If retailers had their way, every customer would walk out of their store 100% satisfied with their purchase.

But that’s not how life works: A growing number of companies—including H&M, Zara, Abercrombie & Fitch, and J. Crew—have started charging return fees, which experts say may turn customers off to shopping with these brands at all.

• Return policies are also very different during the peak holiday shopping season compared to the rest of the year.

Paying it backward: Retailers take a number of different approaches when it comes to return policies. The challenge is to strike a balance between consumers’ habits and expectations and the logistical obstacles that come with bringing merchandise back into your ecosystem.

• “[Shoppers have] become trained to expect returns that are free, convenient, easy, fast,” David Sobie, VP of logistics company Happy Returns, told Retail Brew.

The nature of the holiday shopping season, which involves gifting, requires retailers to make changes to their regular return policies as a matter of convenience for their customers.

Keep reading our full story, free of charge, here.—KM

Luxury jacket maker Canada Goose is all in on its brick-and-mortar strategy, which it says is fueled by increasing consumer demand across US cities for the chance to engage more directly with the brand. The Toronto-based outerwear brand opened a permanent location in Las Vegas in early November, with plans for a Denver store to open in December.

• Pop-up locations in Aspen and Detroit are also set to open before the end of the year.

“DTC channels, especially brick-and-mortar stores, serve as an unfiltered window into our brand and allow us to create meaningful relationships with our customers,” Canada Goose president Carrie Baker told Retail Brew via email.

Busy season: Canada Goose is probably best known for quilted, thigh-length parkas with fur-trimmed hoods, which retail for nearly $1,500 (or maybe you recognize the brand from Nicolas Cage’s wardrobe in National Treasure). But the brand has recently pushed beyond winter and into other seasons and categories to meet consumer demand, Baker said.

• The Las Vegas store will include a “Snow Room” for customers to test out their jackets in harsher climates. The room snows daily and reaches temperatures as low as -10°F, the brand said.

Global growth: In early November, Canada Goose cut its revenue and profit forecast for the year, pointing to Covid-19 lockdowns hurting sales in China. While more than 20% of the brand’s revenue was generated in the Asia-Pacific region in Q2, it was the only region where revenue didn’t grow. Meanwhile, Canada Goose sales in the US are on the rise, including at existing stores and wholesale, the brand said.

The new US locations join nearly 50 brick-and-mortar stores globally, including 16 in mainland China.

Keep warm with our full report here.—MA

Today’s top retail reads.

Jamming: JM Smucker CEO Mark Smucker chats about the “soft launch” of turkey-and-cheese Uncrustables, the enduring impact of PB&J, and his plans to double the business into a billion-dollar empire. (Yahoo Finance)

Exclusion at checkout: As stores around the world install self-checkout kiosks, many are failing to consider their usability by disabled shoppers. (the Wall Street Journal)

Family jewels: Other industries may be feeling the pull of inflation and potential recession, but luxury jewelry is full steam ahead, with names like Cartier and Bulgari expanding operations. “Of course these brands don’t plan just for next year; they plan for the next 10 years…Jewelry in general is more resilient versus other luxury categories through crisis periods,” Federica Levato, a senior partner at Bain and Company in Milan, said. (the New York Times)

Ruff year? At Retail Brew’s The SKU, Bolt’s vice president of Customer Experience sat down with PuppySpot’s chief information officer to discuss e-commerce elevation and what retailers need on their radar for 2023. Read all about it here.*

^{*This is sponsored advertising content.}

What happened in the world of retail this week in…1900 and beyond? Retail Brew takes you way, way, way back.

• On November 22, 1900, the first car made under the Mercedes name went out for its inaugural drive in Germany.
• On November 23, 1984, designer Donald Deskey was born. During his lifetime, he designed packages for Proctor and Gamble and Johnson & Johnson, including for Joy detergent and Micrin mouthwash.
• On November 26, 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed a bill officially designating the fourth Thursday of November as Thanksgiving.
• On November 27, 1924, Macy’s held its first ever Thanksgiving Day Parade, which was then known as its “Christmas Parade.” Needless to say, it was a hit.

Catch up on the Retail Brew stories you may have missed.

• A look at why so many retailers are debuting VC funds
• How the iconic ‘honey bear’ package took shape
• Why Amazon is cutting back its workforce, according to experts