Are Ineffective Return Policies Leaving Your Store Vulnerable To Return Fraud? Alpha Shark Tags Are The Answer To Your Problem

I was shocked when I recently read an article online in marketwatch.com stating that, “Returns account for an estimated 4.4% of $14.5 trillion in global retail sales, IHL said.” (IHL/Order Dynamics, my notation). http://www.marketwatch.com/story/consumers-return-6426-billion-in-goods-each-year-2015-06-18  The article goes on to say that, “Clothing retailers see an average of 10% of their sales returned, the highest among retail segments” (“Consumers  return $ 642.6 billion in goods each year”, June 18, 2015, by Andria Cheng). With 10% of clothing sales being returned each year, there is a lot of room for return fraud and especially fraud related to Wardrobing. According to statista.com, Clothing store sales in the U.S. in 2015 amounted to $183.01 billion. https://www.statista.com/topics/965/apparel-market-in-the-us/ this means in the U.S. alone, approximately $18.3 billion in clothing was returned by consumers. Another interesting point to note is that of retailers surveyed by the National Retail Federation in 2015, “Fewer than half of retailers rated their return policies as “effective” in deterring fraud. (pg. 10, 2015 Consumer Returns in the Retail Industry).  Is there an answer to the problem of wardrobing if less than half the retailers believe they have effective return policies? There IS an effective answer to the problem of return fraud related to wardrobing and that answer is to use Alpha Shark Tags on clothing and softlines accessories.  

Wardrobing is the act of purchasing clothing with the intent of wearing it once or twice and returning it for a full refund. While some may consider this a gray area rather than outright fraud because the consumer abides by the store return policies, they overlook the fact that the stores are not in the clothing rental business. Rental stores exist for this type of consumer, but that isn’t really what a person who is wardrobing desires. What they want is a free outfit to be seen in and returned without the expenditure of any money. Some people think this is just being smart and playing by the other guy’s rules. I would argue that though these customers may be playing a game of semantics, it still hurts the store owner who often has to take a markdown on the item or write it off. Frequently returns have something not right with them, ranging from slight mars to the material or more obvious odors from foods, smoking and deodorants or perfumes.

For stores that decide enough is enough, using the Alpha Shark Tag is a superb method of defeating this type of return fraud. Shark tags, or wardrobing tags as they are also known, are brightly colored tags that are pinned to garments and can only be removed by cutting them off. Once removed, the tags cannot be reattached like manufacturer tags and price tags can be after an item is worn. Wardrobing tags are placed in a location on a garment that cannot be covered up so the purchaser cannot wear the item somewhere without everyone knowing what they are trying to do. By eliminating the opportunity to wear the clothes, the culprits of this type of fraud will discontinue their practice at stores employing Alpha Shark Tags.

I pointed out earlier that fewer than half of retailers felt they had effective return policies. If these retailers would use wardrobing tags they would be able to require all clothing returns to have the tags attached in order to get a refund or exchange. Without the tag being in place a return would automatically be refused, regardless of whether or not the customer had a receipt. Is this being unfair or limiting the customer on their ability to try on an item at home or give it as a gift? The answer in both situations is “No”. Alpha Shark Tags do not interfere with trying on a piece of clothing or affect how it fits. For the gifted item, the recipient can try on an item, leaving the tags intact and if they don’t like it, return it with the gift receipt. As long as retailers make their return policies clear to their customers and enforce their policies they can nearly virtually eliminate return fraud due to worn clothing.

Don’t be taken advantage of any longer by those who wear and return clothes. Improve profits by using Alpha Shark Tags on all of your clothing merchandise!

Wardrobing is important and we can help you with it. Call 1.770.426.0547 and let’s talk.
     

