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- The average rate of return for total retail has remained almost flat at 16.5% compared to 16.6% in 2021.
- For every $1 billion in sales, the average retailer incurs $165 million in merchandise returns.
- For every $100 in returned merchandise accepted, retailers lose $10.40 to return fraud.
- In terms of holiday sales, retailers can expect an average of 17.9% of merchandise returned, equating to nearly $171 billion.
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NEUHAUSEN, Switzerland—December 19, 2022—Sensormatic Solutions, the leading global retail solutions portfolio of Johnson Controls, today released shopper traffic data for U.S. brick-and-mortar retail stores and shopping centers from Super Saturday (December 17). These insights are powered by retail traffic data analytics within Sensormatic Solutions’ intelligent operating platform, Sensormatic IQ. Sensormatic Solutions found that shopper traffic on Super Saturday was up 0.2% compared to 2021. Findings indicate that, compared to the previous Saturdays in the month (Dec. 3 and 10), Super Saturday shopper visits increased by 36% and 17%, respectively. The company recently released its Black Friday Weekend report which showed that store traffic on Black Friday increased 3.1% compared to 2021, and Thanksgiving Day saw an uptick from 2021’s numbers, with a 17.2% increase. For more information on the 2022 holiday season, read Sensormatic Solutions:
Legislative Update on INFORM Act
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US: 102M Cases - 1.1M Dead - 99M Recovered
Pa. Hospitals Contending With Worst Flu Season and COVIDOverall, several central Pennsylvania hospitals said they’re not as stressed as they were a year ago. Still, they noted ongoing staffing shortages and also stressed the urgent care centers and emergency rooms are very busy.Hospitals around the United States are feeling pressure from multiple fronts: RSV cases among children have been up for months, overloading some pediatric units. The nation, including Pennsylvania, is in the midst of its worst flu season in years. Most recently, COVID-19 cases have begun to climb. Flu cases in Pennsylvania skyrocketed
in late November and early December
Mayor Eric Adams urges New Yorkers to mask up amid surge in COVID, flu and RSVMayor Eric Adams is urging New Yorkers to mask up indoors amid a spike in coronavirus, flu and respiratory syncytial infection cases. “With the holiday season in full swing and cases of COVID-19, flu, and RSV rising, we are asking New Yorkers to protect themselves and their loved ones once again. The mayor’s new mask-up message was reinforced by city health officials monitoring increases in cases of COVID, flu and RSV. The push also comes as Hochul and the state Health Department reported 94 New Yorkers around the state died from COVID-19 over a three day reporting period — from Saturday through Monday. That’s more than 30 a day, a high number for a post-pandemic period. Over the past month, the city’s seven-day average of confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19 increased, as did cases of RSV, city health officials said. Data shows flu cases in the city this year are already higher than they were during the peak of the last four flu seasons. nypost.com
Walgreens, CVS, Krpoger limit sales of children's medications amid 'tripledemic'Walgreens attributed the cap to demand and supplier challenges. CVS and Walgreens are limiting how many children’s pain relief medications people can buy at once amid a winter “tripledemic” of respiratory viruses, the companies said Monday. “Due to increased demand and various supplier challenges, over-the-counter pediatric fever reducing products are seeing constraint across the country,” Walgreens said. nbcnews.com The restrictions come as the nation experiences a surge in cases of flu, COVID-19, and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), a cold-like illness. “Especially for RSV and flu, these levels are higher than we generally see this time of year,” said Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said in a press conference this month.
