, while 92% of consumers say return fees change how they shop.

“We know that the majority of customers will either not shop with you at all or abandon a purchase if they don’t like your return policy. And so I’m always recommending brands, at least during this time period, is that you need to have a flexible policy, whether that means free returns and free exchanges, whether that means a longer return window,” he said.

But making those changes may require a process — and making a case to other team members that it’s the right time for a change like free returns and exchanges that could look costly on paper. But Vacena said the long-term benefits outweigh the costs — whether that’s higher conversion rates, more first-time customers or more top-line revenue throughout Q4. “All of those will dramatically outweigh a smaller percentage of those customers who need to return,” he said.

One way brands are testing whether a return policy will help win over these shoppers is through advertising messaging as early as August.

“In your sea of 150, 200 ads that you have in the market right now, turn on one additional ad and test the performance of an ad with free returns copy in it. Do you see any signs of life that that ad is going to get more clicks than the rest of your portfolio? If so, there’s your sign,” he said.

Vancena also said brands will test returns policy language by adding it to their product description pages right near the add to cart button. Brands “almost unanimously” see these tests lead to more sales, which helps strengthen the case for making the changes.

Beyond making returns more flexible, Vancena said some brands also use returns as a touchpoint to drive more sales. Someone who is exchanging a size is already engaging with the brand website, and Vancena said more brands are looking to upsell that customer on related items without any new acquisition costs. New customers, for instance, may get offered a discount for adding items to their exchange.

In the case of beauty brand Jones Road, the brand was able to derive an extra $197,000 in new revenue from customers who kept shopping mid-return, according to Loop data, while retaining $3.1 million in sales by offering exchanges.

“This is where the best brands in the world are getting really advanced at that stage — this upsell during the exchange,” he said.

The week in tariffs

• New Canadian retaliatory tariffs are set to kick in on September 8, the latest chapter in President Donald Trump’s ongoing trade war. Canada implemented the tariffs in response to the U.S. putting up to 50% tariffs on roughly $20 billion worth of products.
• The new Canadian tariffs will range from 15-50% on over 700 American goods, aiming to match the U.S. tariffs dollar for dollar. Affected categories include steel, dairy, appliances, agricultural equipment, pulp and paper, and electronics — those that are most impacted by U.S. tariffs.
• It’s unclear what effect the tariffs will end up having on domestic production, given the significant trade relationship that the U.S. and Canada have had in the past. “With fresh trade barriers now threatening one of North America’s primary supply chains, the scope for productivity to absorb another shock — and cushion an already fragile global economy — could be tested,” read a recent World Economic Forum publication.

What we’ve covered

Quince’s first-ever sample sale sold out 6 hours early

E-commerce behemoth Quince is increasingly testing out physical retail after surpassing $2 billion in sales. Most recently, Julia Waldow reports, the brand hosted a sample sale in its hometown of San Francisco that sold out in six hours.

The event drew a line of customers that wound around four blocks and a two-and-a-half-hour wait. Inventory included hundreds of towels, candles and cashmere sweaters that had been worn by its models or used in photo shoots. Quince’s head of brand strategy and narrative, Dakota Kate Isaacs, told Waldow that the outcome exceeded the brand’s expectations, as well as the “depth of the affinity” and customers’ love for the brand that they shared.

Initially known for women’s apparel, Quince has since branched out into fragrance, wellness, men’s shoes, linen bedding, wine and furniture. Isaacs said that the event helped showcase that diversity to customers.

“We noticed people coming in for one thing, but leaving with a very different category,” Isaacs said. “A lot of people in line would talk about, ‘Oh, I want to see if they have this cashmere sweater.’ The first thing they ended up picking up was linens or bath towels.”

Location data fuels mall giant Simon’s new pitch to advertisers

Simon Property Group recently launched Simon Media Network, a retail media network helping brands reach consumers across its more than 200 shopping centers. But beyond giving advertisers access to its screens, Simon is also letting brands target people who shop in its malls in other environments, and will provide insights based on visitation, transactions and consumer-engagement data.

MR’s Mitchell Parton reports that Simon is positioning the network as an “audience intelligence product” instead of simply a screen network, given that advertisers will be able to identify and engage desired audience segments and measure how that campaign performed.

“We have tremendous insight, consent-based, in terms of location behavior,” said Jared Blechman, chief revenue officer at Simon Property Group. 

What we’re reading

• Pressure in China helps convince Volkswagen it’s time to change -Associated Press
• Nestlé Purina PetCare opens $550M pet food plant in Ohio -Food Engineering
• David Protein maker valued at $2.25 billion in new funding deal -Bloomberg