Internet Retailer: The buy-online/return-to-store process is getting better, says new research

Bricks and mortar brands are finally taking advantage of their physical presences, getting an edge over pure ecommerce companies by allowing customers to return items purchased online to the physical stores. Mystery shoppers E-Tailing Group Inc. conducted a study over the holiday season showing that most firms make offline returns fairly easy and quick. The average return took six minutes in the stores. The biggest obstacles were clerks who had not yet been trained to handle these sorts of transactions. The best experiences were had at stores that had dedicated returns desks.