The watermelon is not sweet and half the cake can be returned to the United States. Chinese people call it insulting because of the return culture.

From buying the wrong size and making impulse purchases to used air fryers, tents and even half-eaten cakes after camping, these are some of the ways consumers in the United States may be subject to returns. Onelittle red book Netizen Karl shared his personal experience and called the US return system “the most humiliating I have ever seen.” After the post surfaced, discussions on it became heated.

Carl said he was very nervous when he went to the store to return items for the first time. After swiping your membership card, the store clerk simply asked what was wrong with the product. He replied “I changed my mind”, and the other party immediately accepted the application and returned the money to the original payment card in just two minutes. It was so simple that he couldn’t believe it.

Bycostco (costco ) For example, most consumption records can be checked through the membership card, so even if there is no paper receipt, it is still possible to handle returns. Many consumers also shared that they have seen used shoes for one season, Christmas trees after the festival, used appliances and half-eaten food returning to the counter. Some people also saw customers taking leftover foodwatermelon The reason the cake was returned was that it was “not sweet.” Some netizens said that a colleague once returned half of the cake because it was “not tasty.”

Amazon Amazon’s return process is known for its convenience. Consumers can apply online and then visit UPS, Whole Foods, Kohl’s or Staples to have the items delivered. Because the logistics and processing costs of some low-priced products are higher than the product itself, the platform can directly return the product and inform customers that they do not need to send it back.

wal-mart (Walmart) andTarget Options like app code scanning and receipt-free returns are also available, but are still subject to time limit, product type, and identity verification restrictions. Apple generally offers a 14-day return period; Best Buy may charge a restocking fee for certain opened mobile phone or electronic products. Special value clearance, underwear, medications, dangerous goods and some pet supplies cannot be accepted for return or exchange.

The problem of waste is also behind the loose system. A netizen once wanted to return more than US$200 worth of frozen king crab legs after checking out at Costco. The store clerk told her she could get a refund, but due to food safety, the product could not be put back on the shelves and could only be destroyed directly. She couldn’t afford to waste it, so she eventually decided to stop.

Someone in the message area was curious, isn’t the merchant afraid of losing money by returning goods like this? Netizens engaged in supply work said that large platforms will calculate the cost based on the ratio of total sales and returns, and some losses may also be borne by suppliers according to the contract. Costco relies on membership fee income and customer loyalty as its important operating foundation, and its comfortable after-sales service is also a competitive advantage.

However, practices such as returning empty boxes, exchanging old items for new items, creating fake receipts, and returning used items have led retailers to take more precautions. Some operators will document records, limit the number of returns without receipts, or use third-party systems to identify unusual records. Netizens generally believe that convenient returns are based on mutual trust between merchants and consumers. If after-sales protection is treated as a free rental service, ordinary customers may eventually share the high costs and strict restrictions.