Latest news with #Intersport
The Age
6 days ago
- Business
- The Age
More Australian retailers axe free returns after ‘reckoning' of costs
Since then, businesses have found that free returns are financially unsustainable. In June 2023, high-profile online fashion retailer ASOS ended its years-long free returns policy in Australia. In the UK last week, ASOS started banning customers who repeatedly return large portions of their orders. But McClelland, whose videos on TikTok have gained popularity for promoting more sustainable consumption habits, said businesses could do more to mitigate the problem. 'I do think there needs to be a deterrent for those customers who are 'repeat purchase and return' customers … However, I do think as well that there should be some investment on the retail side into making sure that the product they're selling is a product that customers actually want to keep,' she said. More retailers could, for example, photograph clothes on models in a range of sizes. 'So consumers could then see, 'OK, this is what it looks like on someone my size', and then they can make a more informed decision about whether the product will look good on them.' Loading Other Australian brands try to incentivise shoppers to cover the costs of returns: Byron Bay-based sustainable clothing store Afends provides free returns when customers choose store credit instead of a refund. Others offer free returns for online purchases if the goods are dropped off at a physical store. However, competition from Australian fashion retail giants The Iconic, David Jones and Myer, which offer free returns on all purchases, puts significant pressure on other retailers. Australia Post e-commerce reports indicate that, overall, 65 per cent of shoppers value 'friction-free' returns, with this figure rising to 72 per cent for Gen Z and Millennial customers. Ben Wapling, the head of marketing for sporting goods retailer Intersport, said the company was constantly trying to strike the right balance between costs and customer experience: 'We want to reduce as many barriers as possible.' He said the costs of returning products ranged between $7 and $11 an order. 'You've got to weigh that up, but you also weigh up the potential of the customer saying 'oh look, it's all a bit too hard, I'm not going to make a purchase',' he said. While Intersport manages to integrate all their stock back into inventories to be sold again, unless items have been damaged, some companies that offer free returns send brand-new goods to landfills because it's cheaper. A report published by charity Good360 last month found that 30 per cent of clothing bought online and returned in 2024 was sent to landfills instead of being resold. Melbourne-based small business owner Imara Seneviratne said her passion for sustainability as a consumer bled into her business practices. Seneviratne runs Adamo, which sells sustainably sourced tote bags. Adamo does require customers to cover the cost of returns if they've changed their mind, but not if the item is damaged. 'As both a consumer and a business owner, I'm just trying to find a balance, like making the experience fair and flexible but also encouraging people to buy less and choose better,' she said.
Sydney Morning Herald
6 days ago
- Business
- Sydney Morning Herald
More Australian retailers axe free returns after ‘reckoning' of costs
Since then, businesses have found that free returns are financially unsustainable. In June 2023, high-profile online fashion retailer ASOS ended its years-long free returns policy in Australia. In the UK last week, ASOS started banning customers who repeatedly return large portions of their orders. But McClelland, whose videos on TikTok have gained popularity for promoting more sustainable consumption habits, said businesses could do more to mitigate the problem. 'I do think there needs to be a deterrent for those customers who are 'repeat purchase and return' customers … However, I do think as well that there should be some investment on the retail side into making sure that the product they're selling is a product that customers actually want to keep,' she said. More retailers could, for example, photograph clothes on models in a range of sizes. 'So consumers could then see, 'OK, this is what it looks like on someone my size', and then they can make a more informed decision about whether the product will look good on them.' Loading Other Australian brands try to incentivise shoppers to cover the costs of returns: Byron Bay-based sustainable clothing store Afends provides free returns when customers choose store credit instead of a refund. Others offer free returns for online purchases if the goods are dropped off at a physical store. However, competition from Australian fashion retail giants The Iconic, David Jones and Myer, which offer free returns on all purchases, puts significant pressure on other retailers. Australia Post e-commerce reports indicate that, overall, 65 per cent of shoppers value 'friction-free' returns, with this figure rising to 72 per cent for Gen Z and Millennial customers. Ben Wapling, the head of marketing for sporting goods retailer Intersport, said the company was constantly trying to strike the right balance between costs and customer experience: 'We want to reduce as many barriers as possible.' He said the costs of returning products ranged between $7 and $11 an order. 'You've got to weigh that up, but you also weigh up the potential of the customer saying 'oh look, it's all a bit too hard, I'm not going to make a purchase',' he said. While Intersport manages to integrate all their stock back into inventories to be sold again, unless items have been damaged, some companies that offer free returns send brand-new goods to landfills because it's cheaper. A report published by charity Good360 last month found that 30 per cent of clothing bought online and returned in 2024 was sent to landfills instead of being resold. Melbourne-based small business owner Imara Seneviratne said her passion for sustainability as a consumer bled into her business practices. Seneviratne runs Adamo, which sells sustainably sourced tote bags. Adamo does require customers to cover the cost of returns if they've changed their mind, but not if the item is damaged. 'As both a consumer and a business owner, I'm just trying to find a balance, like making the experience fair and flexible but also encouraging people to buy less and choose better,' she said.