“Operationally,
factories are a mess” in China - Meaning
more supply chain issues in 2023
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News
RICHMOND, Va. – Six individuals were sentenced recently to approximately 31 combined years in prison for taking part in a conspiracy to defraud several retail financing providers through various schemes involving the use of the names and other personal identifying information of over 1,000 identity theft victims. Between April 2017 and January 2022, Wael Jibawi, 28, of Palos Heights, Illinois- 132 months prison; Mohammad Jibawi, 27, of Tinley Park, Illinois- 87 months prison; Mahmoud Aljibawi, 40, of Oak Forest, Illinois - 58 months prison; Alaelddin Aljibawi, 37, of Orland Park, Illinois - 48 months prison; Jamel Eljebawe, 48, of Tinley Park, Illinois - 31 months prison; and Yanal Khrisat, 28, of Burbank, Illinois - 21 months prison, conspired to defraud at least six retail financing providers of at least $2.8 million. During that period, the defendants opened and maintained several retail furniture stores in and around the Chicago area, which they used to establish merchant relationships with the targeted financing providers. These relationships enabled defendants to submit financing applications in the names of customers. Instead, the defendants submitted applications in the names of identity theft victims then used the approved accounts to charge the financing providers for purchases that did not actually occur. Over 1,000 identity theft victims have been identified to-date. Additionally, in February 2018, several of the defendants used social engineering to gain access to merchant accounts belonging to other businesses and change the bank accounts designated to receive payments owed to those businesses by one retail financing provider. The defendants then submitted the affected businesses’ customer accounts for funding, causing the financing provider to deposit money that the defendants were not actually owed into accounts that they had opened and controlled. justice.gov
Nike's 2018 Sexual Harassment 'Boys Club' Revealed in Unsealed Court Records
Update: Nike employees described 'sloppy drunk' men, witnessing oral sex, and requests to 'dress sexier' at work in newly unsealed surveys
In early 2018, female Nike employees were fed up with the company's response to claims of sexual harassment and gender discrimination, so they anonymously surveyed each other about their experiences at the company. In handwritten and typed surveys, they alleged abhorrent sexual behavior combined with corporate bullying, fear of retaliation, and a lack of faith in Nike's willingness to do anything about it. Last month, 10 of the surveys, known as the Starfish surveys, were included in more than 5,000 pages of records unsealed in an ongoing gender-discrimination lawsuit against Nike. The documents were made public after a legal challenge from Insider, The Oregonian, and the Portland Business Journal. The publications argued for the public interest in the records, which include deposition testimony, executive emails, drafts of speeches, and fiery back-and-forth messages between lawyers in the high-stakes case. The documents give the most detailed look yet at the nature and details of the allegations that rocked the sportswear giant, as well as its efforts to become a more inclusive company. But the documents also leave critical questions unanswered, including how deeply the company investigated complaints and which employees were accused of inappropriate behavior. The surveys have some remaining redactions, including the names of respondents and those accused of misbehavior. Insider's reporting on the documents also raises the question of whether Nike complied with a court order to provide all of the employee surveys in discovery. Nike's response to 2018 questions from The New York Times, which reported on Nike's culture, is included in the new records. In that response, Nike attributed inappropriate behavior at the company to an "insular group of high-level managers, in pockets of the organization," who "protected each other and looked the other way." Plaintiffs in the lawsuit, who recently lost a bid to convert the case to a class action (they plan to appeal), maintain the documents demonstrate that problems at Nike were systemic and not limited to a handful of executives. Nike spokeswoman said the company does not comment on active litigation. businessinsider.com
Talk About Miss-Information - There's Two Sides to Every QuarterStarbucks workers walked out at more than 100 stores this weekend: How should Starbucks respond?The Starbucks union is coordinating strikes across the country, with workers demanding union contracts with improved wages and no more union busting Shortly after the one-year anniversary of the first Starbucks union election, workers at 100+ unionized cafes, 1,000 workers, around the country organized a strike that lasted for three days this past weekend. Dubbing their efforts a #DoubleDownStrike, and asking potential Starbucks customers to not cross the picket lines. The workers were protesting Starbucks shutting down stores allegedly in response to union activity (though Starbucks has repeatedly denied the association and has mostly cited that these were poor-performing stores or were closed for safety reasons). The strike was also coordinated in tandem with the #NoContractNoGiftCard campaign organized by SBWorkers United where employees have tried to spread the word on social media to discourage people from buying Starbucks gift cards as gifts this holiday season until Starbucks agrees to create union contracts with organized stores. Although Starbucks has not yet negotiated union contracts with any of the stores that have voted to unionize, the movement has inspired change at other companies. On Dec. 16, for example, workers at Intelligentisa Coffee ratified a contract with raises, paid meal breaks, and fairer scheduling, just four months after the café voted to unionize. Starbucks workers are still waiting on their contract, however. Starbucks, however, has denied both union busting and avoiding contract negotiations, telling Nation's Restaurant News that managers are informed and trained to not discipline any worker for "engaging in lawful union activity." Starbucks told Nation's Restaurant News that the company will have participated in 75 single-store bargaining sessions and "we continue to engage meaningfully and directly with the union." nrn.com
