Finding Creative Ways to Mitigate Retail Theft Risks
As if the retail industry hasn’t suffered enough in recent years, growing in severity, number and type, retailers are reporting that organized retail crime (ORC) has become more troublesome than ever before.
As if the retail industry hasn’t suffered enough in recent years, growing in severity, number and type, retailers are reporting that organized retail crime (ORC) has become more troublesome than ever before. Of the 125 retail companies surveyed for the National Retail Federation’s eighth annual Organized Retail Crime Survey,a record-setting 96.0 percent say their company has been the victim of organized retail crime in the past year, up from 94.5 percent last year, and another 87.7 percent say ORC activity in the United States has grown over the past three years.
“What this tells us is that as retailers and law enforcement become more aware of and more proactive in pursuing organized retail crime gangs, criminals have become more desperate and brazen in their efforts, stopping at nothing to get their hands on large quantities of merchandise,” says NRF Vice President of Loss Prevention, Rich Mellor. “Selling this stolen merchandise is a growing criminal enterprise, and retailers must remain vigilant as this is an issue that involves everyone’s cooperation when it comes to protecting retailer’s assets, including their valued store associates and customers.”