For Amazon and Shopify brands that import their inventory from overseas factories
Spot a return rate spike by SKU before it turns into bad reviews
One size or color starts coming back more often, usually after a new production run. Returns are spread across Amazon and Shopify, so the pattern hides in the totals. You hear about it when the star rating drops.
What it can cost you
Example: a SKU with 1,500 orders a month sees returns rise from 4% to 9% at $18 lost per return = $1,350 a month.An illustration, not a promise. Your Opportunity Scan puts a real number on it.
What the system checks overnight
- Compares return rate per SKU and variant to its own baseline on both channels.
- Groups return reasons such as defective, not as described, or wrong size.
- Ties return spikes to the PO or production batch the units came from.
- Reads new review text for the same complaint showing up.
- Watches Amazon customer experience flags on your listings.
Where it reads from
- Amazon Seller Central
- Shopify
- Google Sheets (PO and batch tracker)
Your public Amazon and Shopify reviews, so a defect mentioned in reviews connects to the return numbers.
What happens when it fires
You decide whether to pause the SKU, fix the listing, or raise it with the factory. The system drafts the supplier email with return reasons, batch dates, and photos from returns.
Autonomy level: Suggest only. The brief tells you what changed and what to do. Nothing happens without you.
What we guarantee
Return rate for every SKU and variant compared to its baseline nightly, with return reasons summarized. We agree on the metric before the Sprint starts and measure it over the first 20 business days after go-live. If we miss it, you get half your Sprint fee back. Dollar savings are tracked in your monthly saves log, reported rather than promised.
Questions
How does it know which batch a return came from?
It uses the receiving dates and PO in your tracker to work out which batch was selling when the order shipped. It is an estimate, and it says so in the brief.
Can it tell me if the listing is the problem and not the product?
It shows the reasons. When most returns say not as described or wrong size, that points at the listing or size chart, and the brief says that.
Do I need new software for this?
No. The system reads from the tools you already use, with read-only access by default. A guardrail layer controls exactly which data the AI can see.
What does it cost?
A 3-week Sprint is $6,000 fixed and includes the morning brief plus one automation tied to an agreed metric. Ongoing support is $1,500 a month, or $500 a month to keep it running without new automations. If the agreed metric is missed over the first 20 business days after go-live, half the Sprint fee is refunded.
How is this different from a dashboard app or a free AI kit?
A dashboard app shows numbers when you go look. A free AI kit gives you the parts, and you do the setup, the upkeep, and the checking. Here the alarms are built for your kind of business, they watch outside data like market rates and rule changes alongside yours, and on Run or Keep-Running, the person who built them keeps them working and logs what they caught.
More alarms for E-commerce importers
Seven more things worth watching.
- Freight quote swingsCompare every forwarder quote against your lane history and other forwarders before you book, so a padded ocean or air quote gets caught in time.
- Stockout before the reorder landsKnow which SKUs will run out before the next PO arrives, using real sell-through on Amazon and Shopify plus your factory lead time and transit.
- Buy Box loss or listing suppressionGet flagged when an ASIN loses the Buy Box, gets suppressed, picks up a new seller, or has stranded inventory, before days of sales slip away.
- Ad spend efficiency driftSpot campaigns, search terms, and bid rules that are quietly raising ACOS and TACOS, so ad spend goes back to what actually sells.
- Landed cost creepRebuild landed cost per unit on every PO from factory price, freight, duty, and fees, and flag when it drifts past what your pricing assumes.
- 3PL receiving delays and count gapsMatch every inbound shipment to its packing list at your 3PL and FBA, and flag slow receiving or short counts while you can still file a claim.
- Cash tied up in slow inventoryFind the SKUs holding your cash with weeks of supply, aged storage fees, and next PO payments in view, so you can clear them on purpose.