Supply chain management company Blue Yonder announced Wednesday that, via its subsidiary Doddle, it has acquired Inmar Post-Purchase Solutions (IPPS).
Doddle, which Blue Yonder acquired in October 2023, already owned 49 percent of IPPS, which was previously a reverse logistics-focused joint venture between Blue Yonder and Inmar. This transaction sees the company purchasing the remaining 51 percent of IPPS. Blue Yonder did not disclose the financial terms of the deal. As part of the deal, IPPS has become Blue Yonder Reverse Retail operations LLC.
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The acquisition will continue to help Blue Yonder handle its partnership with third-party logistics giant FedEx. The companies announced in March that they had launched FedEx Easy Returns, which enabled consumers to return items without a box or label to more than 3,000 FedEx Office and Kohl’s locations around the United States. The partnership is meant to offer greater flexibility on returns to consumers, who increasingly demand convenience.
Data from the National Retail Federation and UPS’ Happy Returns shows that about two-thirds of consumers said a poor experience with returns would dissuade them from shopping again with the same brand or retailer. And convenience is key—that same data set shows that more than eight in 10 consumers said they would be more likely to shop with a company if it allows them to return items without a box or label and an immediate refund.
As retailers work to incentivize repeat-purchase behavior more than ever—thanks, in part, to U.S. President Donald Trump’s back-and-forth tariff strategy, which has seen retailers considering price increases and consumers becoming even more price conscious.
Duncan Angove, CEO of Blue Yonder, said Blue Yonder wants to help its clients feasibly support consumers’ changing expectations.
“The volume of consumer returns is growing exponentially, but the disparate elements of the reverse logistics process make it hard to keep up. Through the acquisition, we will continue making returns convenient and hassle-free for retailers and consumers,” Angove said in a statement.
Blue Yonder’s latest darling will help it provide visibility into the returns process for retailers, offer lower costs, enhance consumer satisfaction and provide stronger sustainability options, the company contends.
Tim Robinson, corporate vice president, returns for Blue Yonder, said he’s excited about the potential that adding IPPS to Blue Yonder’s portfolio will offer the company.
“The physical movement of returned items is a major supply chain challenge, yet drop-off locations, transport services, downstream processing tasks, and SKU ownership remain siloed,” Robinson said in a statement. “With Blue Yonder Returns Management, retailers can optimize their returns process, enhancing speed, sustainability and cost effectiveness while simplifying the returns process for consumers.”
Blue Yonder has aggressively pursued expansion via acquisitions in recent years; in May, it announced it had acquired Pledge Earth Technologies, which helps logistics and supply chain teams move toward their carbon emissions goals. In 2024, it acquired One Network Enterprises for $839 million to help enable clients to share and leverage supply chain data in real time. It also acquired German software company Flexis AG.
