Need advice on setting up international return policies for my dropshipping business?

Shopify Discussion
1

Please help,

I am trying to set up a refund policy for my store and I wanted to run my store internationally. I am from Philippines and I am planning to market my dropshipping business in United States. Do I need a physical address where my customers in U.S. can send back the items that they ordered if they requested a refund and wants to return the item or is this something that DSers will provide to me? Thanks in advance.

2

Hi @JE14 ,

Thanks for reaching out here. That is a great question.

When it comes to dropshipping returns, you can set your own rules. The most usual reasons for a refund are: product is broken, defective, doesn’t match your description, or never arrived. If the customer says any of that, ask for a photo.

If any of these reasons can be backed up with a photo or tracking code, most AliExpress suppliers will issue you a refund. You can also refund your customer and kindly ask them to donate products to a local charity or recycle it. Make sure to go through this guide on handling returns like a pro.

Also, my top recommendations for returns and refunds when dropshipping are:

  • Check out your suppliers’ “Returns and Refunds” policies.
  • Get the Refund Policy template from Shopify and adjust it to your needs and suppliers’ policy.
  • If suppliers do not accept returns, you can accept them to your own address and reship those products later if they are in good condition.
  • If any problem with the order occurs, it’s best to get in touch with the supplier directly and clarify it.

In a nutshell, even if you want the customer to return the product to you, you don’t need to have a US physical address, as they can ship the return abroad. However, I recommend reviewing these return shipping rates before finalizing your policy. If the shipping rates for customers’ international returns are very high, it might not be worth doing it, as someone has to cover that cost. If you offer free returns, it will eat into your margin. On the other hand, if your customer sees they have to pay a lot for a return, they might not purchase in the first place.

What kind of products are you selling at the moment? Have you already launched your store? If not yet, here is a fantastic guide on preparing to launch the store when the time comes.