Increase in liquor thefts leads to a 'challenge' for new solutions

Police offering $250,000 for entrepreneurs able to reduce liquor store thefts

A major liquor retailer is teaming up with the Edmonton Police Foundation to fight liquor store thefts. Alcanna, which operates Liquor Depot, Wine & Beyond, ACE Liquor and Nova Cannabis, among others, will provide $500,000 for the first community "challenge" under the new Community Solutions Accelerator (CSA).

The CSA wants entrepreneurs to combine integrated data, new hardware and artificial intelligence to solve the growing theft problem. Half of the $500,000 will serve as prize money for the winning entry. According to the Edmonton Police Service, officers responded to 9,565 calls for liquor thefts in 2019.

“We are fortunate and grateful to have Alcanna be the first corporate partner to step up and help to problem solve an issue that impacts not only this entire industry, but our cities across the province and nation,” said Ashif Mawji, chair of the Edmonton Police Foundation.

Mawji believes the majority of thefts are committed by organized crime and feed meth addictions. James Burns, Alcanna vice chair and CEO, is tired of staff and customers being threatened on a daily basis. He said there were three thefts at Alcanna stores on Sunday alone, and loss prevention officers helped police make arrests in over 400 incidents in the fall of 2019.

The remaining $250,000 from the grant will be used for administration, commercialization, and marketing of the new solution. Submissions will be shortlisted in April. The ideas will be implemented during a minimum 90-day field trial beginning in mid-May.

Edmonton-based Alcanna sells liquor and cannabis in 270 stores in Alberta, British Columbia, Ontario and Alaska. edmonton.ctvnews.ca

Cannabis store robberies prompt retailers to remove legislated window coverings

“Nobody should be in jeopardy at their work.”

A series of cannabis store robberies in Alberta has led some retailers to tear down window coverings initially erected to satisfy federal legislation. Those visual obstructions were meant to adhere to the Cannabis Act to keep cannabis products and accessories out of the view of minors.

But retailer Nathan Mison said those window coverings compromise the safety of staff by making it easier for robbers to commit their crimes. “We’ve made ourselves a target by making it so someone can come in, lock the door and take all the time they want robbing a store because no one can see in,” said Mison, spokesman for the Edmonton-based Fire and Flower Cannabis chain.

His chain’s six outlets in the city will be reviewed for removing or reducing window obstructions, a practice that’s met no resistance from federal or provincial regulators.

That’s because those retailers are taking pains to ensure merchandise and labelling remains obscured, such as by shifting or covering displays, using transparent window films and other means, said Mison.

Mison said the push for greater physical visibility for cannabis shops will be picked up nationally, partly because Fire and Flower has stores in four provinces and also due to robberies in other provinces. calgaryherald.com
 

CBC Marketplace Investigation
We bought dozens of products from AliExpress, Amazon, eBay, Walmart and Wish. Over half were suspected fakes

"This impacts on organized crime and a lot of the funding goes to terrorism"

To test how prevalent counterfeits are online, Marketplace purchased dozens of well-known products — ranging from electronics to sportswear to cosmetics — from five popular online retailers: AliExpress, Amazon, eBay, Walmart and Wish. Each product listing seemed legitimate, with some prices that compared to retail stores and official-looking advertisements. More than half of the products Marketplace received were suspected or confirmed counterfeits, with knockoffs found on every platform.

Alarming levels of heavy metals
Some of the goods purchased by Marketplace were health and beauty products from multiple brands, including MAC lipstick, Crest Whitestrips, Kylie Cosmetics lip kits, Urban Decay's "Naked" eyeshadow palettes and Biotherm eye cream. The products were then sent to a scientific lab in the Toronto area for heavy metal analysis. Two products — both purchased from AliExpress — contained heavy metal levels exceeding Health Canada's standards for cosmetics.

Profits could be funding organized crime
The potential dangers of counterfeit goods extend well beyond makeup. Reports show that counterfeit toys, drugs, car seats, airbags and electronics have put people at risk, in some cases, even causing death. And those products that don't appear dangerous could still have severe repercussions. Toronto-based lawyer and counterfeit expert David Lipkus notes that fakes are an industry worth hundreds of billions of dollars in North America alone. "This impacts on organized crime and a lot of the funding goes to terrorism," he said.

