What Happens to our Online Shopping Returns?

KQED's Forum

KQED

Politics, News, News Commentary

4.6 • 656 Ratings

🗓️ 28 August 2023

⏱️ 57 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Americans are doing a lot more of their shopping online, and thanks to generous return policies we’re also sending back more of the stuff that doesn’t fit, doesn’t work or just doesn’t look like its JPG. Many of us even regularly buy clothes in multiple sizes and colors and simply send back anything that we don’t like the look of. But very little of what we return, from bathing suits to defective barbeque grills, is repaired or resold as new. Returned inventory created 9.5 billion pounds of landfill waste last year, according to one estimate. And the shipping of returned inventory in the US, to retailers, resellers and repairers, emitted over 24 million metric tons of carbon dioxide in 2022. We’ll talk about the logistics of the reverse supply chain and the environmental consequences of all the stuff we buy and don’t want. Guests: Amanda Mull, staff writer, The Atlantic - who writes the column “Material World” on American consumerism Tobin Moore, co-founder and principal, Optoro - a returns technology company Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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0:59.4	From KQVD in San Francisco, I'm Mina Kim.
1:19.6	Coming up on Forum, what happens to the stuff we returned?
1:23.6	Americans are doing a lot more online shopping these days.
1:26.6	And thanks to generous return policies, we're also sending back more of the stuff we don't like.
1:32.3	Many of us are even buying with an intent to return, meaning we're getting multiple sizes or colors of things to try out, then send back what doesn't work for us.
1:42.3	But if you think your returns are being restocked and resold,
1:46.0	the Atlantic's Amanda Mall says, think again.
1:49.0	More likely, your returns are entering a nasty logistics chain
1:52.3	that could end up with it in a landfill or incinerator.
1:55.7	The impact of all those returned items after this news.
2:03.0	Welcome to Forum. I'm Mina Kim.
2:05.7	The pandemic boom in online shopping has also led to a boom in returns.
	...

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