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Small Business Owners Take Action on Shoplifting

Nationwide Spike Happening as Shoplifters Are Emboldened by DAs' Policies

Nationwide, shoplifting has increased, spurred by lessening prosecution policies in some major cities. We'll explore how this spike came to be and how some retailers are dealing with the problem.

Retailers Are Dealing With a Spike in Theft (Photo: Dreamstime)

Business.org reported on the results of a survey of 700 business owners, 54% of whom reported an increase in shoplifting last year.

In New York, former governor David Paterson criticized New York City's district attorneys office for declining to prosecute shoplifters and looters for stealing less than $500 worth of merchandise. "It's another example of the anti-social, lack of judgment and lack of concern for anybody else other than the individuals who are doing this," Paterson said (source).

Similarly, California Governor Gavin Newsome said he thinks shoplifters should be prosecuted and called out local officials who have been reluctant to do so. In 2014, California voters approved Proposition 47, which reduced sentences for certain theft and drug-possession offenses from felonies to misdemeanors. As a result, crime statistics appeared to drop, even though the incidents of theft increased because of reduced penalties and the policy of no cash bail instituted in some localities, where thefts under $950 are not prosecuted at all (source).

Business TV network CNBC recently interviewed small store owners to find out how they are coping with the spike in retail theft.

"When you see...several thousand dollars just walk out the door — there really aren’t words that you can put to a situation like that. It's just tough. It's very, very difficult," said small-business owner Derek Friedman, who owns two clothing chains in Colorado and Texas. Four of 10 stores in the Denver area have seen a significant increase in theft since mid-2019, with losses totaling more than $200,000 in less than three years. Before 2019, the average losses were $2,000-$3,000 per month, but after 2019 the average is "about $8,000 a month." Friedman says during the COVID shutdowns he delayed pay increases he didn't take a salary at all.

"I didn't even turn [some claims] into insurance because we would have [been dropped] — and a small business can't afford to operate without insurance," he said.

Peter Panayiotou, the owner of Cellar 53 Wine & Spirits in New York City, showed CNBC surveillance video showing a man grabbing a bottle of liquor and racing out the door. Panayiotou chased him, but he got away. That scene, he said, is playing out now more than ever before. "I’ve been here for 12 years. It was never like this — never," he said.

Seattle's Sneaker City was forced to close. Caroline Cho, whose family had owned the store for three decades, said customers would try on shoes and simply walk out. She tried limiting each customer to trying on one pair at a time, but it wasn't enough. "So many people think you can walk out [with a pair of shoes], and not have to pay for it, and you won't get prosecuted."

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