The Lying Witch And Wardobing; A Sales Associate’s Story Of Dealing With Return Fraud

While I have many stories I have shared from my experiences in retail as a Loss Prevention Manager and a sales specialist, my wife also worked in retail for a long time and has her own share of stories to share. One of her problem customers was regularly engaged in return fraud. This particular fraud is now known as wardrobing but at the time the only term for it was return fraud because it involved returning clothing that had already been worn. On the surface that may not sound like an issue however, the condition of the clothes being returned often required them to be marked down or marked out of stock. This particular customer would purchase clothes but would not try them on in the store. She would tell my wife she had to take them home to see how they looked with her shoes and jewelry. Several days later this customer would bring the clothing back and it would sometimes smell of perfume and occasionally there would be make-up stains on them. This happened so regularly that my wife was certain the clothes were being worn out to events and then returned with the tags and receipt. The customer insisted she had not worn them and had only tried them on. My wife described her as a “witch” due to her smug attitude, knowing the return would be accepted. Because of store return policies my wife had to process the refund and give the woman her money back. Store owners still face the same problems today, but now they have Alpha Shark Tags available to them to prevent return fraud.
     

Alpha Shark Tags are one-time use, brightly colored wardrobing tags that are pinned to a piece of clothing in a prominent location. Unlike retail anti-theft devices that are removed by cashiers at a point of sale upon purchase, wardrobing tags remain on the item and are removed by the customer when the customer gets home. The purchaser tries on the clothing, makes sure they like them and once they have finalized their decision to keep the garments, THEN they cut off the Alpha Shark Tags. What if they don’t like the items once they try them on? As long as the wardrobing tags are intact they can return the items with the receipt and store hang tags and get a refund. The same applies if they were to give the items as gifts.  
     

How do Alpha Shark Tags prevent the purchaser from wardrobing and wearing clothes on a night out? Do you recall I mentioned the tags are brightly colored and placed in a visible location? People engaged in wardrobing hide hang tags or carefully remove them and then wear the clothing and no one can tell the clothes are ready to be returned after the evening is over. Shark Tags can’t be cut off or the clothes can’t be returned and if they are in a prominent area of the clothes, they can’t be hidden. Those engaged in return fraud are trying to portray an image and can’t wear something that has a colored tag hanging from it.
     

You may be thinking to yourself, “Okay, so the customer returned some clothes, how much of a problem can one customer be?” The issue is not one customer and one return. There are people that make wardrobing a regular practice and do not see an issue with it. The problem retailers have to deal with is they frequently have to mark down the price of the clothes that are returned or remove them from stock completely. This affects the profit margin for a store and in some cases where employees work on a commission it negatively impacts them as well. That sales commission they were counting on after spending time with the customer selling them their outfit is gone once the return is processed.
     

Avoid the negative effects of dealing with return fraud as my wife had to do. Use Alpha Shark Tags on all of your clothing and watch your profits grow and your wardrobing witches melt away.

Wardrobing is important and we can help you with it. Call 1.770.426.0547 and let’s talk.
  

Wardrobing Impacts Online AND Traditional Stores; Prevent Return Fraud With Alpha Shark Tags

I don’t purchase a lot of clothes online because I have difficulty finding the right sizes for the person I am buying for. Clothes sizes tend to vary by manufacturers so there is not always a uniform consistency. I recognize that my preferences are not necessarily representative of the public in general as more and more online only stores open up, selling merchandise over the internet versus in brick and mortar locations. This does open up some concerns over the issue of wardrobing. How difficult is it for online stores to control potential fraudulent returns due to wardrobing? I ask this because stores will be conducting inventories over the coming months and in the process, will have to account for all aspects of shortage. Online stores may not have a shoplifting issue, but they do have to contend with internal theft and the possibility of fraudulent returns and that is where the use of Alpha Shark Tags can be helpful.

Wardrobing isn’t necessarily a common term but it is a type of return fraud and does impact a store’s profits. The issue arises when someone buys an article of clothing, wears it a time or two, then returns it to the store with tags intact and a legitimate receipt and the buyer gets their money back. The purchaser hides the hang tags or removes the tags carefully, and replaces them when they are ready to return the garment.  Since all the required items are present many stores will give the promised refund if the customer is not satisfied.  The problem for a store owner or manager is that frequently this used merchandise cannot be sold again at the original price for which it was sold. There are frequently odors of food or perfume on the clothing, food or drink stains, possibly cigarette smells or even makeup stains that won’t entirely come out. This means destroying the item and maybe getting a partial credit from the manufacturer, if any credit at all.  The store loses profit, if not gross margin.

