Major Retailers Speak Out Against Escalating Theft: Walmart, Home Depot, Target Raise Concerns

Not all problems include porch pirates. Thieves are targeting the source directly.

Inventory shrinkage—the loss of goods as a result of retail theft, organized crime, damage, vendor fraud, and other factors—remains a significant problem for American firms. It was mentioned a lot, at least, on the earnings calls that major retailers like Home Depot (HD), Target (TGT), Walmart (WMT), and others held last week.

 Retail shrink was estimated by the National Retail Federation (NRF) to be a $100 billion concern for the industry as of 2021, the final year for which data was gathered. From $45.2 billion in 2015, that expense more than doubled.

 According to the NRF, organized retail crime and staff theft are also becoming bigger problems in addition to stealing.

However, there is a bigger problem with violence: in the first five months of 2023, theft occurrences involving aggression or threats of violence increased by 120% at Target shops, according to Cornell.

Increasingly stores are installing cameras and other security systems, locking up more expensive things behind plexiglass, but these precautions have costs.

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Retail Security and Customer Experience

Doug McMillon, CEO of Walmart, stated that the corporation wants to “never lock anything up” since it hurts sales and inhibits customer interaction.

Nonetheless, some believe the additional safety measures are required.

 Walmart’s McMillon stated that while businesses concentrate on the areas of shrink they can control, some authorities need to take greater action against retail-related criminality.

Self-checkout usage, which is on the rise, has come under scrutiny as a potential source of inventory loss. Customers have been observed in certain studies and reports failing to pay for things during self-checkout transactions or switching price tags for cheaper items when scanning more expensive ones.

More than a dozen state attorneys general have established organized retail crime task forces to coordinate investigations between retailers and prosecutors, according to the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA).

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Source: Yahoo!