: News

'Tis The Season For Returns

Play associated audio

You know that sweater you got? The really amazingly terrible one from Mom that you're driving right now to return? Retailers know you're coming.

"For the two weeks after Christmas at least, we're still staffing as if it's Christmastime, just to handle all those last minute returns and exchanges," says John Maguire, who works at the video game store Gamestop.

Maguire says 10 to 20 percent of gifts get returned, which matches pretty well with national figures.

But Juanita Johnson, taking a break on a bench at White Flint Mall, is one mother who was determined to get it right.

"...I ask ahead of time what sizes they wear, what's your favorite color because I know I don't like to return things," Johnson says.

Johnson's son, Morgan Scott, agrees.

"I don't return the gifts I receive, I just might use or wear them," he says.

According to the National Retail Federation, 66 percent of shoppers are getting gift receipts this year.

NPR

'That's That': A Memoir Of Loving And Leaving Northern Ireland

Colin Broderick's new memoir, That's That, chronicles his childhood in Northern Ireland during the modern-day "Troubles." Broderick says growing up in what was essentially a war zone seemed normal to him at the time.
NPR

'Picture Cook': Drawings Are The Key Ingredients In These Recipes

Designer Katie Shelly's upcoming cookbook offers 50 illustrated recipe "blueprints" for basic meals — from simple snacks to more hefty dishes like eggplant Parmesan. She hopes they'll inspire any level of cook to improvise in the kitchen.
NPR

Tesla Rides High, But Faces Formidable Foe: Car Dealers

The Model S from electric car manufacturer Tesla has been named Motor Trend Car of the Year. But the company's business model is under attack by a formidable foe: the National Automobile Dealers Association, one of the most powerful lobbying groups in Washington.
NPR

Book News: Amazon May Be Called Before Parliament Over Taxes

Also: AARP and The Nation join a growing list of ebook publishers; Hilary Mantel on Jane Austen; Anne Applebaum on Sheryl Sandberg.

Leave a Comment

Help keep the conversation civil. Please refer to our Terms of Use and Code of Conduct before posting your comments.