Loss Prevention

Online shopping continues to grow in popularity, with over 20 percent of retail purchases expected to take place online in 2024, according to an eMarketer report. As the volume of packages shipped worldwide increases, so do the potential risks, such as damaged or lost packages, fraud and counterfeit, and more. Let’s dive into these growing…

As retailers compete to attract customers and earn their loyalty, the in-store experience is undeniably a key differentiator. Since 80 percent of shopping still happens at brick-and-mortar locations, retailers are rapidly deploying a clever mix of new technologies and redesigned in-store experiences to appeal to consumers. Despite these innovations, however, there is an ever-present risk…

Short codes have been around for a long time because they continue to be a trusted, convenient and effective way for consumers to interact with businesses. Retailers provide a five- or six-digit short code in their advertising, and all consumers must do is send a text message to that number to opt in for alerts…

Self-checkout has become a hot topic in the retail landscape. While it has offered convenience and empowerment to customers, it has also presented opportunities and challenges for store owners. In recent weeks, retailers have started to make decisions about the future of self-checkout in their stores. Dollar General and Kroger have removed self-checkout from some…

Whether at your favorite big-box store or stopping to pick up some groceries, it’s hard to ignore the shopping carts scattered haphazardly around parking lots these days. The return of shopping carts to their designated spots or back inside the store has become somewhat of a test of morality in recent years. However, returning shopping…

With the rise in retail crime consistently making the headlines, many retailers are finding themselves struggling to keep both their staff and their stores secure. Retailers continue to have challenges when it comes to security and loss prevention, and are looking for ways to increase profits, reduce theft, and make efficiencies. The British Retail Consortium…

A concerning trend has emerged in the evolving retail landscape over the past few years: the spike in retail theft. As examples, Los Angeles and Dallas experienced staggering increases of 109 percent and 73 percent, respectively, in shoplifting incidents from H1 2022 to H2 2023. As the problem intensifies, communities are left grappling with the…

Target has slashed the hours of operation for self-checkout lanes at some of its stores. Not all store locations have had self-checkout hours cut, but the retailer is considering store staffing levels and sales volumes in its decision. Workers told Business Insider that Target is trying to keep the percentage of overall store sales via…

Major retailers reported record levels of retail theft in 2023, and it seems that the problem is only worsening by the day. According to a 2023 National Retail Security Survey, retail losses swelled to $112.1 billion in 2022, up a staggering 19 percent from $93.9 billion the year prior. Popular retail chains like Target, Kohl’s,…

Organized retail crime (ORC) is rising as store employees face more aggressive and violent perpetrators than ever before. The National Retail Federation reports that the average shrink rate increased to 1.6 percent in 2022, representing $112.1 billion in losses, nearly $20 billion more than in 2021. Even more troubling, nearly half of retailers say that…