A return in a box in your garage is stock you cannot sell. Every one has to be opened, checked and sorted before it is back for sale or written off, and doing that yourself takes the hours you need for sourcing. We do that work at the warehouse, where the rest of your stock already is.
What Happens to Returned Items at a Returns Center?
At a returns center, each returned item is logged when it arrives, inspected for damage, defects and missing parts, graded as new, used or damaged, and photographed. The seller sees the grade and photos and decides what happens next: restock it, send it on to Amazon FBA or Walmart WFS, ship it back, or dispose of it.
Inspection
Checked for damage, defects and missing parts against what was sold.
Grading
Graded as new, used or damaged, so you know what it can be sold as.
Photos
Photographed and uploaded to your Ecom Circles dashboard with its grade.
Restock or disposal
Restocked, sent on to FBA or WFS, shipped back to you, or disposed of: your call.
How Returns Processing Works at Ecom Circles
Five steps from a buyer's return label to an item back on the shelf, or out of your way.
- 1
Point returns at us
Set our warehouse as your return address, or send FBA and WFS removal orders to us.
- 2
We log it
Each return is logged when it arrives, so nothing sits unopened in a corner.
- 3
Inspect and grade
Checked for damage, defects and missing parts, then graded new, used or damaged.
- 4
Photos to your dashboard
Photos and the grade go into your Ecom Circles dashboard for you to review.
- 5
You decide, we do it
Restock, send to FBA or WFS, ship back, or dispose. We carry out the choice.
What Is Reverse Logistics?
Reverse logistics is the movement of goods backward through the supply chain, from the customer to the seller or a warehouse, after the sale. It covers returns, restocking, repairs and disposal. For an online seller, that means getting each returned order back, checked, and either sellable again or written off before it piles up.
Large reverse logistics companies run that loop for retailers with stores and distribution centers. A marketplace seller needs the same loop at a smaller scale: one address for returns, a check on every item, and a clear record of what came back and where it went. Our warehouses run it alongside your FBA prep and storage, so a restocked return is already where your next shipment leaves from.
How Much Does Returns Processing Cost?
At Ecom Circles, returns processing is $3 per return, flat rate. An oversized return, over 10 lbs or over 24 inches on any side, is $7 flat. Freight-size items are quoted on request. Inspection, grading, photos and the upload to your Ecom Circles dashboard are included; return shipping is not. Returns clients pay no setup fee.
No setup fee for prep, returns and 2-step clients; 3PL clients pay a one-time $650 setup fee. Every charge is deducted from your balance as it happens and itemized in your account. Receiving, storage and every other warehouse rate are on the warehouse services page.
Why Sellers Send Returns to Our Warehouse
Our warehouses in the Chicago area and Atlanta run on the same Ecom Circles software you list and reprice with, so your returns, your stock and the bill live in one place.
Every return in your dashboard
Grades, photos and restocked counts show up in the same Ecom Circles dashboard you use to list and reprice.
One flat price per return
$3 a return, $7 if it is oversized. Every charge is itemized in your account as it happens.
Back on the shelf, not in a pile
Restockable items go straight back into sellable stock at the warehouse, ready for the next order.
Write-offs handled too
Items that cannot be sold again are shipped back to you or disposed of, once you say which.