Retailers are having trouble balancing their physical store and their online stores, according to a survey summed up by HFN's Allison Zisko.
One sore spot is returns. Excerpt:
Eighty five percent of retailers noted the high cost of online returns to a store, particularly when the item is not carried in that store. And when returning to a fulfillment center or supplier, retailers incur incremental freight costs, the possibility of shipping-related product damage, as well as a lost opportunity for a replacement sale in-store.
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For purchases that are bridal registry related, returns are often not an issue since the bride is given is a gift credit for purchases.
For general public purchases, Bridge recommends that retailers charge a re-stocking fee on returns.
The HFN article also quotes an analyst:
"Competing with pure-play e-commerce retailers, and accommodating the multitude of new fulfillment options, requires a significant increase in supply chain flexibility and better integration between the physical store and e-commerce network," Efros said.
In addition to Efros' point about pure-play e-commerce retailers, I'd add another danger: manufacturers competing with retailers. They are sucking the extra sales out of the pipeline that contributed to the retailer's profit. The more manufacturers sell online, the less retailers will sell online and in store.