Opening my MIS yesterday was rough. 41% return rate in Jan.
Not going to dress this up - we're dying under returns. The math is simple and brutal: 42L in sales, 17L in returns, 6.5L just in return handling. Every returned piece costs us ₹180-220 in logistics alone.
Been running this brand for 2 years. Returns went from 18% to 41%. No fancy analysis needed - people are just buying, wearing, and returning. Today's returns included our cargo pants with a mehendi stain. Return reason? "Fitting issues." Right.
The data tells the story:
- Metro cities: 65% of returns
- Peak return time: Monday/Tuesday
- Common pattern: Order Friday, wear weekend, return Monday (note: Jan was also the wedding season)
Costs:
- Manufacturing: 32%
- Marketing: 28%
- Logistics: 12%
- Marketplace: 15%
- Payment/Returns: 8%
At 40% returns, we're underwater. Half these returns can't even go back to full price. Marketplace penalties for high return rates are another story entirely.
Honest truth: the Indian market has a fundamentally broken relationship with D2C brands. We're stuck between customers who want international brand quality but want to pay fast fashion prices - and then return it anyway. This isn't just a return problem. It's about a market that hasn't figured out how to value quality over quantity, where "free returns" has become a way to game the system rather than a genuine customer service.
The bigger problem is that no D2C brand can "not offer" free returns - that's a definite recipe for death even before you start.
Not sure how long small brands can survive this. To the customers who actually keep what they buy - you're literally keeping us alive, thanks from the bottom of my heart!
That's it. It's Monday so back to processing returns.