Research
The paper came first. The company came second.
It Goes Forward exists because a peer-reviewed paper proved peer-to-peer return logistics works. Our co-founder Carl van Heijst co-authored that paper at VU Amsterdam and Erasmus University Rotterdam before the company existed. This page covers the research behind the product.
In 2021, Carl began the research at JADS/TU Eindhoven/Tilburg University, working with Dr. Sena Ayse Eruguz (VU Amsterdam) and Dr. Wilco van den Heuvel (Erasmus University Rotterdam). The question was specific: could a formal mathematical model prove that peer-to-peer return forwarding outperforms the conventional warehouse roundtrip, financially and environmentally? The result (a Markov Decision Process formalisation, validated against three years of real e-commerce return data) was accepted by Omega in 2024. It showed up to 44% warehouse return reduction without compromising retailer margins. That is the paper. It Goes Forward B.V. was founded to turn it into a production system.
This is the opposite of how most e-commerce SaaS products get built. Most vendors start with a product hypothesis and look for validation. We started with validation and built the product.
The paper we build on
The matching algorithm at the core of Forwarding was developed in collaboration with Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and Erasmus University Rotterdam, and published in Omega, one of the world's leading operations research journals (Elsevier). The research used real return data from live fashion clients to demonstrate that peer-to-peer return forwarding reduces warehouse returns by up to 44%.
Co-authored by It Goes Forward co-founder Carl van Heijst with Dr. Sena Ayse Eruguz (VU Amsterdam) and Dr. Wilco van den Heuvel (Erasmus University Rotterdam). The paper preceded the company by two years.
Peer-to-peer return forwarding in fashion e-commerce
Eruguz, Van Heijst et al. — Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Erasmus University Rotterdam
Key findings
- Forwarding reduces warehouse returns by up to 44%
- The algorithm uses Markov Decision Processes and Approximate Dynamic Programming to optimise match timing and discount level
- Peer-to-peer return forwarding is financially beneficial for the retailer from the very first match
The problem, documented by independent researchers
Two independent bodies of research (one from a consortium of European universities, one from the European Environment Agency) document the scale of what Forwarding addresses. We did not commission this research. We cite it because it is accurate.
The convenience economy: Product flows and GHG emissions of returned apparel in the EU
Roichman, Sprecher, Blass, Meshulam & Makov — Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, TU Delft, Tel Aviv University
630,000+ returned apparel items across the EU (2021)
Key findings
- 22%–44% of returned apparel never reaches another consumer under conventional management practices
- Embodied GHG emissions of discarded returns can be 2–16x higher than all post-return logistics emissions combined
- The environmental impact of e-commerce is systematically underestimated when returns are excluded from lifecycle calculations
The billion-pound question in fashion E-commerce: Investigating the anatomy of returns
Marriott, Bektaş, Leung & Lyons — University of Liverpool, University of Southampton
Real-world data from the UK's second-largest pure-play fashion retailer
Key findings
- Fashion returns cost the UK industry an estimated £7 billion in 2022 alone
- Approximately 23 million returned apparel items were discarded in the UK in 2022, contributing 750,000 tonnes of CO₂ emissions
- Bracketing (ordering multiple sizes intending to return most) is a major structural driver of high return rates in fashion
Hidden footprints in reverse logistics: The environmental impact of apparel returns and carbon emission assessment
Long & Liu
Proprietary logistics data from two major U.S. apparel retailers (2019–2021)
Key findings
- Transportation accounts for over 90% of the total carbon footprint of apparel returns
- For a retailer with a centralized return system, returns traveling over 1,000 miles generated 29,143 tonnes of CO₂ in 2021: 91% of its total return-related transport emissions
- Logistical network design is a critical determinant of the environmental impact of returns. Where you process returns matters as much as how
The destruction of returned and unsold textiles in Europe's circular economy
Duhoux, Lingás & Mortensen — European Environment Agency
Key findings
- 1 in 3 garments bought online and returned ends up destroyed, not resold
- The destruction of returned clothing is routine, not exceptional
- Current returns management practices are incompatible with circular economy goals
Key numbers at a glance
44%
Reduction in warehouse returns
Eruguz, Van Heijst et al., Omega 128, Elsevier, 2024
22–44%
Of returned EU apparel never reaches another consumer
Roichman et al., Resources Conservation & Recycling 210, Elsevier, 2024
2–16×
Higher embodied emissions vs. post-return logistics for discarded items
Roichman et al., 2024
1 in 3
Returned garments bought online ends up destroyed
European Environment Agency, 2024
630k+
Returned EU apparel items in the research dataset
Roichman et al., 2024
310g
CO₂ saved per Forwarded return in live client data
It Goes Forward live data, 2025
£7bn
Cost of fashion returns to the UK industry in 2022 alone
Marriott et al., Transportation Research Part E, Elsevier, 2024
>90%
Of the carbon footprint of apparel returns comes from transportation alone
Long & Liu, Cleaner Logistics and Supply Chain, Elsevier, 2025
Wondering how these numbers compare to the alternatives? View the full comparison →
All numbers on this page are also published on our open metrics page. →
Full references
Eruguz, A.S., Van Heijst, C. et al. (2024). Peer-to-peer return forwarding in fashion e-commerce. Omega, 128. Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.omega.2024.103127
Roichman, R., Sprecher, B., Blass, V., Meshulam, T. & Makov, T. (2024). The convenience economy: Product flows and GHG emissions of returned apparel in the EU. Resources, Conservation & Recycling, 210, 107811. Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2024.107811
Marriott, J., Bektaş, T., Leung, E.K.H. & Lyons, A. (2024). The billion-pound question in fashion E-commerce: Investigating the anatomy of returns. Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, 194. Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tre.2024.103904
Long, J. & Liu, J. (2025). Hidden footprints in reverse logistics: The environmental impact of apparel returns and carbon emission assessment. Cleaner Logistics and Supply Chain. Elsevier. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666188825009219
Duhoux, T., Lingás, D. & Mortensen, L.F. (2024). The destruction of returned and unsold textiles in Europe's circular economy. European Environment Agency. https://www.eea.europa.eu/publications/the-destruction-of-returned-and
Open infrastructure
From research to open standard
The same thinking behind our peer-reviewed algorithm drives OpenReturn, an open protocol for the e-commerce return lifecycle we initiated so any platform, portal, or AI agent can build on a shared standard. Apache 2.0.
Learn about OpenReturn →Ready to put the research into practice?
Forwarding is live with clients today. Book a call to see the results for your webshop.