New study shows why clothing take-back programs fail—and what truly moves consumers to act

Retailers don’t need big financial incentives to get consumers to return used clothing—but they do need the right message. A new peer-reviewed study in the journal Manufacturing & Service Operations Management finds that simply telling consumers their returned items will be “kept out of landfills” significantly increases participation in take-back programs. But when retailers disclose that they may resell those items for profit, participation plummets.

This article is brought to you by Phys.Org.