LAPD has compliance issues; other departments move ahead with facial recognitionLocal police in the United States continue to update and sign new biometric surveillance contracts despite instances of vocal opposition. And a chief concern that privacy advocates have about the trend, that departments will not honor compliance agreements, does, in fact, occur. An inspector general of the Los Angeles Police Department says that the sprawling force mostly complies with a use policy it agreed to last year covering facial recognition. But, according to the inspector general, that is not true when it comes to verifying or even analyzing system results. Reporting this week on the inspector general’s findings, the Times says there is “no clear process for documenting either an investigation’s results or corroborating evidence that confirms” a match. In January 2021, the Commission approved its current facial recognition policy: Among other things, the policy established new measures for tracking the Police Department’s use of the county system. It limited use of the sheriff’s system to cases where there is an imminent threat to life, or in which investigators are trying to solve a crime or to identify someone who is incapacitated or at risk. The policy also explicitly states that any match determined by the software can only be used as a lead by officers but does not constitute probable cause for an arrest and cannot serve as the sole basis for criminal charges. latimes.com,
EHS Today: Only 3 Retailers Make it Onto Most Dangerous Companies ListThe 12 Most Dangerous Companies of 2022National COSH is back with an all-new list of companies for its annual compilation of the Dirty Dozen After shelving its annual compilation of the country's "Dirty Dozen" employers last year during the pandemic, the National Council for Occupational Safety and Health (National COSH) is back with an all-new list of companies who, according to National COSH, "put workers, families and communities at risk." Actually, the list isn't quite all-new, as Amazon has now appeared on it three times. "The Dirty Dozen are companies that needlessly expose workers to preventable hazards, leading to preventable illnesses, injuries and fatalities," explains Jessica Martinez, co-executive director of National COSH. 1. Amazon: Having previously been so designated in 2019 and 2020. Two Amazon warehouse workers died on the job in November 2021 at a Bessemer, Alabama, warehouse, and six workers have died there overall since the warehouse opened in 2020. 4. Dollar General: One of the nation's fastest-growing retailers (and a frequent target for unionization efforts), made the list largely due to the $3.6 million in OSHA fines and citations the company has received over the past five years for safety violations. 12. Starbucks: Union organizing efforts are intensely focusing on Starbucks. The NLRB has been filing worker complaints that the coffee retailer has been mistreating and firing workers involved in the organizing campaigns. ehstoday.com
DG Makes OSHA’s Severe Violator Enforcement Program$15 million in fines and counting – Dollar General continues to flaunt workplace safetyBlocked emergency exit, electrical panel yields $290K in penalties; over $15M since 2017 Risky Business: Dollar General continues to expose employees to workplace dangers with fire, electrical hazards found, this time in Thomasville, GeorgiaTHOMASVILLE, GA – Federal workplace safety and health inspectors continue to find workplace hazards, despite levies of more than $15 million in fines since 2017, at Dollar General Corp. and Dolgencorp LLC facilities exposing their workers to unsafe conditions, this time at a Thomasville, Georgia, retail store. On June 14, 2022, inspectors with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration found the Thomasville store had merchandise blocking an electrical panel and the store’s only emergency exit door in the area. OSHA issued citations for two repeat violations with $290,054 in proposed penalties. Violations issued as the result of these inspections qualified Dollar General for inclusion in OSHA’s Severe Violator Enforcement Program. OSHA inspections at 18 stores since February 2022 in Alabama, Florida and Georgia have found dozens of similar violations that present serious risks for employees and others in an emergency, as well as the potential to be struck by unsafely stacked boxes of merchandise in storerooms and elsewhere. Since 2017, OSHA has cited Dollar General Corp. and Dolgencorp for numerous willful, repeat and serious workplace safety violations related to unsafe conditions in more than 180 inspections nationwide. “Dollar General has a long history of disregarding safety measures that could compromise the well-being of the people who work there, and that has to change,” said OSHA Regional Administrator Kurt Petermeyer in Atlanta. “The violations cited in these investigations are preventable, and OSHA will make every effort to hold Dollar General accountable for their failures.” Business Continuity Teams Focus on Recovery - With Resilience Becoming a Critical PriorityData Reflects Nation’s Need for Disaster Recovery ShiftA new report shows that 90 percent of U.S. counties have experienced a climate-related federal disaster declaration and suggests that a paradigm shift from recovery to resilience is critical.Many emergency managers have long since recognized that as the