Weeding out the fakes
In order to verify the legitimacy of the products purchased by Marketplace, we asked the products' official manufacturers to review what was purchased. In cases where there was no response from the manufacturers, three counterfeit products experts were consulted and asked to verify the products' authenticity. A number of companies, including Apple, Fanatics, Adidas, Lego and MAC, confirmed that Marketplace was sold at least one counterfeit product from either AliExpress, Amazon, Ebay and Wish.

99,500 vs. 69 shipments stopped
After Marketplace was easily able to order a number of suspected and confirmed counterfeit products online, we set out to discover what Canada's border agency was doing to stop such shipments. But a request made under the Access to Information Act revealed that between June 2015 and May 2018, Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) have detained just 69 shipments related to counterfeit goods. By contrast, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection made over 99,500 seizures during a similar three-year period.

Canada's counterfeit problem
When Marketplace enlisted industry experts to help point out potentially counterfeit products, they pointed out reasons such as stitching, typos, quality, and serial numbers. Experts suspected fakes on every platform Marketplace purchased from. cbc.ca

Top 10 scams that impacted Canadians in 2019
The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC) is releasing details about the millions of dollars that tens of thousands of Canadians lost in 2019 to fraud. They say 46,465 fraud reports were filed last year, where the victims reported losing over $96,163,328. The agency also ranked the top 10 frauds that have impacted Canadians most.  citynews.ca

Top 10 frauds ranked by number of reports

Top 10 frauds ranked by dollar loss

Why are so many big retail stores closing in Canada? Experts weigh in
Home decor chain Pier 1 is just the latest retailer joining a growing list of businesses closing their shops in Canada.

Other big retailers that are either shuttering stores or going bankrupt include Carlton Cards, Bench and Forever 21. Doug Stephens, founder of consulting agency Retail Prophet, and other analysts say the closures were hardly a surprise.

The “wholesale collapse of the mid-tier of retail” has been happening for the better part of a decade but in recent years there have been up to 20,000 store closures across North America, he said.

Losing Connection with Consumers

Sally Seston, founder of boutique firm Retail Category Consultants, told CTVNews.ca in phone interview, for many of these brands “they’ve lost touch” with their shoppers.

“They don’t understand them anymore. They have no community with them. They’re not meeting their needs,” she said, adding that in many cases, these companies had been struggling for some time, with online shopping “kicking them in the teeth.”

Online Shopping

All of the analysts noted the influence online shopping has had on all companies, particularly bricks-and-mortar stores, as well as consumers’ desires for the convenience of shopping from home.

Declaring Bankruptcy

For struggling companies, filing for bankruptcy can provide some breathing room. Seston and others pointed out that some of these large companies end up choosing to file because it’s a means to shut down stores to make the company more nimble.

Competition from New, More Savvy Companies

Maureen Atkinson, a senior adviser of research insights at J.C. Williams Group, suggested that the worst wave of store closures occurred two years ago and that the number of closures is “actually decreasing.”

Last year, more than 9,300 retail stores closed in the United States, according to Coresight Research. And according to Retail Insider, more than 100 foreign retailers have entered the Canadian market in the last three years alone, adding to the competitive pressure. ctvnews.ca

Lots of losers as Canadian retailers strive to survive in 2020
News that Pier 1 is closing its stores in Canada is the latest sad chapter in the continuing collapse of brick-and-mortar establishments. The U.S. company has filed for bankruptcy but will maintain an online presence and keep some stores open south of the border.

There’s a long list of other stores being shuttered.

The seemingly unassailable Macy’s will close about 125 stores, most of them in American malls. The Gap has closed half its stores in North America.

Papyrus and Carlton Cards stores are going out of business here. Forever 21 closed 44 Canadian stores last fall. Bose is going to close all 119 of its stores worldwide.

What does it all mean?

