Shoppers across the US are increasingly forced to make an uncomfortable choice when they want to buy something — say, a vibrator — at their local drugstore: ring a bell to summon an overworked retail employee, or walk away. More stores are locking away merchandise amid rising concerns about retail theft.
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When the pandemic threat eased, Maureen Holohan was eager to scale back her online shopping and return to physical stores so she could more easily compare prices and scour ingredients on beauty and health care products for herself and her three children.
Retailers have seen a recent increase in these incidents, and grocers are particularly at risk because of the wide variety of sought-after items they sell. Grocers have long contended with store theft. But over the past few years they’ve seen an unsettling rise in a new kind of retail crime — one that is often … Continue reading Organized retail crime is growing. Here’s what grocers are doing about it.
NEW YORK (AP) — When the pandemic threat eased, Maureen Holohan was eager to scale back her online shopping and return to physical stores so she could more easily compare prices and scour ingredients on beauty and health care products for herself and her three children. But that experience was short lived. In the past … Continue reading Retailers try to curb theft while not angering shoppers
Shoppers across the US are increasingly forced to make an uncomfortable choice when they want to buy something — say, a vibrator — at their local drugstore: ring a bell to summon an overworked retail employee, or walk away. More stores are locking away merchandise amid rising concerns about retail theft.
Shoppers are increasingly opting not to shop in person at Walmart following its implementation of anti-theft measures, like putting low-cost products in glass cases under lock and key.
In September, on an earnings call with investors, Rite Aid’s executive vice president of retail, Andre Persaud, floated an idea to improve the chain’s performance in New York City: turn the drugstore into one giant vending machine in order to fight shoplifting. “We’re looking at literally putting everything behind showcases to ensure the products are … Continue reading The Rise and Fall of the Drugstore Chains
Retail shrink, or company inventory lost to causes other than sales, has risen to an unprecedented level, causing some of the trade’s biggest corporations to implement extra in-store anti-theft devices at the risk of losing customers.
In recent months, The Takeout has explored several increasingly stringent tactics retailers are using to prevent theft, each of which make shopping a more punishing experience in their own way. ALDI is trapping basic goods like cheese and meat in lockboxes and outfitting them with the kind of security tags usually reserved for 50″ TVs. … Continue reading Rite Aid Is Ready to Lock Everything Up
With theft attempts elevated from prepandemic levels, stores are grappling with how to stop the problem without turning off shoppers and investors. Shoppers are finding more empty space on store shelves, but not because the retailer is out of stock. In many cases, the items are locked away to prevent theft.
These days, it feels like many stores are fortresses. Most of the products on the drug store shelf are behind lock and key, even everyday items such as deodorant, toothpaste, candy, dish detergent, soap and aluminum foil. Manufacturers that supply lock cases and devices to chain stores have seen their businesses boom.
When 29-year-old Jonnai Jones ran out of Aveeno face wash, she headed to the nearby Walgreens in Irvington, New Jersey, to pick some up. The bottle, like many other products, was locked up, forcing her to wait in line and ask an employee at the register to go unlock it and let her buy it. … Continue reading You’re Not Imagining It—Stores Are Locking Everything Up
Show New Yorkers a checkout line and they’ll tell you whether it’s worth the wait. Starbucks at 9 a.m.? Eight minutes, head to the next one down the street. Duane Reade at 6 p.m.? Twelve minutes, come back in the morning. But now a relative newcomer to Manhattan is trying to teach the locals a … Continue reading A Long Line for a Shorter Wait at the Supermarket
The threat of coronavirus is changing the way retailers handle in-store traffic, with many stores limiting the number of shoppers who can be inside at any one time. With social distancing guidelines constantly in flux, retailers are turning to location technology and machine learning to help make shopping safer for both customers and employees.