nation continues to respond to disaster after disaster, most of them climate
related, it’s past time to look at managing disasters from the standpoint of
overall resilience — and from a national level — instead of pouring money into
recovery efforts. The research looked at all 50 states during the 10-year period and collected data on federal disaster declarations — what kind of hazards, how much federal assistance was granted, and the social, environmental and energy-related impacts that were caused by the original disaster. The hope is that jurisdictions and agencies will use the report to better understand the effects of climate-related disasters and in aggregate begin to look at ways to enhance resiliency by investing in preventative measures rather than jumping into recovery mode after the fact every time. govtech.com Business Continuity versus Business ResilienceWith proper resilience and continuity management systems in place, organizations can whether most business disruptions Business continuity and business resilience are more important than ever before. But what’s the difference? Here’s how they compare. securityinfowatch.com Here's what could stop Kroger's takeover of Albertson'sAntitrust experts and analysts say Kroger's proposed $25 billion acquisition of rival Albertsons may wind up getting decided in court as regulators and government officials indicate closer scrutiny of the deal. A top regulator was already worried about supermarket deals One of America's top regulators has criticized past supermarket mergers. Before being tapped as FTC chair, Lina Khan authored an academic report that labeled the 2015 Albertsons takeover of Safeway “a spectacular failure” from an antitrust perspective. From the beginning, analysts and other antitrust experts expressed concern the deal would be challenged by regulators. “We continue to view regulatory approval as a potential roadblock for a Kroger-Albertsons merger,” Parikh wrote. Besides regulators, lawmakers have been skeptical. usatoday.com
NRF: How weather affects shopping and retail
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Holiday Spam, Phishing Campaigns Challenge RetailersRevived levels of holiday spending have caught the eye of threat actors who exploit consumer behaviors and prey on the surge of online payments and digital activities during the holidays. As the holiday season barrels to a conclusion, malicious actors are attempting to take advantage of harried consumers by ramping up the volume of spam and phishing attacks in the form of unsolicited emails and email-based threats — and businesses stand to suffer. A report from Bitdefender Antispam Lab found the volume of Christmas-themed spam has increased consistently since Nov. 27, with spikes in unsolicited correspondence observed between Dec. 6 and Dec. 9. Scammers are employing the tried-and-true tactics of bogus surveys, online holiday dating opportunities, adult content offers, and discount shopping for designer goods. Alina Bizga, security analyst at Bitdefender, explains that threat actors are savvy when it comes to targeting. The holiday season tends to bring a host of socially engineered promotional campaigns aimed at fooling account holders to harvest their credentials and perform other nefarious activities. Keeping Alert Across the OrganizationDeBolt says retail organizations need to be aware of the latest spam and phishing campaigns targeting their customers.Armed with this information, organizations can employ directed awareness campaigns warning customers of potential threats and how to avoid them. He notes that security and fraud teams can take mitigating measures by adjusting controls within the environment to defend against account takeover (ATO) attacks. "The same malware spam campaigns that target consumers can
be used to target employees within organizations as well," he adds. In the fight against spam and holiday season phishing, retailers need to give their customers proper information and channels through which they can report suspicious correspondence sent in their name. Additional remedial efforts should include notifying law enforcement and legal bodies that can assist with legal actions and advise against malicious actors," she says. The Perils of Losing Customer Trust "When a victim realizes they have been duped, it can cause them to lose trust in the brand, even though they of course had nothing to do with the actual scam," Retailers should deploy a strong brand protection service that checks for brand impersonation instances. darkreading.com
