Shopify Native Exchanges FAQ

Does Loop’s upsell capture functionality change with native exchanges?

• No, Loop will follow the same upsell capture workflow as before, with Upsell transactions being facilitated through Stripe. Loop is exploring an alternate avenues for upsell capture via Shopify Invoicing in the future.

How do incentives like Shop Now Bonus appear on new exchanges?

• Incentives like Shop Now Bonus have historically been issued via a price reduction on new exchange items in Shopify. Within the new exchange flow, these incentives appear as discounts on the new exchange items

Do discounts on the original order automatically apply to new exchange items added to an order?

• No, the new exchange flow will not change discount application behavior, rather this is still driven by each merchant’s configuration within Loop.

Are there any changes to Loop’s tagging behavior now that exchanges are not created through a new order?

• [COMING SOON] Loop’s tagging behavior will see a minor change in that when an exchange is created Loop will tag the order (in this case the original order) with Loop Exchange. This tag can be used to identify orders with exchanges.

Does Loop still use the EXC order prefix with the new exchange flow?

• No, because exchanges have now moved from an independent order to existing within the original order, the EXC prefix will no longer be applied by Loop. Merchants who have historically used this prefix to easily identify an exchange order must now use order tags or Loop reporting.

Does Loop still use the loop discount to account for return credit against new exchange items?

• No, Shopify will now automatically apply return credit from returning items against new exchange items added to an order, eliminating the need for the loop discount.

What shipping method is used for new exchange items?

• The shipping method from the original order will be inherited to any new shipments created via an exchange.

Does this change the behavior of gift card/store credit returns?

• No, this will not affect gift card/store credit flows. These will continue to behave in the manner that they do today.

Is inventory reserved when an exchange is created in Shopify?

• Yes, when an exchange is created in Shopify a new fulfillment is created and inventory is placed in a committed state. This prevents inventory from being sold on the storefront unless a merchant has “continue selling through out of stock” setting enabled in Shopify.

What if I do not want to hold inventory between exchange submission and return processing?

• Loop has an available setting to delay the creation of a return in Shopify until it is processed within Loop. This will eliminate the creation of “in-progress” returns in Shopify and will prevent inventory holds on exchanges. Reach out to support@loopreturns.com to have this setting enabled.

Can I still configure how Loop applies taxes on exchanges?

• No, Shopify now handles all tax calculations and application on exchange items.

How are new exchange items taxed?

• Shopify will calculate and apply taxes to new exchange items using the tax rules set by merchants within Shopify. This will behave in the same manner as tax application for new items purchased through the storefront.

Does this solve the issue in which tax codes are not properly attributed to new exchange items?

• Yes, tax codes for exchange items will be properly reflected in Shopify and as a result will flow through to third-party tax systems like Avalara.

How are VAT and other inclusive taxes handled?

• Since Shopify manages the application of tax rules and taxes, these taxes will be applied to new items exchange items per a merchant’s configuration in Shopify.

How are return fees represented in Shopify?

• Fees are now a structured data point within a return and will be present within Shopify reporting, found within the “Additional fees” column.

Does Loop have support for shipping fees and restocking fees in Shopify?

• Currently Loop only leverages Shipping fees in Shopify, which are applied at the return level. All fees present on a return will be totaled and included as a lump sum within Shopify. Support for item level fees (restocking fees) on a return will come in a future iteration.

Can I charge tax on return fees?

• Currently, Shopify does not support taxing fees. Merchants wishing to assess taxes on fees should increase the fee value to account for the estimated tax. Loop cannot support taxing fees outside of the native tax infrastructure in Shopify.

Do return fees flow into third party software like Avalara?

• We recommend testing the flow of fees into third party systems, as this will evolve as systems build in support for native fees in Shopify.

What notifications will the customer receive for a new exchange item given that Loop is no longer creating new orders for exchanges?

• Customers will no longer receive a new order confirmation when an exchange processes, however, customers will receive the shipping notification for the exchange item. This is reliant on merchants generating a shipping notification on standard fulfilled order item (standard), which will also apply to Exchanges.

What notifications will a customer receive through the new exchange flow?

• When a return is submitted, the customer will receive Loop’s return confirmation email.

• When a return processes and an outcome(s) is issued, the customer will receive the following notifications where applicable:

  • Shopify refund notification

  • Shopify gift card notification

  • Shopify shipping notification for exchange items

What Klaviyo metrics (events) will be triggered when an exchange is completed?

• When an exchange is completed, the new items are set for fulfillment and will trigger native Shopify shipping notifications. Merchants using Klaviyo to send shipping notifications to customers should test the native exchange flow to confirm that this event is triggered when an exchange item ships. See Klaviyo metrics here: https://help.klaviyo.com/hc/en-us/articles/115005080447

Will I need to rebuild my integration into a third-party system when moving to the new exchange flow?

