Getting Retail After Sales Care Right (so you can boost profits!)

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After-sales care is the make-or-break moment for every retailer, especially in furniture or high-value, where you've got bespoke items made to order.

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Direct delivered — one slip up, and loyalty evaporates. Welcome to Retail Reckoning. Today we're going to talk about the part of retail customers never forget, and why many retailers still get it wrong.

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This was inspired by a couple of things. On the 3rd of February, I hosted a panel at the Delivery Conference called "Beyond the Box — Returns, Exchanges and the Post-Purchase Experience."

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It got me thinking about how after-sales care is really the make-or-break moment.

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It also inspired my recent column for Furniture News and this episode too, because while the examples might come from furniture, the principles are universal. This is every retailer's challenge — whether you are in fashion, homewares, gifting, multi-site chains, indies, online only.

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Different products, same emotional moment. And it all happens after the customer has paid — and that's what's important.

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Because they haven't paid and walked away with the goods. There's no instant gratification. And now you're in that zone of anxiety where potentially things can go horribly wrong.

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And here's a newsflash — they'll remember.

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Did it arrive when you said it would? Did it work? Was it what I wanted? And if something went wrong, how did you handle it? Because when you screw it up, they're going to tell everybody. If you get it right — and I say this at so many events I speak at — they actually become stronger advocates than people who've never had a problem, because they really appreciate that.

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As I said at the conference the other day: stuff happens. And it's how you deal with it that matters. That's where you get repeat buyers and basically free marketing from customer advocates.

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After-sales to me is where loyalty is actually won. And after-sales is probably a bit boring, not terribly fashionable.

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Nobody goes into retail thinking, "Oh, I can't wait to handle returns all day."

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But if you actually speak to customers about what they remember, it's really the actual transaction. It's the irritation of: my delivery didn't show up on time; my dress, first time I put it through the washing machine, fell apart;

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the table, after I'd put it together, I couldn't get it to do anything other than wobble; I can't even find any information about my order — it's disappeared into the ether.

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Nobody replies to emails and I have to talk to chatbots. So it's technically all down to how you dealt with it when things went wrong.

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Everything should go right. Nobody should have to be complaining. Yes, in fashion and certain other categories you might buy three different colours and three different sizes because you want to try it on at home — and that's a little bit particular to that sector.

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With other things, and particularly high-investment purchases like furniture, tech, or premium high-end fashion, the after-sale service is that emotional make-or-break moment.

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It's not just how things are handled. It's: if I'm sitting on the end of the phone and I'm getting messed about, I don't want to spend four hours of my life trying to organise a return. So it's the emotional investment — the money, the value of the item, and the waiting around for somebody to actually give me an answer and sort it out.

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And I don't want to be a problem to the retailer, but I want the retailer to see that I have a problem and help get it fixed. And often that's more important than the sale itself.

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I started my panel the other day with: "This panel is all about when stuff happens, and it's what separates the good from the great." Because everybody knows stuff is going to go wrong. No one's perfect — things do go wrong. The weather, the van broke down, the person called in sick.

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The differentiator is what happens next and how you deal with it. Because this is where I really feel still far too many retailers — from big to small — still mess this up. Because they see after-sales as just a process headache, or maybe it's a returns policy problem, but at the end of the day it just feels like something to shove under the rug.

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But it isn't. It's where you can gain enormous ground.

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So my advice would be: you have to empower your staff. Train them in what is and isn't acceptable, where they can and cannot make decisions. Trust them, and give them the tools to act decisively.

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Staff need to be able to explain a delay clearly, apologise, and have empathy — calm a worried customer who's saying, "I've ordered that bed because I've got family coming from New Zealand and I've got nowhere for them to sleep."

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"Okay, well what can I do to make that better for you?" That bed maybe isn't going to arrive on time, but we can work this through — because actually, a lot of people just want to be listened to.

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And staff can decide whether a repair, a replacement, a refund, or a goodwill gesture is offered on the spot. They don't need to default to a manager or wait for somebody else to answer the question.

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And that turns problems into loyalty. But hesitant staff just make people feel even more anxious when they're already annoyed and upset — and it can turn minor glitches into reviews online and arguments in store that cause even more friction for everybody else standing there watching.

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"I'm going to leave this store now because that person is clearly a bit fed up, and I don't want to be put in the same position." Yes, I don't deny that automation through AI tools is very useful, as are clearly defined policies.

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But they cannot replace human judgment in that moment. I believe that empathy and empowerment are fundamental — and that comes from staff confidence.

