How to Reduce Returns in 2026: A Practical Guide.
By Christian Endresen <> January 2026.
Returns are no longer just a cost of doing business in fashion e-commerce. In 2025, brands that actively manage returns outperform those that treat them as an afterthought.
Here’s a simple, prioritized playbook that growing fashion brands can use to reduce return rates while improving conversion and customer loyalty.
Step 1: Automate and Digitalize Returns Processing
The foundation of return reduction is a fully digital returns process.
Customers should be able to:
Register returns themselves through a self-service portal
Track return status without contacting support
Submit clear return reasons digitally
Automation reduces operational workload and unlocks valuable returns data. It also directly impacts conversion. Around 67% of new customers review return policies before buying, and nearly 80% won’t return after a bad returns experience.
Transparent, self-serve returns build trust and repeat business.
Step 2: Turn Refunds Into Exchanges
Exchanges are one of the fastest ways to protect revenue.
Customers don’t want to place a new order or contact support to change size or color. They want speed and control. A self-service exchange flow inside the returns portal removes friction and keeps customers engaged.
Brands that automate exchanges typically convert 20 to 40% of refunds into exchanges. The impact on revenue is significant.
Step 3: Use Returns Data to Make Better Decisions
Once returns are digital, brands gain access to insights that directly reduce future returns.
This includes:
Identifying products, materials, or styles with high return rates
Understanding fit, sizing, or quality issues
Feeding return feedback into design, buying, and merchandising
Detecting serial return behavior
Returns data shows what works and what doesn’t. It becomes the basis for data-driven product and customer decisions.
Step 4: Improve Size Guidance Where It Matters Most
In fashion, more than 60% of returns are driven by sizing issues.
Using returns insights, brands can add simple size guidance directly on product pages. Even a short note near the size selector, such as “runs small” or “relaxed fit”, can reduce return rates by around 10%.
Clear size guidance also improves conversion by reducing uncertainty at checkout.
How Float Helps Brands Execute This Playbook
Float gives fashion brands the tools to run this playbook out of the box.
With Float, merchants can automate returns and exchanges, capture structured return reasons, analyze return behavior by product and customer, and apply insights directly to reduce return rates. All of this integrates seamlessly with Shopify, without the need for custom development.
Takeaway
Treating returns as a necessary evil won’t work in 2026.
Brands that automate returns, promote exchanges, and act on returns data build stronger loyalty, reduce costs, and grow profitably. With the right setup, returns become a competitive advantage instead of a drag on the business.