Fashion United
18-06-2025
- Business
- Fashion United
Intersport France targets 5.5 billion euros in revenue by 2030
French retailer Intersport reported a 6.3 percent increase in revenue for 2024, reaching 3.88 billion euro following its acquisition of struggling competitor Go Sport. The cooperative announced on Tuesday that it is targeting 5.5 billion euro in revenue by 2030. Intersport: online sales soar Growth in 2024 was driven notably by online sales, which jumped 16 percent year-over-year (YoY). 'It's the first point of entry. You have a physical point of entry to a store, but the first point of entry today is no longer the physical door, it's the digital door,' said Gérard Leclerc, CEO of Intersport France and Belgium, who took office last September, during a press conference. The retailer aims to unify its online and in-store offerings by investing between 70 million and 100 million euro over the next three years. The year 2024 was marked by the Paris Olympic Games. Leclerc described it as a 'rather good period,' while also highlighting another 'Olympic effect': 'The number of members in different sports has soared. That's the Olympic effect. What is important is that it boosts participation.' Intersport opened 80 stores in 2024, expanding its network to 980 shops. 'This dense network, a pillar of its cooperative model, ensures unique proximity with the French, in both urban and rural areas,' the cooperative said in a statement. In 2023, Intersport absorbed 68 Go Sport stores after being selected by the Grenoble Commercial Court to take over the group. One year later, around 50 of these Go Sport stores have been converted into Intersport outlets. Around ten still operate under the Go Sport banner, alongside two Go Sport Outlet stores and one Go Sport Outdoor store. Three to four stores have been closed, Intersport confirmed. Revenue generated by these shops in 2024 exceeded the amount they made under the Go Sport banner in 2019, the last pre-Covid year, Leclerc added. Intersport's ready-to-wear brand Blackstore saw sales climb 21 percent in 2024, reaching 181 million euro. Globally, the Intersport group, which operates in 42 countries, announced in early April that it achieved 14 billion euro in revenue in 2024, up 2.1 percent. This article was translated to English using an AI tool. FashionUnited uses AI language tools to speed up translating (news) articles and proofread the translations to improve the end result. This saves our human journalists time they can spend doing research and writing original articles. Articles translated with the help of AI are checked and edited by a human desk editor prior to going online. If you have questions or comments about this process email us at info@
USA Today
30-03-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Lucy Olsen to participate in Women's All-Star Game during Final Four weekend
Lucy Olsen to participate in Women's All-Star Game during Final Four weekend Despite seeing their 2024-25 season come to a close following a 96-62 loss vs. No. 3 seed Oklahoma on March 24, Iowa women's basketball star senior point guard Lucy Olsen will be a participant in the 2025 Women's All-Star Game, held on April 5 from Tampa, Fla., as part of the Final Four Weekend. Olsen, who joined the Hawkeyes through the transfer portal after spending three seasons at Villanova, averaged 17.9 points per game on 43.6% from the floor, 36% from long range, and 74.4% from the stripe in 32 games played at Iowa. She also averaged a team-leading 5.1 assists, 3.6 rebounds, 1.3 steals, and .3 blocks per game. In her four-year career, she posted 2,077 (15.2 per game) points on 42.3% shooting, 32.9% from deep, and 75.9% from the charity stripe on 33.2 minutes averaged while starting in all 137 games played. The Women's College All-Star Game is a postseason celebration of the best senior women's basketball players in the country. The annual event, ran by Intersport, is comprised of the nation's top 20 women's basketball talents that have exhausted their NCAA eligibility to compete one final time for the programs before they begin their professional careers. The rosters are determined by using feedback from a voting panel made up of national media members and longtime coaches, Intersport staff, and Game Ambassador Terri Mitchell. The 2025 Women's All-Star Game will take place on Saturday, April 5 at Hillsborough Community College – Dale Mabry Campus in Tampa Bay, Florida with a tip-off set for 2 p.m. CT on ESPN2. For more information on the event, visit Contact/Follow us @HawkeyesWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Iowa news, notes, and opinions. Follow Scout on X: @SpringgateNews
