Returns & Cancellations¶

This page covers everything that happens after an order has been sent to Ingram and the customer wants to change their mind — whether that's canceling before shipment or returning a book after delivery.

For the broader picture of how CDF Lite works end to end, see Ingram CDF Lite.

Canceling an order after it has been dispatched¶

Once an order has been dispatched to Ingram via CDF Lite, the window to cancel it is very narrow. Ingram's fulfillment process is fully automated on their end — orders begin processing immediately after they are received, and in-stock orders received by 10:00 AM local DC time are allocated to ship the same day.

The only way to cancel a dispatched order is to contact Ingram's customer support directly and request a cancellation before the order ships. There is no way to cancel from within Shopify or the Emersoft Books app once the dispatch request has been sent.

When contacting Ingram, have the Purchase Order Number ready — see Finding the Purchase Order Number for how to locate it in the Shopify order timeline.

If you need a cancellation buffer

If your customers regularly request cancellations or changes after ordering, keep Shopify's fulfillment setting on Don't fulfill automatically. This gives you time to review orders before requesting fulfillment. Once you click Request fulfillment, contact Ingram immediately if a cancellation is needed. See Automatic fulfillment for the two fulfillment modes.

Consumer returns¶

CDF Lite return volumes are generally low — Ingram reports typical CDF return rates of under 2%, so most stores handle returns only occasionally. When a customer does want to return a book, you have two options for how the physical book gets back to Ingram. Both are set up at the account level with Ingram, not per-order, so you pick the one that fits your store's workflow once and it applies to every future return.

Option 1 — Bulk Returns (you collect, then ship to Ingram)¶

The customer ships the returned book to your address. You hold returned books until you have enough to consolidate, then ship them to Ingram's Returns Center in a single bulk shipment. Ingram asks that you send a bulk return at least once a month if you're receiving any meaningful volume of returns.

This option keeps return shipping costs and consumer-facing contact under your control, and it's the right fit if you already handle in-store returns at the counter and are comfortable doing light consolidation.

Ingram Returns Center address:

Ingram Returns Center
7311 Innovation Boulevard
Fort Wayne, Indiana 46818

Option 2 — Ingram Direct Returns (customer ships to Ingram)¶

The customer ships the returned book directly to Ingram. Ingram processes the return on your behalf and sends you a spreadsheet with the return details (title, ISBN, quantity, date received).

Ingram charges a flat $1.25 per unit returned for this service. It's the hands-off option — you never physically handle the book.

Which option should I choose?¶

If you…	Typically the better fit
Operate a physical store and already handle returns at the counter	Bulk Returns
Want return shipping cost control and don't mind consolidating monthly	Bulk Returns
Are online-only with no convenient place to receive and store returned books	Ingram Direct Returns
Have low return volume and want the simplest possible workflow	Ingram Direct Returns

Still not sure?

Get in touch if you want the Emersoft team's recommendation for your store — we can look at your volume and setup and suggest which option will cost you less and cause the least friction.

Credit from Ingram¶

Regardless of which return option you use, Ingram credits returned trade-discount titles at 48% off list price back to your Ingram account. This is 8 percentage points more generous than the 40% trade discount applied when the book was originally billed — effectively a small restocking fee on CDF consumer returns.

Non-trade titles (Short, Long, or Net discount) are credited according to the discount structure shown in Ingram's inventory feed for each title.

Handling the customer-side refund¶

The credit from Ingram is a back-office process between you and Ingram. Refunding your customer happens in Shopify as normal — issue the refund through the order in Shopify Admin > Orders on your own terms (full refund, minus a restocking fee, minus shipping, etc.).

The two flows are independent:

Your customer does not wait for Ingram to issue you a credit before being refunded — you refund immediately on your own terms.
Ingram credits your Ingram account separately once the returned book is received and inspected.

This also means your return policy to your customers is yours to set. You can refund exactly what they paid, deduct restocking or shipping, or offer store credit — none of that is dictated by Ingram's 48% credit figure, which is about what you recover from Ingram, not what you give back to your customer.

Option A customers (Emersoft's master CDF Lite account)

If you're on Option A — fulfilling through Emersoft's shared CDF Lite account — the return path is coordinated through the Emersoft team rather than set up directly with Ingram. Contact support when a customer first requests a return and we'll walk you through the correct flow for your account.

Refund policy change effective March 2, 2026

Ingram no longer refunds returns automatically to the original payment method on the Ingram account. Instead, the return value is credited to your Ingram account for future purchases or applied against outstanding balances. This applies to Option B accounts only; Option A customers are unaffected because the Ingram-side account is managed by Emersoft.

If you need to update the payment method on your Ingram account, email [email protected].

Non-returnable and special-case titles¶

Return terms for specific titles can vary:

Permanently discontinued titles — once a publisher pulls a title from print, it's typically not returnable for credit.
Calendars and other dated items — can have unique return windows (often short, tied to the calendar year).
POD (print-on-demand) titles — generally non-returnable; they're produced only when the order is placed.
Non-trade titles with Short/Long/Net discount — follow the credit terms shown in Ingram's inventory feed for that title.

If you're unsure whether a specific title is returnable, ask your Ingram account manager — or, on Option A, contact support and the Emersoft team will check for you.

Quick reference¶

Topic	At a glance
Typical CDF return rate	Under 2%
Canceling a dispatched order	Call Ingram customer support immediately; have the PO number ready
Bulk Returns — customer sends to	Your address; you ship monthly to Ft. Wayne, IN
Ingram Direct Returns — customer sends to	Ingram directly
Ingram Direct Returns fee	$1.25 per unit
Credit on trade titles	48% off list price
Refund to customer	Handled in Shopify on your own terms — independent of Ingram's credit
Refund form (from March 2, 2026)	Credit to your Ingram account, not to your original payment method

Ingram CDF Lite — how CDF Lite fulfillment works, including the order routing and the fulfillment network
CDF Lite Pricing — the returns credit in the context of Ingram's full pricing structure, plus a margin-planning breakdown
CDF Lite Settings — including backorder settings, which affect how out-of-stock items are handled before they ever reach a return scenario
Support — for Option A return coordination and any account-specific questions