What Grade Would You Give Brands on Reverse Logistics Operations?
I would give a range of grades from A to F for how brands are handling reverse logistics. There is still a lot of variation in this area—from consumer spending to B2B direct spend. A stellar reverse logistics program can lower the bar to buy. It’s so much easier to make a purchase decision when you know you can send the product back if needed, with no hassle. This is an area for improvement.
–Doug DeLuca
Product Marketing Manager
SAP Business Network, SAP
While some brands excel in reverse logistics, there’s room for improvement. Prioritizing technology to streamline processes and elevate the customer experience can boost reverse logistics performance.
–Mike Trudeau
Executive Vice President, Business Development
Montway Auto Transport
Tracking, inventory management, and customer experience can be improved. Companies investing in artificial intelligence and robotics stand to achieve notable progress.
–Vlad Kadurin
Chief Product and Operations Officer
Ship.Cars
Major leaders like Amazon skew the average upwards. However, I see refurbishment and repairs as needing more attention. Many large companies make repairing damaged products an unnecessarily expensive and long process.
–Bryan Gerber
Founder and CEO
Hara Supply
Brands need to focus on optimizing return processes, implementing better tracking and communications systems as well as finding innovative ways to recycle return items to minimize environmental impact.
–Mary Goodwin
Account Associate
4D Supply Chain Consulting Inc.
Technologies including Internet of things, artificial intelligence, and machine learning analytics can be used to reduce chaos and enhance the circular economy. There’s room for improving key aspects such as returns processing, remanufacturing/refurbishment, packaging, and recycling.
–Shamini Martin
Vice President, Marketing
Trigent Software
Brands are making strides in integrating customer-centric return processes. The next step is to enhance logistics networks for faster, more sustainable reverse flows, ensuring products are repurposed or recycled efficiently.
–Dennis Moon
COO
Roadie
Some brands have mature reverse logistics processes and some have a lot of room for growth. They’re recognizing the need to optimize reverse logistics with greater urgency as the costs to run a business shift in this macro economy, creating greater pressure to increase margins.
–Kristen Kelly
VP of Product
Loop Returns
Streamlining return authorizations and offering eco-friendly disposal options could further enhance customer satisfaction and reduce environmental impact.
–Siddharth Priyesh
Vice President & Head, Americas & Caribbean
CrimsonLogic
A significant challenge remains: the slow processing of returned inventory that sits in the warehouse—tying up capital. These items must be inspected and made available for resale much more quickly.
–Troy Graham
VP of Customer Success
Descartes Systems Group
Returns-to-sales ratio remains steady. Focusing on reducing returns is crucial. Other opportunities include fraud prevention and sustainable disposal in the reverse supply chain.
–Tara Buchler
Vice President, Product Management
e2open
B or C. Most brands now realize how reverse logistics differentiates the customer experience, productivity, and cost. The easier the consumer drop-off the higher the brand loyalty. Quality of goods (unopened/new, needs reconditioning, broken/dispose) must be determined early in the reverse chain to drive subsequent routing destinations.
–Andre Luecht
Global Strategy Lead – Transport, Logistics & Warehouse
Zebra Technologies
Confusing policies and clunky processes frustrate customers. Tech could improve tracking, speed, and data.
–Roslyn Ellerbee
Founder & CEO
Express Errands & Courier
Brands often oversimplify or neglect reverse logistics to focus on outbound logistics. To improve, they should set up processes to categorize and classify returns, create clear business rules for handling items (resale, refurbish, recycle, or dispose), and work with a reliable 3PL provider.
–Dave Tu
President
DCL Logistics
C. Rising consumer expectations have raised the ante for brands to facilitate returns, so to stay ahead of competitors, brands should leverage AI to streamline processes and reduce costs.
–Nirav Patel
CEO
Bristlecone
C. Reverse logistics is expensive to manage, with no financial upside and high risks. Executing it poorly may lead to damaged customer experiences and reputation. AI and data analytics are the keys to fixing root causes systematically. Consolidating logistics across brands can create economies of scale.
–Mike Parker
SVP Industry – Transportation & Logistics
Bridgenext
C. Brands tend to view themselves as the main reference point, like all commercial stakeholders, which limits the ability to think outside their organization. All stakeholders must acknowledge they are part of a larger network, as it’s essential to report the data necessary for genealogical traceability.
–Jeff Wells
Chief Visionary Officer
Metrc
Below satisfactory. Brands struggle with reverse logistics by either mixing returned items with new inventory, reselling products at vast discounts, or destroying items entirely. Using a warehouse management system to drive the returns process supports a well-managed reverse logistics system.
–Eric Allais
President & CEO
PathGuide Technologies, Inc.
Reverse logistics operations have been left largely unchanged for decades. Manual, paper-centric processes lead to a lack of visibility and accountability. Brands need to implement technology and automation into their operations.
–Jon Ward
Senior Director, GM
Elite EXTRA, an Epicor solution
With an overall return rate of nearly 18%, revenue is significantly impacted by returns. Consumers demand convenience, free returns, instant exchanges, lenient return policies, and consistency. Providing all this comes with a high price, but it’s worth it to improve customer satisfaction.
–Jason Minghini
Senior Vice President, Operations
Kenco
Many default to writing off returned goods as a loss without ever learning from it. Are there patterns that can inform future product development? Defects in the product? Marketing that made customers think they were getting something different? Each returned item is a lesson.
–Josh Dunham
CEO
Reveel
Brands should venture to porch returns, restaurants, airports, and spaces with heavy foot traffic, looking beyond traditional parcel posts and kiosks. When it comes to quick fashion sustainability, they should consider how to salvage excess in a better way and embrace virtual try-on technology to reduce returns.
–Ann Marie Jonkman
Vice President, Global Industry Strategy
Blue Yonder
Some mature global supply chains have been using reverse logistics to find backhaul revenue opportunities and minimize the movement of empty trucks. By and large, companies are only beginning to think about how to optimize reverse logistics, and this will be strategic to sustainability in our new circular economy.
–Matthew Bunce
Decision Intelligence Engagement Principal
Aera Technology