Retail theft surges 93% since before COVID-19 pandemic: 'Retailers have not been crying wolf'

The average number of shoplifting incidents jumped 93% in 2023 compared with pre-pandemic times and monetary losses for retailers have risen 90%, according to the nation's largest retail trade group.

With its "Impact of Retail Theft & Violence 2024" study, the National Retail Federation (NRF) is highlighting the severity of this issue. For instance, despite the continuous efforts by retailers to combat such crimes and a growing number of states that have updated their laws to prosecute organized retail crime as felonies, the number of retail theft incidents continues to climb.

According to the data from the report, conducted in partnership with the Loss Prevention Research Council, incidents have jumped 26% in 2023 from the prior year. 

"This isn't what we were used to. This isn't the shoplifting I was apprehending 30 years ago," David Johnston, NRF vice president of asset protection and retail operations, told FOX Business. "These are people who are shoplifting because they know when they have an outlet to sell this merchandise to." 

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Johnston is referring to organized retail crime groups, which resell stolen goods. 

"Not every shoplifter is going out there and selling their stolen goods online or at a flea market. They're selling them in larger mass quantities to these local, regional or transnational organizations who are helping to feed the system," Johnston said. 

Last year, there were an average of 177 shoplifting incidents per day, but in certain retail sectors, that number reached more than 1,000, the data showed.  

"Retailers have not been crying wolf," he said. 

Not only are the number of incidents rising, but retailers said that they are also getting more violent. About 73% of those surveyed reported that shoplifters exhibited more violence and aggression than they were a year ago. About 91% reported that these criminals are more violent and aggressive compared with 2019. 

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Stores, at the behest of their corporate parents, have consistently worked to boost protection for its workers and customers. Some actions like locking items up have been successful in deterring crime, though it's been frustrating for both stores and customers alike, Johnston said. 

"We've seen some of these locations, depending on where they are in the country, become vending machines," he added. 

Aside from measures like locking up products, about 71% of retailers have increased their budgets to support employee training related to workplace violence compared with the last fiscal year. 

Other stores, like TJ Maxx and Walmart, are testing out the use of body-worn cameras in an effort to keep employees safe.  

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While states have been ramping up their laws to crack down on such crime, Johnston said federal legislation is needed to really move the needle.

Currently, Johnston said 48 states have "created organized retail crime associations that bring law enforcement and retailers together on a regular basis to help share information and support investigations." 

"We need the coordination between state, local and federal law enforcement to go after these organized retail crime groups, because when you dismantle one of those you then dissolve all the underlying opportunities or needs of their supply, which is the shoplifting that takes place in the stores," he said. 

THe NRF is advocating for passage of the Combating Organized Retail Crime Act, which is a bill that would increase federal coordination with state and local law enforcement to fight retail crime. 

Johnston said that the bill would specifically create a coordination center in the Department of Homeland Security under Homeland Security investigations. 

It brings together all the federal agencies that can work and support this type of crime, along with state and local resources, while also engaging the private sector, he said.