Shoppers are buying more items than they plan to keep when shopping online, according to data from virtual fitting service provider

Shoppers are buying more items than they plan to keep when shopping online, according to data from virtual fitting service provider

Two in five consumers (41%) buy multiple sizes of the same garment when shopping online, just to check the fit – and then send the ‘wrong ones’ back, according to a survey from Fits.me, the online virtual fitting room provider. Women (49%) are more likely than men (31%) to engage in the practice of ordering more sizes than they intend to keep.

The survey was commissioned to highlight the enormous costs to retailers of not providing customers – who are buying online rather than on the High Street in ever-increasing numbers – with an online alternative to the ever-popular instore fitting room.

Finding virtually the right fit

According to Fits.me’s own data, the main reason for returning items bought online is that the size did not fit (43%), followed by the feel of the fabric (25%), and then the style of the garment (15%). According to the research, which was conducted among 1,000 UK consumers, over one in ten (12%) reported they ‘never buy online because of sizing concerns’ and a further 61% said that they hesitate before making a purchase online due to sizing concerns.

The research also found that over half of consumers (60%) would not consider making a purchase online unless returns were free. A further 12% of those surveyed said they had ordered multiple sizes online in order to check the fit and then forgotten to return the items they didn't want. And one in ten consumers (11%) report that they had even returned online purchases that they had worn.

Overcoming physical limitations

Heikki Haldre, founder and chief executive of Fits.me, commented: “Consumers don’t trust the sizing information they see online, and with good reason: there are no universal sizing standards, and sizing may vary considerably even within a single retailer. And there’s no way they can physically try on the garment. They’re learning that the ‘free returns’ offered by retailers works to their advantage; it means they can order multiple sizes but return the one or more that they don’t want.

“However returns cost retailers enormous sums of money; not just the transportation of it, but the re-warehousing of the garment and, often, its subsequent discounting for resale. This is already a problem for retailers; as the proportion of people shopping online grows and more people twig to the fact that they can send back unwanted items with no penalty, it’s going to get a lot worse – unless and until retailers deploy virtual fitting rooms,” he said.

A recent study of conversions and returns at shirtmaker Hawes and Curtis showed that its virtual fitting room was responsible for an improvement in conversion rates of 57% for first-time customers, and a 35% fall in its overall garment return rates.