Speaking at the NRF conference in New York yesterday, Kohl’s chief executive Michelle Gass hit back at critics of the department store chain’s returns partnership with Amazon, claiming it is “working” by bringing more footfall traffic into the retailer’s 1,160 stores.

“Is Amazon working? Amazon is definitely working. The returns programme is working. We’re seeing an increase in traffic. We’re getting new customers, younger customers, and as we expected, some of them are also buying,” she said.

“It’s not 100% but some of them are, and we’re delivering a fantastic customer experience regardless. I look at the partnership as a long-term investment in customer engagement and acquisition.”