The rapidly changing retail landscape during the COVID-19 pandemic continues to shed light on how customers and retailers alike handle their online returns. Take a look inside the newest contactless offering coming to Optoro’s Returns Experience solution – **Express Returns**. Rolling out early next year, this offering will give retailers access to a nationwide network of packageless returns drop-off points, to include more than 1,000 Staples® Stores.

In this week’s episode of the Returns Report, our Co-Founder and President, Adam Vitarello, sat down with Craig Grayson, Vice President / GMM, Print & Marketing Services at Staples Stores, to discuss why we created this solution and its impacts on the future of retail.

# ReturnsReport: A Look Inside Express Returns and Staples Drop-Offs - YouTube

[#ReturnsReport: A Look Inside Express Returns and Staples Drop-Offs](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vhqTMzyZtg)

##### **The Problem with Online Returns (Before + During COVID-19)**

- **Customers think the current process is inconvenient**  
  - Shoppers don’t like waiting in long lines in stores  
  - Printing and packaging is an issue for customers without a printer or empty boxes ready at home  
  - [Safety concerns](https://www.optoro.com/2020/06/18/returns-report-consumer-returns-behavior-during-covid-19/) around COVID-19 are still prevalent and will remain a priority in 2021

- **Retailers are facing increased complexity & returns surges**  
  - This [holiday season](https://www.optoro.com/2020/08/06/webinar-recap-preparing-for-holiday-returns-during-covid-19/) will be e-commerce dominant, with expected returns surges  
  - Omnichannel retailers are facing intermittent store closures  
  - COVID-19 safety policies differ by state and therefore store-to-store  
  - Many customers are uncomfortable dropping off returns to shipping carriers or returning in store during quarantine

##### **The Solution: Express Returns**

- After hearing from retailers and customers, we developed a new offering that enables safe and convenient returns in the following ways:  
  - **Contactless:** Shoppers can safely and conveniently drop-off their items at a physical location by presenting a QR code and immediately receive their refund  
  - **Labelless:** Customers do not need to print a shipping label and can simply drop the item off as is at the location they choose in the Return Portal  
  - **Packageless:** Shoppers can return products from Optoro’s retail customers to one of Staples’ 1,000+ drop-off locations without a box or any type of packaging

To get started with Express Returns for your business, check out our [Returns Experience solution](https://www.optoro.com/solution-overview/returns-experience/) and [schedule a demo](https://info.optoro.com/schedule-a-demo) today.