Full credit to reader Gabe for getting the details on when/why Bonobos changed their policy. Post inspired by a discussion had over on the facebook page.
Then: “Our return policy is simple: any item, any time, any reason. And we’ll pay for shipping on your returns and exchanges as many times at it takes to make sure you’re happy.” – Bonobos
Now: 365 days. Looks like earlier this year Bonobos put that doozy of a deadline on returns for their stuff.
Not 30 days. Not 45 days for store credit only. A full friggin’ year. That still seems like a ridiculous length of time. But part of the Bonobos magic is their commitment to their customers. Yet here’s a question:
Have some retailers, not just Bonobos, gone too far in trying to coddle their customers? Has this strategy of providing ridiculously high levels of customer service created a monster of a consumer, one who believes that the companies they do business with should bend over backwards for their dollars? The fact is, the customer is not always right. So have these overly generous return policies like those from Bonobos, Lands’ End Canvas, etc… helped create a sense of undeserved entitlement among consumers?
These shirts and pants are not made of Bismuth-209. To guarantee them forever seems ludicrous.
Yet there are many brands and companies that have a returns & exchanges window that seems awfully tight. Indochino’s 14 days within the item being shipped policy comes to mind. Not when it’s delivered. Shipped.
What is the perfect deadline? And has this “guaranteed till the end of the Universe because we don’t want you to rip us a new one on our facebook page” mentality gone to far? Leave it all below.