Buying Clothes Online and Returning Them

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Buying Clothes Online and Returning Them

Reading size charts, reducing returns, your rights and the waste problem

Clothing has the highest return rate of anything bought online, and most of it comes down to sizing information that goes unread.

Read the garment measurements

A size label means nothing between brands. Good listings publish the actual garment measurements — chest, waist, length, sleeve — and comparing those against something you already own is the single most effective thing you can do.

Measure a favourite item laid flat and keep the numbers in your phone.

Model information and reviews

Many listings state the model's height and the size worn, which is more useful than the photograph. Reviews mentioning fit are worth more than reviews mentioning colour.

Fabric matters as much as size

Check the composition. Stretch fabrics forgive a size; rigid ones do not. A thin fabric will not hold a fitted shape whatever the measurements say.

Your rights

In the UK and EU, distance selling gives a cancellation period for most goods — usually fourteen days to change your mind and a further period to return. Faulty goods are a separate right.

Check who pays return postage, since free delivery does not mean free returns, and keep proof of postage.

Reducing returns

Order one size rather than three where you can, since bulk ordering to return most of it is what makes returns expensive and wasteful.

Looking after what you buy

Wash cool and less often, air garments between wears, and deal with small repairs immediately. Most clothes are worn out by laundering rather than by wearing.

A fabric shaver, a needle and thread and a steamer keep a wardrobe looking new for years.

Selling on

Photograph in daylight, state the measurements laid flat rather than only the size, and describe flaws honestly, which is what avoids disputes.

Sizing between countries

UK, EU, US and Asian sizing all differ, and conversion charts are approximations. Work from centimetres wherever they are given, since that is the only figure that means the same thing everywhere.

Clothing sized for other markets frequently runs considerably smaller.

Deliveries

Check whether import VAT and duty apply on anything coming from outside your customs union, since a carrier handling fee on top frequently erases the saving.

Reducing the return rate

Buy from retailers whose sizing you already know, keep a note of which size worked in which brand, and read reviews mentioning fit rather than colour.

Ordering three sizes to return two is what makes returns expensive for everyone.

Keep the packaging until you are certain, since many retailers require it for returns.

The waste

Returned clothing is frequently not resold. Buying less and more carefully is the honest answer rather than relying on a returns policy.

WHERE TO BUY

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