How Partywinkel & Babywinkel spend 90% less time on returns

‍Partywinkel.nl and Babywinkel.nl are part of the same family business, which has grown since 2012 into a leading player in party supplies and baby products. Through Partywinkel.nl, consumers find everything for parties and decorations, such as balloons, seasonal themed products, and a wide range of party essentials. Babywinkel.nl focuses on new parents with a selection of baby items, care products, and additional items for baby showers and nursery decor.

With a vast assortment, high service levels, fast delivery, and late cut-off times, the webshops collectively serve thousands of customers each month. The company is based in Nieuw-Vennep and partners with QLSfor fulfillment. We spoke with Patrick Noij, owner of both webshops, about the move toward a more efficient returns and customer service process.

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Fulfillment partner: QLS

Tech stack: Shopify, Klaviyo, Zendesk, Trengo

‍High volume of manual work in return processing

Before partnering with Returnista, processing returns was extremely time-consuming for Partywinkel and Babywinkel. Received returns had to be manually matched with the Shopify environment at the fulfillment partner's facility. Only then could a refund be issued. Each return took an average of 2 minutes. The process was prone to errors and placed unnecessary pressure on the team, especially during seasonal peaks.

‍Automation with Returnista and QLS integration

Partywinkel and Babywinkel implemented Returnista in combination with a direct integration with fulfillment partner QLS. This has largely automated the return process.

The process now works as follows:

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1. Returns are registered in advance via Returnista.
   
2. These are automatically forwarded to QLS.
   
3. As soon as a return arrives at the warehouse, QLS inspects it.
   
4. Once approved, this is communicated back to Returnista via the API.
   
5. The appropriate next step is executed automatically: a refund or a store credit.
6. The return is also archived in QLS to ensure our records there remain clean

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In addition, both stores make active use of gatekeepingFor defective products, customers first answer a few questions and upload a photo. Based on this, the customer service representative determines whether the product:

• Goes directly to the office for inspection, or
  
• Can be returned to the warehouse.

This prevents defective products from being restocked. At the same time, it generates valuable data on product quality and structural defects.
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‍Immediately visible after launch

Within one month of going live with Returnista, the effects were clearly noticeable:

• 90% of all returns are processed fully automatically.
  
• Faster refunds for consumers.
• Insight into underperforming products in terms of quality,
  
  

For Partywinkel and Babywinkel, this primarily means: more operational peace of mind and more focus on further growth.

“We used to spend way too much time checking, processing, and refunding returns. Now, with the QLS integration, we process 90% of returns without any staff intervention. That easily saves us 3 hours of customer service work per day.”

— Patrick Noij, owner of Partywinkel.nl & Babywinkel.nl

‍Further streamlining customer service

The next step for Partywinkel and Babywinkel is integrating the customer service tool Trengo with Returnista. Through further automation, the team aims to answer customer queries faster and more consistently, with less manual effort required from the customer service department.
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The goal: reducing pressure on the CS team while simultaneously improving the customer experience.

This case demonstrates that automating returns directly contributes to:

• structural time savings,
  
• lower operational costs,
  
• fewer error-prone processes,
  
• and better control over product quality.
  
  

Especially for webshops with high volumes, seasonal peaks, and outsourced fulfillment, an automated returns process can quickly deliver significant value.

Want to know what this approach could mean for your returns process?

Our experts would be happy to review your current setup and identify where automation will have the greatest impact.