According to the country’s largest retail trade group, the average number of shoplifting incidents is expected to increase by 93% in 2023 compared to the pre-pandemic period and monetary losses for retailers have increased by 90%.
With its “Impact of Retail Theft and Violence 2024” study, the National Retail Federation (NRF) is shining a light on the severity of this issue. For example, despite the continued efforts of retailers to combat such crimes and the increasing number of states updating their laws to prosecute organized retail crime as a felony, the number of incidents of retail theft has increased. Continuing.
According to data from the report, conducted in partnership with the Loss Prevention Research Council, incidents are expected to increase by 26% in 2023 compared to the previous year.
“This is not what we are used to. “This is not the shoplifting I was anticipating 30 years ago,” David Johnston, NRF’s vice president of asset protection and retail operations, told Fox Business. “These are people who are shoplifting because they know That’s when they have an outlet to sell this merchandise.”
Johnson is referring to organized retail crime groups that resell stolen goods.
“Not every shopkeeper is going out there and selling his stolen goods online or in flea markets. They are selling these in large quantities to these local, regional or international organizations that are helping to feed the system,” Johnston said.
Last year, there were an average of 177 shoplifting incidents per day, but in some retail areas, the number reached more than 1,000, the data showed.
“Retailers are not crying wolf,” he said.
Not only are the number of incidents increasing, but retailers said they are also becoming more violent. About 73% of those surveyed reported that shoplifters displayed more violence and aggression than a year ago. Nearly 91% reported that these criminals are more violent and aggressive than in 2019.
The stores, at the behest of their corporate parents, have continually worked to increase safety for their employees and customers. Some actions, such as locking up items, have been successful in preventing crime, Johnson said, although it is frustrating for both stores and customers.
“We’ve seen some of these places, depending on where they are in the country, become vending machines,” Johnson said.
In addition to measures such as locking out products, approximately 71% of retailers have increased their budgets to support employee training related to workplace violence compared to the previous fiscal year.
Other stores like TJ Maxx and Walmart are testing the use of body-worn cameras in an effort to keep employees safe.
While states are stepping up their laws to crack down on such crime, Johnson said federal legislation is needed to really move the needle.
Currently, Johnson said, 48 states have created “organized retail crime syndicates that bring law enforcement and retailers together on a regular basis to share information and assist in investigations.”
“We need coordination between state, local and federal law enforcement to go after these organized retail crime groups, because when you take down one of them you take down all of their underlying opportunities or needs for supply.” Give, which is shoplifting,” he said.
NRF is advocating for passage of the Combating Organized Retail Crime Act, a bill that would increase federal coordination with state and local law enforcement to fight retail crime.
Johnson said the bill would create a coordination center at the Department of Homeland Security specifically for homeland security investigations.
It brings together all the federal agencies that can work on this type of crime and involves state and local resources as well as the private sector, he said.