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Which is the real commercial lever. And I've probably said it a million times, but I'll say it again: if your people are not well-trained, empowered, and trusted, you are missing a trick.

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Because people are costing more and more these days — we talked about that in the recent podcast about finances. Let me spell it out: people are your biggest after-sales asset. How they handle things matters.

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If you've got one confident team member who displays empathy, they can transform what could otherwise turn into a disaster into a glowing review. "They handled it so well — it was a bit of a mess, but the person that looked after me couldn't have been better."

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And then you get the word-of-mouth recommendations and repeat purchases. Because what really matters is knowing that stuff happens — but when it does, you'll be looked after, and somebody will resolve the problem to a standard that makes you satisfied.

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The alternative is customers being passed from pillar to post — call centres, "computer says no," defensive emails, increasing frustration. And that is going to lead to negative reviews, cost money in refunds, cost reputation as people talk about it, and cost future customers — not just the one in front of you, but others.

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So what you need to do is set out clear guidance, but within that guidance you need to make staff feel confident to make judgment calls. And you know what — if they make a mistake, is the value of a sofa worth the loss of a customer or the reputational damage? You've got to be relatively lenient.

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They can learn from the experience, but what they can't do is ever get that customer back if they've annoyed them to the extent that they just walk. So clarity and trust leads to loyalty every single time.

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And it's worth reminding ourselves that the sale simply doesn't end at the checkout. Other than with instant gratification — but even then, things can go wrong. If you're waiting for something to be delivered or something fails to live up to expectations, there's always going to be some comeback.

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The sale doesn't end when the card machine goes beep. The sale only ends — and then hopefully repeats — when a customer feels settled.

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Reassured. Confident they've made the right choice and are happy with the product. And the problem is these days reviews happen in the moment, when somebody has the lowest level of patience and their emotions are running high. A badly handled issue could cost hundreds and hundreds in future purchases and potentially lost customers.

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But when handled right, customers do forgive mistakes. Listen, communicate, act decisively. Treat them like humans — because loyalty isn't built on perfection, it's built on the responsiveness of staff when it matters the most.

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So from my point of view, there's another opportunity here. Proactive engagement when it comes to after-sales is a goldmine, and a lot of retailers seem to miss this. Too many retailers just rely on hope and goodwill — and they need to stop.

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If we go back to the podcast I did with Sophie when we were talking about email marketing and CRM — that's also gold dust for this. And you can use after-sales communications to stay top of mind and build trust. These are the kind of tools that actually help make the process both automated, but also human.

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So let's say six months after buying a sofa: "Is it still comfortable? Have you remembered to fluff up the cushions? Did you know we've got some wonderful accessories to go with it — make it look Christmassy or more summery?" Just little personalised messages.

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When it comes to fashion — "How's the dress? Here's how to care for it. Make sure you take it to the dry cleaners or wash it at 30 degrees, or use the delicate setting on the washing machine, so the fabric's protected." It makes people think: "That's actually quite pleasant of this retailer."

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Rather than not telling me how to maximise the value of my item, they're giving me the best possible advice to protect it. Which means in some ways they're doing themselves out of a future sale — but it's not, is it?

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You can put in seasonal nudges, extra styling advice, accessories, care tips — and it's those small touches that make the massive impact. That's how you separate good retailers with great communications from those who perhaps aren't that bothered once the money's gone through the till.

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And I think the commercial reality is that we should all remember: poor after-sales costs us money — staff time reworking products back into stock, handling refunds, the risk of reputational damage and lost future revenues. Where we have strong after-sales as a cultural differentiator, it will protect margin, prevent further escalation, help build customer advocates, and drive repeat purchases.

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So post-purchase to me isn't a nice-to-have. It's a profit generator — but it's kind of disguised as customer service.

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To wrap it up: it always, always comes back to trust. When customers want your product in their lives, their homes, and their routines, they want to trust you. They'll never forget whether they felt looked after when things went wrong, or whether anyone followed up to see if their purchase felt worthwhile.

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That is a moment of joy. It makes them feel cared about. It makes them feel valued — as they rightly should, because they're parting with their hard-earned cash. If you do it right, post-purchase care becomes one of the strongest reasons people choose to come back to you.

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Doing it wrong — in my mind, it's probably going to cost more than you realise. It's not just that one sale. It's the future lost sales, the bad reviews, and the lost trust.

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Of course, the bottom line is: this isn't just customer service. This is a commercial strategy — and it involves empathy and empowerment. Nail it, and you've got a competitive advantage that perhaps many retailers only ever dream of.

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So this has been Retail Reckoning. I'm Clare Bailey, the Retail Champion — and thank you for listening.