Alpha Shark Tags effectively eliminate return fraud because if an item is returned with the Shark tag removed, the store turns down the refund.  “How does this work?” you may ask. Alpha Shark Tags can only be attached to a clothing item once.  The only method to remove it is to cut the tag off. Once removed, the store should already have a policy in place that explains that when a garment is returned and the tag has been cut-off it will not be accepted for a refund or exchange. The person who engages in wardrobing can hide manufacturer tags but there is no hiding a brightly colored Alpha Shark Tag. These tags are placed on a garment in a very visible location. When placed properly, the tag will be seen when the “customer” wears the item in public thereby defeating the method of fraud. 

The question arises, “What am I supposed to do if I buy something and try it on and it doesn’t fit or it was a gift and the person I bought it for doesn’t like it?” There is no problem created for the purchaser when the item does not fit or is simply not what a gift recipient wanted. As long as the tag is still intact the item can be returned with the proper receipt information.  The tag also has no effect on how a garment fits so the item can be tried on and the wearer will know if it is the proper size. The clothing can be returned to the online store and refunded and the store will be able to repackage and sell the item as new, a win-win for both parties.

Return fraud does impact profits and hurts inventory. It doesn’t matter whether the store is a walk-in building or an online entity wardrobing hurts the bottom line of both. Use Alpha Shark Tags and begin improving your next inventory today!

Wardrobing is important and we can help you with it. Call 1.770.426.0547 and let’s talk. 

Prevent Return Fraud With The Alpha Shark Tag

Children are truly a blessing and I wouldn’t change it for the world, but if any of you have children, you know how expensive they can be. As they get older, the costs increase significantly, especially if you have girls. I have two girls that are ten years apart. I have one that is 18 and one that is 8, so I have been through the teenage years, and will be going through it again in the near future. When you have girls they tend to be very high maintenance. They want designer clothes, they need their hair colored and cut every two months, plus they need makeup and their nails done. I would like to say this is where it ends, but that is only the beginning. Between school clothes, school activities and sports, and extra-curricular activities the expenses increase exponentially. Of course high school also includes at least three or four dances each year, with Homecoming and Prom being two major events in a girl’s life. These events alone are wallet busters. They need a dress, shoes, hair appointments, nails, makeup, and corsages and then you add dinner before, maybe a limo to arrive in style, and you are out at least a grand. The dress alone costs at least $300, and there is no way they can wear the same dress twice, that is a fashion no no. I think that part always hurt the most. Granted you could always try and sell it used to someone the following year, but you only get a fraction of what it is worth, which is very disheartening since it was only worn for about five hours. I know there are some people out there that would just take the dress back to the store the following day for a full refund. As tempting as that sounds I am not one of those people. Being in the retail business I know how frustrating retail fraud can be and the cost associated with this type of activity. That is why we use the Alpha Shark Tag in our stores.  

The Alpha Shark Tag provides the retailer with the means to prevent this type of behavior. This tag is designed to be placed on high priced or designer items without damaging the product. They can be used on clothing, bags, shoes and other items, typically associated with return fraud. These are inexpensive devices that provide a bright visual deterrent that can be used to supplement your store return policy. These devices, once removed cannot be re-attached by the customer. Therefore, many retailers use the Alpha Shark Tag as a means to enforce their store return policy. Stores are placing these tags on their high frequency return items and refusing to supply a refund if the tag has been removed from the item. The store simply places the tag in a very obvious location that can’t be concealed during the use of the item, thus preventing return fraud. These can also be used for online or catalog sales by simply adding the tag to the item prior to shipment. I understand why people are associated with these types of returns, but I also know the cost to the retailer can be significant, if they don’t take action to prevent this type of behavior.  

If you are a retailer and you are tired of footing the cost associated with re-stocking worn/used merchandise, I recommend you get the Alpha Shark Tag. These tags work great as a deterrent because many people shop with the intent to commit return fraud. They know their daughter will only wear the dress once, so why keep the item when they can just use it once and return it. These devices can be equipped with the retailers’ return policy to add an additional deterrent, thus sending these fraudsters to your competitor.  

Alpha Shark Tags are important and we can help you with it. Call 1.770.426.0547 and let’s talk.