RETAILERS HOPE FOR HAPPY RETURNS STORES STREAMLINE EXCHANGE PROCESS.Byline: Candice Candice may refer to: Singers
As the frozen smiles thaw and people start heading to the malls Sunday Sunday: see Sabbath; week. to exchange their gifts for something they really want, many will find a kinder, gentler return and exchange process. ``Consumers have come to expect it,'' said Leilani Sinclair, who was shopping at the Westfield Shoppingtown Topanga. In fact, Sinclair won't go to a store if she knows it has a complicated return policy or if it doesn't offer gift receipts. Particularly during the winter season, retailers are eager to assure shoppers the gifts they buy can be returned or exchanged once the holidays are over. Hence the rise of gift receipts, which are being requested by more customers than ever before, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. a study by the National Retail Federation. A Harris poll also found 85 percent of shoppers are less likely to go back to a store where the return process is inconvenient in·con·ven·ient adj. Not convenient, especially: a. Not accessible; hard to reach. b. Not suited to one's comfort, purpose, or needs: inconvenient to have no phone in the kitchen. . ``(Retailers) want shoppers to buy now, and if it doesn't work out later, then they can return it,'' said Barbara Gross, marketing professor at California State University, Northridge CSUN offers a variety of programs leading to bachelor's degrees in 61 fields and master's degrees in 42 fields. The university has over 150,000 alumni. It's also home to a summer musical theater/theater program known as TADW (TeenAge Drama Workshop) that leads teenagers through an . ``Stores are trying to emphasize they want to help you reduce the risk of a purchase.'' Though a few retailers have recently made waves by using a software system that identifies shoppers who abuse returns, Gross said that it only accounts for a minute percentage of shoppers. Such abuse is often limited to certain kinds of goods, like pricey Pricey Term used for an unrealistically low bid price or unrealistically high offer price. pricey Of, relating to, or being an unrealistically high offer. An offer to sell a security at $50 when the current market price is $47 is pricey. special occasion apparel. ``They'll wear it once with the tag on tag on Verb to add at the end of something: a throwaway remark, tagged on at the end of a casual conversation Verb 1. , then return it,'' Gross said. The vast majority of those making returns do not fall into this group, however, and many spend more while making a return or exchange, said Jonathan Dampier, vice president of marketing for Newgistics, which manages return policies for retailers. ``For the most part, it's not the policy, but the procedures that bother people - the bugaboos and inconvenience of it all.'' Candice Choi, (818) 713-3634 candice.choi(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): photo Photo: (color) Pedro Saldibar, left, of North Hills waits in line at Best Buy to return merchandise on Wednesday morning, ahead of the Dec. 26 rush back to stores. John Lazar/Staff Photographer |
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