Over the past few years, a number of major retail CEOs have talked about the growing impact of retail theft. The CEOs of Target, Walgreens, and Walmart have all made it seem like rising theft has been a massive issue that's dragging down their bottom lines.
In many cases, they talk about organized retail crime (ORC), which the National Retail Federation defines as "the large-scale theft of retail merchandise with the intent to resell the items for financial gain."
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Instead of customers sticking an item in their pocket, hiding it under a coat, or bagging items not scanned at self-checkout, ORC is more sinister.
"ORC typically involves a criminal enterprise employing a group of individuals who steal large quantities of merchandise from a number of stores and a fencing operation that converts the stolen goods into cash," the NRF shared.
Retailers have been losing more from various types of theft, but the actual increases are relatively marginal.
"The average shrink rate in 2022 increased to 1.6%, up from 1.4% in 2021 and in line with shrink rates seen in 2020 and 2019, according to NRF’s latest National Retail Security Survey. When taken as a percentage of total retail sales, that represents $112.1 billion in losses in 2022, up from $93.9 billion in 2021."
Retailers have taken some big steps to cut that down including Walmart allowing workers to shut off self-checkout lanes so managers can check for theft, closing select locations, and adding a police station to an Atlanta store. But, the core of Walmart's loss-prevention efforts remains fairly old-school.
Image source: Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Walmart uses classic anti-theft measures
While it has tried some newer tactics, Walmart also uses a tried-and-true system to prevent shoplifting, according to Attorney911.com, a Texas law firm that defends people who get arrested on shoplifting charges.
'Walmart has loss prevention officers at every store that watch for shoplifters. They are on the floor and in the back watching everyone on camera," the company shared.
Loss prevention personnel are also watching the self-checkout lanes.
"A common shoplifting case the loss prevention officers look for is when a person scans some items but leaves others in the basket and tries to exit the store without paying for those items. Or a person simply walks by the cash registers without stopping to scan any of their items," Attorney911's web page added.
If Walmart catches someone stealing, in most cases, the police are called.
"Although anti-theft practices and policies can vary between stores, Walmart will often call the cops for shoplifting offenses. If you are caught shoplifting from a Walmart, a loss prevention officer may reasonably detain you at the store until the police arrive," the site noted.
Walmart does not share its specific theft protection programs, according to a statement sent to TheStreet.
"We have asset protection policies but don’t publicly talk about security measures in our stores. However, we’re always looking for ways to protect our associates, customers and merchandise," a spokesperson shared. .
Walmart comments on its shrink prevention efforts
Walmart President John Furner addressed the company's shrink issues during its first-quarter earnings call.
"And as we've said in the past, it's been challenging for us. It's been challenging really for — for all of retail. So, we're going to actively manage this issue. We always do, we always have, and we're going to continue to take the steps that are reasonable and required to make sure we're protecting our customers, protecting our associates, and protecting our assets and inventory," he said.
Furner also noted that he does not believe that Walmart alone can solve the problem.
"It will take communities stepping up and enforcing the law to be able to — to bring this issue back under control," he added.
