Quality Assurance Details and Requirements

Urban Outfitters, Inc. (URBN) has implemented an in DC Quality Assurance program to ensure that our customers continually receive a quality product free of defects, poor workmanship, fit, or color shading problems. The quality control auditing of all items will be conducted by the URBN Quality Assurance (QA) Departments. The audit sample will be pulled on a random basis, and the acceptance of the order will be based on the ISO 2859 inspection table. URBN reserves the right to return any goods to the manufacturer if goods do not comply with the standards set forth within these Quality Assurance Guidelines.

URBN Customer Guarantee

All UOI merchandise is unconditionally guaranteed. If customers are not satisfied with their purchase for any reason, the item can be returned.

Product Safety and Liability

All products must meet all federal and state product safety statutes and regulations, including those that fall under the Federal Trade Commission Act and the Consumer Protection Safety Act, as outlined in our Terms of Purchase Agreement.

Vendor Inspection Requirements

URBN requires vendors to perform independent ‘out of the box’ Quality Inspections on all orders prior to shipping. All items should be inspected for fit, construction, and overall appearance.

If the order ‘Fails’ the Out-Going Inspection, vendors should proceed to inspect ALL items in the order.

Vendors must contact the appropriate buyer immediately to inform them of the problem and expected delays associated with correcting the problem.

Distribution Center Inspection Policy

All incoming merchandise is inspected by the Distribution Center QA Department for order accuracy and quality. This is to ensure what is received matches what was ordered, and that the product meets URBN’s strict quality expectations.

‘Inspection Sampling Plans’ are used to determine the number of items that must be inspected to give a representative sample of the complete order at a pre-determined level of assurance.

The standard URBN Inspection Sampling Plan is based on the ISO 2859 table for measuring the AQL (Acceptable Quality Level).

The QA Supervisor manages and adjusts Inspection Sampling Plans for each item based on historical inspection records to allow for more accurate and efficient inspecting.

Rejected Merchandise Procedure

If an order is rejected due to quality issues URBN will notify the vendor, requesting a Return Authorization (RA) # or voice authorization to return the goods. Vendors are required to pay for the return freight costs. If replacement merchandise is sent, it must be shipped immediately and the vendor will pay for the shipping of this merchandise.

If damage occurs to merchandise prior to its arrival at the URBN Distribution Center, URBN is absolved of the total cost of the merchandise.

The QA Inspector will take comprehensive photos of defects and email them to the QA Supervisor, along with a detailed recap of the inspection that will support the reason that the style has failed the inspection. The QA Supervisor will forward all info pertaining to the rejected style to the appropriate parties. If necessary, representative samples will be sent to the vendor, as determined by production or the buyer.

For domestically produced orders, the URBN production team or buyer will work with the vendor and provide them with the option of having merchandise returned to them for inspection, or repair, with all freight charges being the responsibility of the vendor. In the case of an import order, the order will be sent out to a third party repair facility, with all charges associated with the repair being the responsibility of the vendors.

URBN reserves the right to issue a chargeback to the vendor for all costs associated with additional inspection that is required as the result of a purchase order failing the quality audit, due to inferior quality, incorrect product, damages in transit due to packaging, or incorrect packaging or labeling.