Corston Architectural Detail is a Wiltshire-based hardware and architectural product retailer that focuses on creating timeless designs, perfectly suited to contemporary new builds or Georgian townhouses.

In just five years of business, Corston has seen remarkable growth. The high-quality collections of solid brass switches and sockets, hardware, and lighting have proven popular with shoppers across the UK, Europe and, more recently the USA and UAE.

Well-known in the industry for delivering a customer-first experience, the company wanted to ensure that this was also true of its returns process.

Corston

is fast-growing and relies on
ZigZag for its returns experience

Jason Taylor
Commercial Director

We spoke to Corston’s Customer Experience and Strategic Project Support Emily Collett, who has been at the forefront of change for the retailer. We wanted to find out how the process has been for Emily and her team, the benefits of moving to ZigZag, and Corston’s plans for the future.

“Our customers find returns a lot easier with ZigZag…I would definitely recommend ZigZag to another retailer, especially anothere-commerce brand.”

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Returns challenges Corston
faced before ZigZag

Customer-Driven
Return Reliance

Customers had to fill in their own return label and source their own carrier.

Long Customer
Service Delays

With customers responsible for their own tracking it was hard for Corston to assist when things went wrong, leading to lots of back and forth.

Higher Logistics Costs

Before ZigZag, Corston had some markets that were particularly expensive to get goods seamlessly back from.

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How Corston’s returns experience

taken shape with ZigZag

Getting started
with ZigZag

Every order that goes through without an adequate returns solution has the potential to frustrate a previously happy and loyal customer. So, we want to get new retailers onboarded as quickly as possible. That means an implementation process that includes as many people from both businesses as possible.

ZigZag has a dedicated Implementations Team that will remain in constant contact throughout the process to ensure a smooth transition on to our returns platform.

Emily began, “The ZigZag team were really helpful and responsive. They made sure everything launched on time, and we don’t remember having any significant issues. We’ve been on the ZigZag platform since 2022, so implementation was a few years ago now…and if we did have any issues, the ZigZag team was always on hand to quickly walk us through fixes.”

Ditching the label in the box

When Corston first entered the market, naturally, returns weren’t an immediate priority. Like all new businesses, they used a label-in-the-box solution that put the onus on the customer.

Emily stated, “So we used to just send out paper forms and the customers would fill that in what they were returning and then they'd send it back themselves through a carrier they sourced. The issue we found that is obviously as we got bigger, it got very messy.

“We relied heavily on the customers keeping their tracking information. If the order went missing, we had no way of finding it. We had no accountability for anything.

“The move to ZigZag gave us better control. We had accountability for the tracking. Everything was in one place and with ZigZag’s reporting capabilities we can now measure what items are being returned.”

Cost-saving, international
carrier rates

ZigZag has over 1,500 carrier services from over 170 countries. All information is collected digitally to ensure returning parcels can move swiftly through customs.

“As the business scale, we launched Shopify stores across the EU and ZigZag supported us all the way. Shipping was a little tricky before we set up our Polish warehouse, but returns have been fine from the beginning. ZigZag handled the customs process, so returns wise, the expansion into Europe has been really smooth.”

Corston’s seamless customer
experience

ZigZag’s award-winning online solution allows shoppers to seamlessly return their items through a Corston-branded digital portal.

Emily remarked, “Our customers find returns a lot easier with ZigZag. When they log into the platform, all their recent purchases are there, they don't have to try and find SKU numbers themselves. They just need their order number and they are good to go. We wanted it to be a good, hassle-free experience for the customer, and that’s exactly what it is. So, yes, our customers are happy with the ZigZag portal.”

“Our customer service handling times have definitely gone down. Previously, when a shopper did get in touch with our Customer Service Team, there was a lot of back and forth…However, now with ZigZag, we can see proof of delivery or see where the return is in its journey and quickly get back to the customer with an informative answer.

Reducing the cost
of returns

As a specialist, fast-growing, hardware retailer, Corston’s returns volumes lower than, for example, large fast fashion retailers. This usually means paying higher carrier rates.

As a returns solution for some of the biggest retailers in the world, ZigZag has the collective volume and power to negotiate attractive rates from our carrier partners that we pass on to all our retailers.

Emily confirmed, “It is great to be able to take advantage of the cheaper rates ZigZag is able to command. We originally had higher rates for some lanes but the ZigZag carrier team were able to procure some great rates through further negotiations. It has helped us reduce the costs of getting goods back substantially in some areas.”

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Corston’s Returns Transformation

An interview with Emily Collett, Corston’s Customer Experience and Strategic Project Support.

Scroll through to see Corston’s adoption of ZigZag’s award-winning platform.

Find out more how Corston benefits from xxxx