John Lewis to offer returns through Waitrose delivery service

John Lewis is to expand a trial service that enables online customers to hand their return parcels to a Waitrose delivery driver across all postcodes served by Waitrose. 

The news comes hot on the heels of the Royal Mail’s announcement that it will enable customers to return items by handing them over to their army of posties in the future. 

When returns are as prolific as they are and retailers are constantly searching for ways to reduce the returns window, the thinking behind these services is clear. 

What’s not so clear is the practicalities of how either service will actually work. How do you co-ordinate a time to meet your postie and hand over your goods?Will all Waitrose drivers now carry tape measures? (John Lewis have said drivers can only accept parcels measuring 54cm x 35cm x 22cm).

We can definitely see the value proposition, but it’s not without its challenges.  It’s going to be an interesting one to follow…