Pact calls on Happy Returns to reduce customer service workload by up to 80%
Challenge
Pact’s rapidly increasing ecommerce sales were creating significant issues for its lean customer service team in dealing with calls related to returns and exchanges.
Solution
The company relies on Happy Returns to simplify returns and exchanges—reducing calls to customer service and enabling hassle-free, in-person returns at thousands of Return Bar locations nationwide.
Impact
80% lower returns-related call volumes
Fast and easy self-service solution for returns
Improved experience and higher satisfaction
Eco-friendly, aggregated shipping in reusable totes
Founded in 2009, Pact sells super soft organic cotton clothing. This includes everyday basics such as underwear and socks, plus a growing selection of apparel for men, women, children and babies—as well as a variety of bedding and bath items. The brand’s products are certified organic under the Global Organic Textile Standard, and are manufactured in safe, sweatshop-free and child labor-free facilities that conform to Fair Trade Certified™ practices.
The Challenge
Although Pact sells its sustainable, organic cotton products through Whole Foods Market stores nationwide in addition to a flagship retail location in San Francisco, it has been rapidly expanding its ecommerce presence. This has created a growing workload in dealing with returns and exchanges as more people “bracket” their purchases or take other steps to ensure they get what they want.
Much of this burden has fallen on the company’s customer service team. Because Pact maintains a lean staff with only 32 employees across the company, the customer service representatives were having difficulty keeping up with the increasing call volume.
The Opportunity
Pact’s existing returns solution, which was built in-house, had met its needs for a number of years. But as its ecommerce sales grew, the company knew it needed a better way to serve its loyal, eco-conscious customers.
Happy Returns’ ability to streamline Pact’s reverse logics, facilitate box-free and label-free returns and exchanges at nearly 10,000 Return Bar locations nationwide, efficiently handle disposition, and get items back to Pact quickly, cost-effectively and in an eco-friendly manner was the answer.
“The Return Bar locations are key for us. Since implementing Happy Returns, we’ve seen our customer service contact rate drop dramatically.”
— Drew Cook, CFO and Head of Operations, Pact
The Solution
With Happy Returns, Pact has shifted the vast majority of its customers to self-service returns and exchanges, rather than having to rely on a customer service rep to guide them, answer questions and so on. This has enabled the size of Pact’s customer service team to remain largely unchanged even as the company’s business has grown by 60% or more—significantly reducing its costs.
“With Happy Returns, only about 7% of our customers contact customer service regarding returns and exchanges, compared to 40% in the past. That’s a reduction of around 80%.”
— Drew Cook, CFO and Head of Operations, Pact
The substantial decrease in call volume frees team members to focus on elevating the shopping experience, responding to general inquiries and product-specific questions, and assisting with sales. This leads to greater shopper satisfaction, improved loyalty and increased average order value (AOV) and profitability.
The Impact
Reduced customer service workload
Happy Returns has helped Pact cut its returns-related calls by 80%, to less than 7% of all calls now fielded by the customer service team. The company has been able to keep pace with substantial growth with essentially no increase in its customer service staff.
Happier customers
Pact customers can quickly and easily initiate returns or exchanges online using a QR code, and then bring their items box-free, label-free, hassle-free and contact-free to any Return Bar location nationwide—and have their refunds approved on the spot.
Greater cost savings
Beyond minimizing the burden of returns and exchanges on its customer service team, Pact has reduced its costs. Plus, aggregated shipping of returned items in reusable totes is consistent with Pact’s eco-friendly business model.
Looking ahead
In the future, Pact plans to open additional physical stores. This will provide more locations where customers can see and touch the company’s products, as well as drop off returns when needed.
“Our customers are happy with how they spend less time on returns and exchanges with Happy Returns,” Cook says. “We’ve been very pleased.”