From SEK 50
to SEK 8 per return

Stadium, the Nordic sports retailer, cut the cost of handling an online return by more than 80 percent. Customers now get their money back in days instead of weeks. Here is how they did it, step by step, told by Kristian Jönsson, Supply Chain Developer and Application Specialist at Stadium.

WHERE THEY STARTED

Returns took too long, and everyone felt it

Stadium comes from physical retail, where returns are a small share of sales. As online sales grew, so did returns. During campaign peaks the returns team could not keep up. Customers waited weeks for their money, and customer service, already busy with outbound orders, took the calls.

What pushed them to act

• Returns took too long to process, especially during peaks
• Customer satisfaction suffered
• Customer service was under heavy pressure

What made it worse

• Growing online sales pushed return costs up
• Little access to returns data, so it was hard to improve
• No effective tool to administer returns
• No clear way to scale the process

“The customers weren’t happy, we weren’t happy.”

Kristian Jönsson, Stadium

HOW THEY DID IT

Seven steps, taken one at a time

Stadium did not change everything at once. They built the case, gave returns an owner and moved step by step. Each step solved one problem and made the next one easier.

1. Build the business case and give returns an owner
A business analyst was asked to map what returns really cost and how they affected customers, making the cost of doing nothing visible. The analysis looked at customer satisfaction, lead time, customer service workload, return processing cost, manual work in finance, tied-up inventory, markdowns and the growing cost of online returns. Supply chain and customer service then took ownership, with more departments joining over time.
Why it matters: You do not need a perfect forecast. Once the cost of doing nothing is on the table, the case for change becomes clear. Returns touch many departments but often belong to none, so someone has to own them first.

2. Make the customer’s return digital
No more pre-printed return label and paper form in every parcel. Customers register their return online. A few needed help at first, and within a short time it was a non-issue.
What it saved: Printing and packing labels and forms in every order. The warehouse now knows what is coming before it arrives: how many returns tomorrow, and the day after.

3. Set up return rules and return codes
Every return gets a return reason, and every check in the warehouse has a code, such as missing packaging or a product defect. Clear rules then decide what happens next: approve automatically, route a deviation into a separate flow, or send a case to customer service.
What it gave: Control of the flow and data on why products come back. The same codes feed product improvements and claims to suppliers, and the rules are refined as the data grows.

4. Guide the warehouse with a screen, not paper
Staff in the returns warehouse work in a guided interface. It shows a picture of the product, tells them what to check and where the item goes next: back to stock, or to a partner that gives damaged products a second life.

What it saved: Faster handling and fewer mistakes. New staff can step in and work right away. Productivity has gone up every year since.

“When everything is manual, it’s really hard to bring in a new staff member. Now a new worker can just step in.”

5. Automate refunds
When a return is approved, the refund goes out automatically. With Swish, the customer has the money right away.

What it saved: Finance freed up more than one full-time role. Customers stopped calling to ask where their money was.

“Today we receive almost no return-related questions. The one question we still get is where to register the return.”

6. Put the same tool in every store
Stores still make up most of Stadium’s sales, and many online customers return in store. Store staff now handle online returns in the same interface as the warehouse, and register the return for customers who did not do it online.

What it gave: Return reasons and data on every online return, wherever it is handed in. Next up is a deeper integration in Stadium’s new store tills.

7. Handle Norwegian (outside the EU) returns locally
Norway is outside the EU, so every return sent back to the Swedish warehouse would cross a customs border. Online returns from Norway are handled in Norway, with a Stadium Outlet store acting as the online returns hub. Every item in Outlet’s online range is also sold in that store, so returns go straight back on sale there. Returns from Finland, inside the EU, go to Sweden.

What it saves: No customs handling and no long cross-border transport for each Norwegian return, and the item is back on sale in the market where it was bought.

AT THE SAME TIME

Rebuilt in the middle of big system changes

Many retailers put returns on hold until a new ERP or platform is in place. Don’t let a major system change become a reason to wait. Returns kept running through all of it.

• New store tills and business system: New tills are rolling out in the stores with returns built in, and a new business system is on its way.
• A new automated warehouse: Early in the returns journey, Stadium also moved its online operations from a manual warehouse setup to an automated third-party solution.
• A new e-commerce platform: Stadium has switched e-commerce platform, and the return flow moved along with it.

THE SMALL THINGS

Small fixes that pay off on every return

Big moves get the headlines. Many of the savings come from details that are repeated thousands of times a year.

• No more printed return folders: Print 10,000, change something after 5,000, and the rest is waste.
• A product photo on the screen: Staff see what the item should look like, so checks are faster.
• A clear next step for every item: The screen says where each product goes. Nobody has to stop and ask.
• Tomorrow’s volume, today: Registered returns show what is coming, so the warehouse can staff for it.
• Store staff register for the customer: A customer who skipped the online step still leaves a return reason.
• One new photo or line of text: Returns data often points to a simple product page fix that lowers returns.

THE CUSTOMER’S SIDE

Money back in days, not weeks

Before, slow handling in the warehouse and manual work in finance added up, and the whole process took 14 to 21 days. Today it takes four working days in Sweden and Norway from drop-off to an approved refund. Finland takes six, since returns travel to Sweden. With Swish, the money arrives right away.

BEYOND COST

What else changed

• Back on sale faster: Returned products are available for resale within a few days.
• Fewer returns overall: The online return rate has dropped from about 25 to just under 22 percent.
• Higher productivity: The returns warehouse has become more productive every year.
• Built to scale: Growth in online sales no longer means growth in manual work.

WHAT’S NEXT

From cheaper returns to fewer returns

“The first part of our journey was mainly about digitalisation, efficiency and collecting data and insights. The next part is increasingly about optimisation, profitability and circularity.”

Kristian Jönsson, Stadium

• Combine returns data with reviews: Leaning on only one source can send you the wrong way. Together they show what to fix.
• Improve own brands: Returns data feeds into next season, from small product page fixes to a better version of a best-selling jacket.
• Bring in store returns: Stores have a lower return rate but far higher sales, so the volume is large.
• Return options like a checkout: Give customers the same choice of return methods as they get for delivery.

KRISTIAN’S ADVICE

If you are thinking about it, get going

“We postponed it more than once. Now we wish we had started earlier.”

1. Depending on channel and range, 5 to 50 percent of products come back. Turning returns data into action is both business-critical and a business opportunity.
2. If support is hard to win, give one person the task of collecting the data, the costs and the customer feedback. A strong business case will follow.
3. Someone must take initial ownership. A head of returns, a team or shared ownership can be decided later.
4. You do not have to solve everything at once. A phased approach may work best.
5. A specialist partner brings proven capabilities out of the box and helps you prioritise. Just get started. You will not regret it.