Over the last three years, many major retailers — Sears, Toys ‘R’ Us, RadioShack, Nine West, Payless Shoes, Claire’s, Diesel, J.C. Penney, Gymboree, American Apparel etc. — have quietly folded their tents.

According to Forbes, 2020 will be as bad as 2019, with about 9,000 stores in North America closing; even high-end retailers such as Barneys are not exempt. torontosun.com

Behind CN, CP's quiet deal to skirt railway blockades and keep Canada's vital goods moving
Since last week, Canada's two largest railways — CN and Canadian Pacific — have been quietly sharing their rail lines to transport essential supplies to communities in need, according to multiple government, CN and industry sources. cbc.ca

These are the retailers closing in Canada or facing bankruptcy in 2020

Retail stores like Pier 1 'not really anything to anyone,' analyst says

Hobo Cannabis Company Announces Ontario Expansion Plan, Bringing Market Share to 15 Locations

Chinese Variety Retailer YOYOSO to Enter Canada with Plans for Multiple Storefronts
 

(Update) SIU clears Ottawa police officers in shopping mall shooting death of Indigenous man
Ontario's police watchdog says no charges are warranted in the January 2019 death of an Indigenous man shot and killed by two Ottawa Police Service constables. Greg Ritchie, 30, was fatally shot on the morning of Jan. 31, 2019, in the parking lot of the Elmvale Acres Shopping Mall.

Police were investigating what they called a "suspicious incident" in the area when they came across Ritchie, a member of the Saugeen First Nation near Owen Sound, Ont. Audio from Broadcastify, an online service that provides access to emergency dispatch calls, indicated a man dressed in black and wearing a baseball hat with the word "Dope" on it had been seen walking into the mall holding a knife in his hand.

After an encounter with the two police officers — later identified as constables Thanh Tran and Daniel Vincelette — Ritchie was shot three times and was pronounced dead in hospital. His family later told CBC News he'd struggled with mental illness from a young age and was heading to a pharmacy to pick up medication when the altercation happened.

At least 9 shots fired - 'Reasonably necessary force' cbc.ca

Saskatoon, SK: Loss prevention officer stabbed while trying to apprehend shoplifting suspect
A loss prevention officer in Saskatoon was stabbed in the arm while trying to apprehend two shoplifting suspects. According to Saskatoon police in a news release, officers arrested two women who were shoplifting at a business. Police said the loss prevention officer initially tried to apprehend the women, when one of the suspects stabbed in him the arm. Police said the officer’s injury was minor. A 58-year-old woman was charged with robbery with a weapon and two counts of failing to comply with a court order. She also had warrants for her arrest in Regina. thestarphoenix.com

Regina, SK: Police arrest alleged Peeping Tom after camera found in
Tim Horton's restroom
A 42-year-old man is facing two counts of voyeurism after Regina police discovered and seized a camera from a Tim Horton's bathroom on on Jan. 20. Police say they were called to the 5800 block of Rochedale Boulevard that day after an electronic device had been discovered in the women's washroom. An employee of the Tim Horton's on that block confirmed that was where the incidents happened. "The management believed the device was a camera, which appeared to have been placed to capture images of persons using the toilet," a news release from the Regina Police Service reads. cbc.ca

Winnipeg, MB: Off-duty police officer assaulted after he followed liquor theft suspects
An off-duty Winnipeg police officer was assaulted when he followed people after he witnessed a liquor store theft in St. Vital on Sunday. The officer saw a number of people take liquor from the St. Vital Square Liquor Mart on Dakota Street shortly after 5 p.m. The officer called police for help, then followed them to Sterling Avenue and St. Anne's Road, where he was assaulted. At about 7:45 p.m., police saw a second man suspected in the robbery and assault and took him into custody near William Avenue and Harriet Street. Both men were charged and taken to jail. cbc.ca

Campbell River, BC: Woman charged in robbery spree; hit c-store, gas station, bank

Brampton man charged in connection with illegal alcohol store in Markham

Berlin Court Sends Three Suspects to Prison for Theft of Gold Canadian Coin Worth $4M

 

Robberies & Burglaries