How Much Revenue Could Your Store Earn?

Can accepting returns generate revenue?

Yes.

Retailers operating return points may receive a handling fee for each eligible container they accept and process.

The amount your store could earn will depend on the handling fee available and the number of containers you process.

How is potential revenue calculated?

The basic calculation is simple:

Containers processed × Handling fee = Handling fee income

For example, a store processing:

250 containers per day

could handle approximately:

91,250 containers per year

Even relatively small daily return volumes can therefore add up over time.

What could affect your earnings?

Your potential handling fee income may depend on:

• The number of containers returned
• The applicable handling fee
• How returns are processed
• The accuracy of your return records
• The operating days of your store

Higher return volumes may generate more handling fee income, but retailers should also consider the costs involved in operating their return point.

Revenue is only part of the picture

Handling fees are designed to help compensate retailers for the cost of operating a return point.

When considering the financial opportunity, retailers should also think about:

• Staff time
• Storage
• Consumables
• Equipment costs
• Cleaning and operational requirements

The most suitable return solution is therefore not always the one with the lowest initial cost.

What about additional customer spend?

There may also be a wider commercial opportunity.

Customers visiting your store to return containers may choose to spend their refunded deposit, and make additional purchases, during the same visit.

This means the potential value of becoming a return point may extend beyond handling fees alone.