Walk into any major retailer today and you’ll see rows of freshly tagged items, carefully stacked and ready to sell. What you don’t see are the returns — the goods that were bought, used once, and then sent right back. Retailers call this “serial returning,” and it’s become one of the most costly and unsustainable habits in modern consumer culture.
Research shows that 77% of people prefer renting everyday items instead of buying them. Yet the lack of trustworthy short-term rental options has driven millions into this buy-and-return cycle. It’s not only expensive for retailers but also damaging to the environment and wasteful for consumers.
Returns have become part of the retail playbook, but the scale is staggering. In the U.S. alone:
That’s the equivalent of putting three million cars on the road each year just to shuffle unwanted items back and forth. For many consumers, returning a drill after a weekend project or sending back a fancy dress after one night out feels harmless. But behind the scenes, it’s a supply chain disaster and an environmental nightmare.
Retailers are fighting back by banning repeat returners or setting stricter policies. But rules and penalties don’t solve the core issue: people don’t actually want to own these items. They just need them temporarily.
The rise of online shopping made returning goods almost frictionless. For younger generations, especially those between 18 and 34, the “try it, return it” culture became normalized. Why?
Consumers aren’t doing this because they want to cheat the system. They’re doing it because the system hasn’t given them a better option — until now.
Borrowed exists to solve this exact problem. Instead of buying and returning, consumers can simply borrow what they need through a secure, peer-to-peer platform.
Here’s how Borrowed flips the script:
The result is a marketplace that saves consumers money, helps local businesses digitize their inventory, and reduces the waste created by overconsumption.
Borrowed isn’t just about convenience — it’s about reshaping how we think about ownership. Every time someone borrows instead of buying, they’re cutting back on waste, reducing carbon emissions, and avoiding the cycle of unused goods sitting in closets or ending up in landfills.
Imagine the ripple effect:
Each small shift away from serial returning builds momentum toward a circular economy — one where access is valued over ownership, and sustainability becomes second nature.
Retailers can only push back so much before frustrated consumers look for alternatives. Gen Z and Millennials, the two groups driving this change, are already signaling they want solutions that align with their values: affordability, convenience, and sustainability.
Borrowed gives them that solution. No more guilt over serial returning. No more contributing to massive landfill waste. Just smarter, safer, and more sustainable access to the things they need.
Serial returning is not just a bad shopping habit — it’s a symptom of a broken system. Borrowed is building the fix. By replacing ownership with access, we’re cutting costs, saving time, and reducing waste on a massive scale.
The next time you’re tempted to buy and return, ask yourself: why buy, when you can Borrow?