January without panic: post-holiday returns, leftover stock and cash flow

.comparison-cards { display: flex; flex-direction: column; gap: 1.5rem; } .comparison-card { background: #fff; border-radius: 16px; padding: 20px; border: 2px solid #efefef; } .comparison-header { display: flex; justify-content: space-between; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 12px; } .comparison-row { display: flex; justify-content: space-between; padding: 8px 0; border-top: 1px solid #efefef; font-size: 14px; color: #1f2937; } .comparison-label { font-size: 14px; width: 30%; } .comparison-value { width: 65%; text-align: right; } @media (max-width: 600px) { .comparison-row { flex-direction: column; align-items: flex-start; } .comparison-value { text-align: left; margin-top: 4px; } } December ends with the most orders of the year. January starts the other way round: lower sales, parcels coming back, leftover stock on the shelves and bills that all arrive in the same weeks. It isn't a crisis, it's a pattern that repeats every year, so you can plan for it. Below you'll find how to estimate returns, what to do with leftover stock and how to keep cash flow under control in the first six weeks of 2027. 1. Returns: where they come from and when January returns have three sources: Orders from late December. Under EU rules the customer has 14 days from receiving the product to withdraw from the contract, without giving a reason. A parcel received on 22 December can be returned until 5 January. Extended holiday returns. If you promised "returns until 15 January" for gifts, that's a voluntary promise, on top of the legal minimum, and it must be kept exactly as you wrote it. Gifts. People who received a product as a gift often want another size or colour, not their money back. That's your chance to keep the sale. What the law says, in short: once the customer tells you they're withdrawing, you have 14 days to refund them, including the standard delivery cost. You can hold the refund until you receive the product or proof that it was sent. For special cases, check with your…