How Pepe Jeans London Reduced Return Lead Time with ReBound

Pepe Jeans London is an iconic denim-focused fashion brand that was founded in 1973 on the streets of Portobello in London. As a denim pioneer, the company has consistently reinvented the definition of denim to keep up with the trends and deliver high-quality, timeless apparel. We sat down with Jordy Moriana, Online Logistics Manager at Pepe Jeans London, to get insight into how working with ReBound transformed their returns process.

The Challenge

· Pepe Jeans struggled with a lack of warehouse capacity

· They were also suffering from long return processing times

Before they began working with ReBound, Pepe Jeans was processing returns in the same central warehouse that they used to manage outbound shipments. This led to challenges such as a lack of capacity in the warehouse and very long return processing times, particularly for parcels coming from countries that were farther away from their central warehouse. This created difficulty especially during peak season, as they were trying to manage an influx of outbound sales shipments along with inbound returns with resources that were stretched thinner than ever.

The long processing times in the warehouse also meant that their customers had to wait longer for refunds than expected, which negatively impacted their customer service department. The final challenge that pushed them to find a new, better solution was the need to conform to Zalando’s return processing SLAs. In order to maintain a partnership with Zalando, they needed to reduce their return processing times.

The Solution

· ReBound’s decentralized network of warehouses enabled quicker return processing times

· Since returns are scanned in ReBound warehouses before being sent back in consolidated shipments, this put less strain on warehouse capacity for Pepe Jeans

They began searching for a returns partner that could help them reduce return processing times, reduce refund lead time, and free up capacity in the warehouse to allow them to focus more on sales. ReBound was able to meet their needs and help them develop a stronger returns management strategy.

“We had enough volume with Zalando returns to make the business case, and the business case was positive both in refund lead times and in the savings that we could give to the company because of ReBound’s decentralized network of return hubs. In the end, this mix was what made us decide to start cooperating with ReBound” – Jordy Moriana, Online Logistics Manager Pepe Jeans

The Result

· Reduced customer service complaints

· Reduced refund lead time from 6+ days down to 2-4 days

· Pepe Jeans was able to comply with Zalando SLAs

Since Pepe Jeans began working with ReBound, their return processes improved significantly, beginning with customer service inquiries. “Now, the complaints from customers have reduced—we don’t have the volume of claims that we had before.” – Jordy

Additionally, they maintain a great partnership with Zalando, secure in the fact that they will always meet Zalando’s requirements. “We are also complying with Zalando SLAs. Those were always in focus because we could lose our account with Zalando and we were always late with returns. It was a nightmare! Now it’s not something we have to be focused on.”

When asked where he sees the most impact with ReBound solutions, Jordy replied, “For me, the reduction in return lead time was the best improvement we have had with ReBound because in the end, this solves all our other issues—we don’t have impact with Zalando, we don’t have impact with customers so in the end, reducing the lead times to be able to refund the customers within 2-4 days — that’s where we saw the most improvement.”

Jordy’s advice for other companies out there who want to begin a returns project?

“At the end, if they need to reduce lead times in returns or have localized returns, ReBound is a great solution provider because they have warehouses all over Europe and can process returns really fast.”

Photo by Jminka – stock.adobe.com