Returns picked up from your house | Hacker News Reader

Returns picked up from your house

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2 pointsmganz14 comments

I wonder if this will encourage people to buy even more stuff online, knowing that it'll be super convenient to return later on. Somehow I can't see how this doesn't lead to more waste of resources.

How about a platform that is in between people having bought the wrong thing and people wanting to buy the thing for a bit cheaper than new. I guess that's ebay.

What I'm already seeing is people using this to reduce waste in their home. Not remembering to return things you don't want (and them subsequently collecting dust in your closet or you throwing them out) is enough of a problem for consumers that I think this will net out in less waste.

Re: the in-between platform - we're going to build an Orderly marketplace for exactly that purpose once we hit a reasonable threshold of users. Great minds!

I don't think it's a secret that most returns end up in landfills or recycling. Do any of the big online stores even claim otherwise, that returned stuff goes back on the shelves?

https://www.bbcearth.com/news/your-brand-new-returns-end-up-...

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/marketplace-amazon-returns-1....

So what this appears to do is just make it more convenient to send stuff to the landfill. When are we starting to charge people for externalities they cause?! Sorry but it's hard to see how this is a good thing for anyone other than the people who clearly don't care about the waste they produce, resources they waste and how it harms the planet.

Definitely too much ends up in landfills, no doubts about that.

However, a far higher % of returns go to landfill directly from consumers who don't know what to do with them than when its back in a retailer's hands. Retailer's processes for returns are not perfect, but they can get it back on a shelf or in the secondary markets often enough that its better than being in a consumer's home.

As a consumer, I've been a huge fan of happy returns. There's a bookstore walkable from me that works with happy returns and they've been able to take many of my returns. Even so, I still prefer to order from places with nearby shops where I can return in store.

That's cool, I'm similar in that I really dislike the packaging process of returns so I prefer to go somewhere in-store.

Do you find that most of your returns offer a packageless drop off option? We're exploring trying to build a network of those for consumers

And returning them to a local store has much higher chances of the product actually making it back on the shelf and not end up on a landfill.

For sure, it can go directly back on a shelf.

Unfortunately with the # of stores closing every week that's less frequently an option, so with Orderly we want to make it so that things you don't want can actually get out of your house and into the hands of a consumer who does want them, instead of landfill or some other horrible option.

I’m sorry, have you validated the assumption that returning items has a more positive environmental impact than not?

What am I missing? Because I think the intuition these days is the opposite. When you keep your stuff you try to sell it or give it away rather than just throw away. But that might be the environment I’m in. There must be something I’m not getting.

I’ve always wondered why online vendors block pickup returns for their return labels and force you to physically drop them off. I assumed they had negotiated special courier rates for RMA ?

This might be only in Canada.

Any insight ?

It's simpler than you think: retailers want to make returns difficult so you don't do it. Seems too dumb to be true, but it is haha.

That's a lot of the reason we built Orderly. We're slowly giving consumers all the opportunities and advantages retailers have always been able to offer but haven't wanted to.

Couldn't see the cost anywhere on the website.

The app is free! The only thing that has a cost associated is a pickup, which is $4.

Good callout though, will add that to the site

Added a new feature to Orderly that allows users to schedule someone to pick up their return from their house.

Orderly already allows users to view all of their online orders and returns in one app (for free), as well as get reminded to make returns. Now we're helping close the operational loop.

Give it a try, and let me know any feedback! mike@joinorderly.com

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