From a business perspective, it’s rational. Returns are expensive: packaging, shipping, inspection and time off the digital selling floor. In luxury, items lose value once worn.

However, the world is not black and white - we live in shades of grey, and this is a complex one. Often the highest spenders are also the highest returners, and for years the checkout has been treated as a selection moment rather than a final commitment. Clients have been trained to return as part of their shopping behaviour with free returns, try at home, free delivery and pre-paid labels. The behaviour of returning has been almost encouraged and is now a normal way to shop – shopping and returning even has its own vocabulary: bracketing, haul culture. The home has become the digital fitting room. At one point, Net-a-Porter themselves even offered services where they would wait while you tried items on - many brands still do.

So, is it fair that clients are being punished by the retail industry for a behaviour they created?

This growing enforcement highlights the tension in the industry of protecting profitability whilst trying to deliver an online experience that equals a physical retail environment.Net-a-Porter’s move reminds us that there is a real cost to serving clients, and brands may be forced to become more selective about what behaviours they are willing to tolerate.

I am a curious person, so I wonder now – what are the rules of banning clients who return?Are they using a simple ‘keep vs return’ revenue ratio? Or something more nuanced – reflecting the complexity of human behaviour and context. What happens when returns are driven by fit or sizing issues, availability or product accuracy? And what changes when your best clients are also your most expensive ones or have a valuable network? Was there really no other alternative to this? Why not introduce a returns fee?

Selective access is not new, and criteria based inclusion has always existed. “Fair use policies” are expected in utilities, seeing them appear so visibly in luxury ecommerce marks a shift. Luxury is about making the client feel valued and known. Here they are known, assessed and… rejected. It feels wrong.

Final thought.
This is not growth at all costs, it’s profitability at all costs. Where good behaviour is defined and rewarded. But in a world where we are all seeking belonging, exclusion of any kind feels uncomfortable. Without clear, logical rules a brand risks more than it gains.

Sources:
Main image: Net-a-Porter Website, Summer
It’s over. Net-a-Porter has sent me packing, Can customers break their returns habit?, Haul culture is fuelling returns. What can brands do?