Proven Ways to Fight Retail Theft This Holiday Season Yield Year-Round Business Lessons

Why it matters:

• Research from the Loss Prevention Research Council found a 9% increase in the number of retail thefts from 2022 to 2023, across 29 cities studied.
• Deterring theft through high visibility means such as security cameras and signage is a key tool in theft prevention, experts said.
• Employees can also play an important role, as can AI that detects suspicious activities.

The holiday season brings massive sales opportunities for retailers, but also often creates conditions that are ripe for thieves.

Retailers walk a tightrope between attracting crowds with enticing sales and merchandise displays and protecting their assets with effective shoplifting deterrents.

Recent reports about trends in retail theft have been mixed. Some reports indicate a rising number of incidents in certain geographic areas, while others indicate an overall decline. Meanwhile, organized “smash and grab” shoplifting incidents, often captured on video, have kept the issue in the national spotlight.

One study by the Loss Prevention Research Council (LPRC) found that in 29 major cities studied, brands reported 1,153 additional thefts in stores, a 9% year-over-year increase from 2022 to 2023.

Other research from the Council on Criminal Justice (CCJ) found widespread differences in shoplifting trends in different markets.

The CCJ’s analysis of data from 24 U.S. cities where police have consistently published data over the past five years found that shoplifting incidents in the cities studied (excluding New York City) was 7% lower, or about 2,550 fewer incidents during the first half of 2023 compared to the first half of 2019.

“Shoplifting, especially ‘smash and grab’ episodes caught on video, has received extensive attention from the media and policymakers, and retailers have cited theft concerns in closing stores and placing goods in locked cases,” said CCJ Research Specialist Ernesto Lopez, co-author of the report.

Whichever way shoplifting is trending it behooves businesses to take steps to minimize the potential losses they can incur from retail theft this holiday season and beyond.

Here, experts offer proven strategies to thwart it.

Merchandising strategies and inventory insights to fight retail theft

In order to develop and effective strategy for minimizing theft, it’s important for retailers to ensure they have a thorough understanding of the theft that is already occurring.

Figuring out not only which items are being stolen, but when they are disappearing from your shelves and what areas of the store are being targeted will help determine a plan of action, said Read Hayes, Director at the LPRC and Research Scientist/Criminologist at the University of Florida.

“That’s where you’re probably going to cluster your in-store defenses and that’s where you’re going to focus,” he said. “Then for those items that are being stolen, we want to increase the effort it takes to steal them.”

Displaying high-value items some distance from the entrance/exit, for example, eliminates the opportunity for the “grab-and go” theft of these items.

In addition, some high-value items, such as luxury apparel, might also be secured to store fixtures using cables, and smaller, high-value items might be displayed within locked fixtures or affixed with security tags.

Rick Amweg, Consultant at Security Risk Management Consultants, also cited those same merchandising strategies, and in addition said that it’s important for retailers to stay on top of the theft that may be occurring each day by conducting nightly inventory checks.

“Having a heads-up that a shrinkage situation is occurring is important because it’s giving the retailer the heads up that they have got a problem they really need to start taking some other actions to try and prevent further instances,” he said.

[Read more: 2024 Holiday Trends: Bargains, IRL Experiences, and Digital Convenience]

Visible, low-cost deterrents to counter retail crime

Security cameras not only capture a record of thefts taking place within stores, but they also act as a deterrent to theft, especially if they are strategically placed where they are visible to would-be thieves.

“If some people feel that they’re being observed or that somehow or another, they can be identified using security video, they may not commit the crimes,” Amweg said. “The thought is that visible — rather than covert — surveillance systems will help deter potential thieves.”

The convex mirrors that retailers have long positioned in store corners can also be useful, low-cost deterrents to retail theft, for the same reason, he said. In some instances, posting signs at store entrances stating that the retailer prosecutes shoplifters or posting other similar messages can also serve as a deterrent, he said.

Although such messages should be carefully worded so as not to create a negative impression among traditional shoppers, many consumers appreciate efforts to curtail shoplifting and create a better shopping environment, Amweg said.

Similarly, security cameras in parking lots can also help deter theft from customers’ cars and make them feel safer as well, he said.

[Read more: 5 Marketing Insights to Spur Sales This Holiday Season]

The role of employees: ‘making good use of those eyes and ears’

Another aspect of theft deterrence involves the training of employees. While store workers should be cautioned not to physically intervene with shoplifters, they can still help keep an eye out for suspicious behavior.

In addition, making sure employees move around the store, rather than staying in one place for an extended period, can help deter shoplifters, Hayes said.

Similarly, Amweg also suggested that staff should be trained to be aware that their presence is a deterrent, so that they make themselves visible to would-be shoplifters.

“During the holiday season, retailers tend to have a lot of employees in the store, and they should make good use of those eyes and ears,” he said. “But just as important is to make sure that employees understand what the policies of the store are generally. That means, do not intervene, and do not try and stop someone. If somebody wants to come in and grab a coat or a rack full of coats and run out the front door, don’t get in their way, because they will hurt you in getting out the door.”

Hayes also suggested that if employees have radios or other communication devices, they should use those to connect with each other and managers about suspicious activities.

While he also cautioned against physical intervention, employees might be able to make eye contact with would-be thieves or perhaps ask them if they need any help.

“As it’s done safely and cautiously, it can deter them,” said Hayes.

Leveraging AI, like smart cameras that detect questionable out-of-stock items

Increasingly, technologies that leverage machine learning and artificial intelligence are aiding in theft deterrence as well.

“Cameras with AI may detect that a retailer is out of stock on an item, or that a person is concealing something,” said Hayes.

Such systems can also detect if an individual or individuals are loitering in a high-theft area, or an area where they may take an item to conceal it, he said.

Some retailers have such systems set up to send them alerts when their cameras equipped with AI capture suspicious activities, Hayes said.

In addition, other retailers have deployed sensors that can detect sounds such as glass breaking or cables being cut.

“The AI may sense something — a signal out of the noise if you will,” Hayes said.

Overall, retailers need to consider an array of theft deterrents, depending on their specific situation.

“There’s no silver bullet here,” said Hayes. “It’s normally a combination of things.”

Sheryl Nance-Nash also contributed to this article.

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