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OpenAI Made an AI Breakthrough Before Altman Firing, Stoking Excitement and
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HOW AMAZON IS TAMING ITS CUSTOMERS’ RETURNS ADDICTION

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AMAZON MADE FREE RETURNS AN INDUSTRY STANDARD FOR ONLINE SHOPPING, THEN THE
PANDEMIC SENT RETURN RATES SOARING. NOW, THE COMPANY IS TRYING TO TAME ITS
RETURNS BEAST WITHOUT SPARKING CUSTOMER BACKLASH.




HOW AMAZON IS TAMING ITS CUSTOMERS’ RETURNS ADDICTION

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


AMAZON MADE FREE RETURNS AN INDUSTRY STANDARD FOR ONLINE SHOPPING, THEN THE
PANDEMIC SENT RETURN RATES SOARING. NOW, THE COMPANY IS TRYING TO TAME ITS
RETURNS BEAST WITHOUT SPARKING CUSTOMER BACKLASH.


Illustration by Laurent Hrybyk.
By
Theo Wayt
 * theo@theinformation.c­om
 * Profile and archive →
 * Follow Theo on Twitter


Subscribe Now
June 29, 2023 6:04 AM PDT


When Amazon announced Wednesday that customers could soon start dropping off
items they wanted to return at nearly 1,000 Staples stores, it touted the
partnership as part of its decadeslong quest to make online shopping as easy as
possible for consumers.

In reality, the Staples partnership is the result of a years-long effort by a
team inside Amazon to drive down the cost of returns after they soared during
the pandemic, one reason why the company’s North America business lost money
last year. The mission included discouraging customers from returning items
through UPS, which is especially expensive for Amazon.


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