An only 3PL return warehouse is a third-party operation that does nothing but take back what the client's customers sent back: receive the return, match it to the order, grade the item, decide its disposition (restock, refurbish, liquidate, recycle, destroy) and report all of it to the client so the refund and the stock are handled. It is a specialised form of the 3PL model with the same economics turned inside out: inbound is the whole job, every receipt is different, and the procedures per client are longer because the disposition rules are the client's. This page is about running one; the free warehouse SOP template worksheet on this site sizes the per-client pack a returns operation depends on.
The returns process, step by step
Receive the parcel and match it to the client's return authorisation; inspect and grade the item against the client's grading scale; record the reason; apply the client's disposition rule for that grade; and report the result to the client so the refund can be released and the stock level corrected. Each step is a decision the client owns and the operator executes, which is why the procedure is longer than an outbound pick and why it has to be written per client.
Why returns need more procedure per client than fulfilment
A fulfilment client has one packing spec; a returns client has a grading scale, a disposition rule per grade, a refurbishment standard, a liquidation route and a data feed, and each differs by client and by product category. The SOP pack for a returns client is therefore heavier: the worksheet counts it from your own step counts, and a returns operation should expect the steps per SOP to run well above the worked example's 12.
What the client reads each week
Returns received, matched, graded and dispositioned, the hours behind them and the cost per return, and the restock rate. The same reporting worksheet on this site works the labour figures from a week's totals; the restock rate is the client's own figure from the disposition counts. Pickpathly Pro keeps each client's grading scale, disposition rules and weekly figures against the client.
Questions people ask about only 3pl return warehouse
What does a returns-only 3PL do?
Receives customers' returns for a client, matches them to orders, grades them, applies the client's disposition rule and reports back so refunds and stock are handled. It does no outbound fulfilment.
How is a returns warehouse paid?
Usually per return received and processed, sometimes with a grading or refurbishment fee per item and storage for stock awaiting disposition. Cost per return against that rate is the account's margin, and the reports worksheet works it from hours and a loaded rate.
What procedures does a returns client need written down?
Receipt and matching, grading against the client's scale, disposition per grade, refurbishment where offered, the data feed back to the client, and storage of stock awaiting a decision. The SOP worksheet on this site counts the pack from your own figures.