"We are seeing a change in the number of returns due to inflation." That's a trend that Olivia & Kate say creates challenges. "Conversion is lower than in other years, which is why it's extra important now to focus on sales retention and retention." Store credit and exchanges help Olivia & Kate achieve this goal.

About fashion brand Olivia & Kate

The store Olivia & Kate was founded in 2017 by Janina Pakasi and based in Haarlem. Thanks to the great success of the offline store, a webshop soon followed. Indeed, through Social Media, more and more questions came in whether clothes could also be shipped.

‍

Every week it collects the latest must-haves of the moment. Thus, the brand not only sells clothes, but also all other must haves such as: notebooks, jewelry, pillows, picture frames, postcards and more.

‍

We spoke with Chrissy Stenger, Webshop Manager at Olivia & Kate, about the launch of the new "Store Credit" feature.

‍Fromprocurement to own label

‍Inthe past 6 years, Olivia & Kate has experienced substantial growth. Chrissy is most proud of the creation of her own label. 

‍

"In the beginning, we simply bought in and looked at what was available through suppliers. Now we focus more on identifying trends and incorporate them into our own collections or we set the trend ourselves with our own brand."

‍

"Our collection increasingly consists of our own labels rather than labels from other brands, and that will only grow," Chrissy says. She emphasizes that this gives them an opportunity to stand out, given the fierce competition in the market.

‍

She also indicates that a quality product does not necessarily come with a high cost. The shift from purchasing to own brand has created a loyal customer base that they are proud of at Oliva & Kate.

Inflation affects conversions and returns‍.

"Inflation is currently causing lower conversion rates. When returns are made, we see that this is a full order." 

‍

"Fortunately, Returnista supports us in this process. We can continuously evolve and grow with trends and developments in the market." 

‍

"With that, we were able to reduce the return rate by 10 percent."

The launch of a new feature Store Credit‍.

Changes in the market create new developments within Olivia & Kate. That's why Store Credit is a new feature in the webshop. Store Credit is store value that your customer can spend in the webshop. This makes it a convenient alternative to a traditional refund. 

‍

"By offering Store Credit, you encourage existing customers to make another purchase: Your refunds decrease and your cash position increases!" - Quinten Muller, Founder Returnista.

‍

"This is obviously great because it retains sales." Since launching Store Credit & exchanges in September, in just 14 days, Oliva & Kate has already retained sales on 33% of returns.

Higher Customer Loyalty Thanks to Store Credit‍

Store Credit offers flexibility and is a way to encourage more spending and customer loyalty. This is because it offers an extra incentive, you can add an extra incentive. For example, Olivia & Kate rewards customers who use Store Credit with an extra €2.50 as an incentive.

Chrissy is pleased that the new feature is already being used by 33% of customers during the returns process. As she explained, "This is definitely going to make a difference, but it also saves us a lot of time."

The entire return process taken care of with one solution

‍Weasked Chrissy about the benefits she experiences from using Returnista.

"Besides the speed and usability, it is very nice that everything related to the return process is in one place." She adds that crediting is now much faster and it saves a huge amount of manual work

‍

She also points out the convenience and efficiency of data insights of returned products. Gaining insight into the reasons for returns can be leveraged to optimize the sales process and thereby reduce the number of returns.

‍

"The pickup service is also a great addition to the service we can offer customers. In addition, 47% of customers use the printerless option, which also makes our return flow a lot more sustainable and customer-friendly."

Fewer returns, more satisfied customers

Olivia & Kate shows that a well thought out return policy and focus on customer experience can create a win-win situation. Fewer returns and more satisfied customers. 

‍

Together with Olivia & Kate, our focus is on achieving long-term success in e-commerce.
Would you also like to know what Store Credit can do for your webshop? Feel free to contact us.

‍

In case you were inspired by Olivia & Kate and are still looking for a fun job? They are looking for new colleagues.