RedViking
Nord of the South
Always appreciate your responses and input. It is really nice having someone giving some perspective. Regarding the "restock" fee.It's generally because the cost to you is subsidized, while you returning something can't be subsidized. I'll use myself as an example:
- You buy a cooler
- Courier to you is R 165, but you get charged R 119
- The difference of R 46 comes out of margin on the cooler
- You return the cooler, still sealed, because you realized you bought a 420mm AIO and while stripping your PC you realized your case only supports up to 280mm
- There is no margin to cover the R 46 as you're being refunded for the cooler
- You get charged R 165 for the return, which is still a net loss on the sale of R 46
You have to be massive to get better rates. My bill is a quite far into the 5-digit figures each month, and I pay the same as you would sending a single parcel every few months.
No, it doesn't. The only time courier costs me less than you pay is when it's a local flyer bag. Those extra R 20s that local small orders pay get "used" to cover return fees. Using the above example, if your cooler dies within 6 months, there's a further R 165 x 2 courier fees I have to cover - there isn't a cooler with margin high enough to cover the R 330, and it has eaten all margin from the original sale AND SOME.
I ran the numbers about a year ago, and courier fees balance out almost perfectly, with the final figure being a net loss of below 0.5% at the time.
It's a tough one to work out - would you be happy paying "only" 10% less for a cooler that has been opened and installed, even if never powered on? You're going to need to buy new thermal paste as well, as the cooler was installed and the original paste was wiped off (or the store has to chuck in a new tube at their cost).
Distributors almost never accept opened returns, so the store could be sitting with it for weeks/months/years until it gets sold as open box. When distributors DO accept open returns, they normally go all-in with the handling fee (it can greatly exceed 25% - there's no ceiling as you'd find under the CPA when it's B2B).
I've completely written off a number of returned items because they weren't popular items and hadn't sold after 6+ months. That's money being written off through no fault of mine other than accepting returns that, from a CPA perspective, didn't need to be accepted. I try to view returns from a consumer's point of view as much as possible, as I'm also a consumer, but sometimes it's just not feasible or possible.
No sies. Those may be denied outright for hygienic reasons.
Larger companies often work on billing cycles, it can be a life or death situation and all they can do is schedule a payment to go off with the next cycle.
Delivery cost only - not return cost. Return isn't on you.
They make a sickening amount of margin. They more often than not make around 9% more margin than anyone else by negotiating bulk deals, and then ON TOP OF THAT get rebates of 5-8%. Where a store the size of almost everyone you mentioned in post 9 is making 5%, Takealot and Amazon are making 15-25% (accounting for rebates) while selling at the same price.
I think that covers everything
One would think there is by now a system where packaging is standardised , for after it has been inspected, it can be sealed again. Some standard seal system.
Hmmm...
Wait let me work on this one..
/claude
"I am an entrepreneur. Worlds most successful business man..... "