• This will depend on the current integration, as these vary from merchant to merchant. Because exchanges will now leverage a new data structure in Shopify and appear as part of the original order, we anticipate most integrations will require modification. We encourage merchants to consult Loop’s enablement documentation and test the new exchange flow to see how it impacts their current integration. Loop will provide supporting artifacts for integrations into the most common third-party systems as these become available.

How can third-party systems identify a new return event?

• Return webhook from Loop

• Returns/approve webhook from Shopify

How are shipping partners notified of a new fulfillment needing to ship out?

• When a fulfillment is released (upon exchange process), the outstanding fulfillment will flow through the same workflow as storefront orders that are awaiting fulfillment.

• Exchanges builds on the concept of there being multiple fulfillment orders (FOs) on a single order. FOs have been present in Shopify for some time, but rely on a shipping provider supporting Split Shipping. An Exchange triggers the same webhooks as any other upstream event that creates FOs.

Does Shipstation support multiple fulfillment orders?

• Shipstation has already integrated with multiple Fulfillment Orders, so with Exchanges it is a matter of representing those "as expected" in the Shipstation UI.

• Merchants should inquire with Shipstation, as this functionality is currently in beta and requires enablement by Shipstation.

What about other fulfillment services?

• Merchants should inquire with their fulfillment service to understand if they support multiple fulfillments.

Will new exchanges trigger the same webhooks as POS exchanges, which uses a similar exchange paradigm?

• No, creating an exchange via POS will trigger both the returns/approve and orders/edited webhooks. Creating an exchange using the exchange primitive will trigger returns/approve webhook only

How can I enable the new exchange flow?

• Reach out to support@loopreturns.com to have the admin setting made accessible. From there, Native exchanges can be toggled on/off within the general settings of the Loop admin. Simply toggle on Native Exchanges within the Exchange module of general settings to enable the new exchange flow. Exchanges submitted after this setting is enabled will adhere to the new flow.

• Shopify Plus merchants must also enable exchanges in Shopify via feature test drives. To access feature test drives in your Shopify Admin, click Settings, and then in the Organization section, click Feature test drives. Here you can enable exchanges for the Shopify instance(s) of your choice.

How can I test the native exchange flow in my Loop instance?

• Reach out to support@loopreturns.com to have the admin setting made accessible. Native exchanges can be toggled on/off within the general settings of the Loop admin. Exchanges created after this setting is enabled will adhere to the new flow. Merchants testing in a production environment should toggle the setting on for testing and then back off to resume the current behavior.

How can a I understand what exchange flow a return leveraged in the Loop admin?

• Exchanges using the native Shopify flow will now show exchange items in the return object within the return timeline

Will Shopify reporting be accurate after moving to native exchanges?

• Shopify reporting will now properly reflect the impact of exchanges and display accurate values for returns, net sales, and tax, without the need for reconciliation.

How does this change the reconciliation process for exchanges?

• Native exchanges eliminates order adjustments within Shopify for exchanges. Merchants will no longer need to leverage Loop’s Sales Adjustment Report to offset order adjustments created in Shopify for exchanges.

• Native exchanges eliminates the use of the Loop Discount on new exchange orders. Merchants will no longer need to leverage Loop’s Sales Adjustment Report to offset discount amounts representing return credit.

Do I have to use the Sales Adjustment Report for anything after moving to native exchanges?

• No, the sales adjustment report will no longer be necessary to get accurate discounts, returns, net sales, and taxes within Shopify.

What about reconciling for Store Credit Returns?

• The native exchange flow unlocks capabilities to better accommodate returns for Store Credit in that these will no longer create an order adjustment in Shopify once the native exchange flow is enabled.

Is there a deprecation date for current exchange flows/functionality?

• No, Loop does not have plans or timing for the deprecation of the current exchange flow. Merchants can move to the new flow at any time they desire, but will not be forced to do so for the foreseeable future. Any changes to this strategy will be communicated well in advance of a global rollout.

Are there any limitations to be aware of with regards to exchange creation?

• Yes, Shopify does not support exchange creation on orders that:

  • Are older than 2019

  • Are created from a third-party source that is not Loop or Shopify

  • Contain duties

  • Contain an invalid billing or shipping address

  • Contain a prepaid subscription

• In the case where an order is not eligible for exchanges, Loop will not allow exchanges on the ineligible order. Refund and gift card outcomes will be available to the customer (if applicable). Loop will support the above limitations as eligibility constraints are lifted by Shopify.