Vol. 14 No. 1 (2026): Business & Management Studies: An International Journal
Articles

Qualitative analysis of return process experiences on e-commerce platforms in Türkiye: A comparison of Trendyol, Hepsiburada, and n11

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  • İbrahim Atilla Karataş
İbrahim Atilla Karataş
Assistant Professor, Department of Business Administration, Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences, Muş Alparslan University, Muş, Türkiye

Published 2026-03-25

Keywords

  • E-Commerce Return Processes, Consumer Complaints, Service Failure, Digital Platforms
  • E-Ticaret İade Süreçleri, Tüketici Şikayetleri, Hizmet Hatası, Dijital Platformlar

How to Cite

Qualitative analysis of return process experiences on e-commerce platforms in Türkiye: A comparison of Trendyol, Hepsiburada, and n11. (2026). Business & Management Studies: An International Journal, 14(1), 180-193. https://doi.org/10.15295/bmij.v14i1.2692

Copyright (c) 2026 İbrahim Atilla Karataş

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

How to Cite

Qualitative analysis of return process experiences on e-commerce platforms in Türkiye: A comparison of Trendyol, Hepsiburada, and n11. (2026). Business & Management Studies: An International Journal, 14(1), 180-193. https://doi.org/10.15295/bmij.v14i1.2692

Abstract

This study compares consumer complaints about the return processes of Trendyol, Hepsiburada, and n11—the leading e-commerce platforms operating in Türkiye. A total of 345 user complaints obtained from the Şikayetvar platform between May 2025 and October 2025 were analysed using the qualitative content analysis method. The findings indicate that the primary issues triggering return processes across all three platforms are product-related; furthermore, uncertainties regarding shipping logistics and the operational flow of the return process negatively affect consumer trust. The study reveals that the loss of trust in e-commerce platforms is shaped not only by the presence of return or compensation mechanisms but also by process-based factors, such as how the platform manages the process and the extent to which it informs and guides users. In this regard, the research contributes to the service failure literature by addressing the return process within the context of platform–consumer interaction and provides practical implications for improving return processes for e-commerce platforms.

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