Post-holiday returns keeping UPS, other shippers busy

Busy week for UPS as post-holiday returns pour in

MAPLE GROVE, Minn. — Now that the holidays are over, shipping companies are busy with tens of thousands of returns pouring in.

UPS originally dubbed Jan. 2 as "National Returns Day" in 2017, but the shipping giant has seen the number of returns grow in recent years, so much so that the peak period for returns during the holiday has expanded into a weekslong event.

Post-holiday returns keeping UPS busy

In 2023, the National Retail Federation estimated total returns to amount to $743 billion dollars in merchandise.

There are no signs of a slowdown as UPS said more shoppers are returning orders for refunds instead of exchanges and 87% of merchants reported an increase in returns in 2023.

Though UPS doesn't project overall return volumes for the holidays, the company said it expects to put roughly 2.7 million returns into the network on a given day around this time of year.

Pauleen Le

Pauleen is a journalist with a passion for telling stories. Nothing makes her happier than talking to ordinary extraordinary people, and using beautiful pictures and solid writing to share their amazing stories with the world.

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