Cybersecurity Pro's In High Demand - 770,000- Open JobsSecurity Skills Command Premiums in Tight MarketRecession fears notwithstanding, cybersecurity skills — both credentialed and noncredentialed — continue to attract higher pay and more job security. Company executives continue to voice concerns that a recession is likely in 2023, but cybersecurity professionals — along with IT workers and developers with cybersecurity knowledge — appear well-positioned to weather an economic downturn, according to technology-job experts. Information security certifications continue to command significantly above-average pay premiums, according to an analysis of more than 4,000 employers in the US and Canada. Cybersecurity-related skills — such as AWS Certified Security, GIAC Certified Incident Handler, and Okta Certified Developer — make up more than half of the "winner" skills, those that have attracted the most pay and have gained the most in market value. Noncertified security skills — such as cryptography, DevSecOps, and risk analytics — also attract high premiums, says Bill Reynolds, research director at Foote Partners. The majority of companies (60%) still planned to increase the head count of their IT departments as of July 2022, according to the IT Spending and Staffing Benchmarks 2022/2023 report published by Computer Economics. Cybersecurity Skills Fetch a PremiumOverall, cybersecurity workers remain in demand, with 770,000 positions currently unfilled, compared with a cybersecurity workforce of 1.1 million — a 69% shortfall in workers, according to data from the CyberSeek project. darkreading.com Cybersecurity is a Boom Industry - It's all about Investigating the Bad GuysHey Security & LP/AP Pros Looking to Advance Your Career - Read HereTop 12 online cybersecurity courses for 2023Our panel of experts picked the best free and paid online cybersecurity courses for working professionals looking to advance their careers and for newbies breaking into the field.With so much online courseware on cybersecurity today, it can be a daunting task to narrow the top choices. To create this list of cybersecurity courses online, we talked to leading security professionals about what they recommend to newbies, computer science students, businesspeople and security pros looking to advance their careers. Federal agencies, such as the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and the National Security Agency (NSA), are great sources of free security information. And those new to the field should check out the National Cyber Security Alliance. For paid courses, we started with some of the favorites among hackers and security researchers and refer readers to MIT cyber training courses, as well as online courses at the University of Maryland Global Campus (UMGC), Western Governors University (WGU), Cybrary and NYU. As a bonus, we also linked to the NSA's Centers of Academic Excellence (CAE) courses. While not exclusively online, people seriously pursuing careers in security need to be aware of these courses and the fact that many programs offer online options in the wake of COVID-19. Best of the free cybersecurity courses online1. TryHackMe features content for people new to cybersecurity2. Hack The Box is geared toward offensive security and offers a live training area for hackers to practice their skills without harming systems in production.3. Bugcrowd University is an excellent community resource from one of the leaders in the bug bounty field for those who want to level up their bug bounty skills. techtarget.com
Cybersecurity, Incident Response Trends that will Change 2023Microsoft Vulnerability Upgraded to Critical Due to RCE RiskMicrosoft upgraded a vulnerability first discovered in September to "critical" after IBM Security researchers discovered attackers could exploit the flaw to remotely execute code. Inside the Fight to Clean Up the Crypto Underworld
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Data security can be tricky business, but simple backups are an easy way to stay prepared. To keep your files safe and sound - use the cloud! Storing important documents in a virtual space ensures their accessibility no matter what surprise lies around the corner. With OneDrive for PCs or iCloud if you're on Macs, you have access to secure virtual storage that won't let any surprise mishaps endanger your important documents. There are also other services available like Dropbox, which isn’t tied to one operating system, so feel free to explore which best fits with your workflow. |
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eBay's First brand campaign in three yearseBay puts authenticity at centre of new brand campaignOnline marketplace eBay is trying to shake off its association with counterfeit products with a new ad campaign that points to its recent efforts to guarantee authenticity of some product categories sold on its platform. The Everyone Deserves Real campaign highlights the work of eBay's authenticators, claiming they are "making sure you never get f*ked over again." "The details, inspected. The fakes, rejected," continues the 30-second ad, which according to an Ad Age article is aimed at Gen Z customers who were not even born when eBay started operating in 1995. The 35- to 64-year-old age bracket is reported to make up almost two-thirds (61 per cent) of eBay's audience. "Trust is the heartbeat of eBay, and 'Everyone Deserves Real' serves as both a rallying cry and a promise to our community of buyers and sellers," commented Emily O'Hara, eBay’s head of brand. "With this campaign, we're underscoring how confidence on the marketplace anchors our business." The reality of course is that eBay's authentication service is limited to a few selected product categories – so far sneakers, high-end watches, luxury bags, trading cards and fine jewelry – does not apply to the bulk of goods sold through the platform. When it extended the programme to include fine jewelry in June, eBay said it had authenticated more than two million items across the five categories since the service was first launched in 2020, and in the next two years, it is expected to surpass five million items. securityindustry.com European Union pries open Amazon Prime for marketplace sellersThe European Union on Tuesday announced new rules restricting Amazon’s use of its marketplace sellers’ data; enhancing their access to Amazon’s “buy box;” and easing sellers’ and shippers’ participation in Prime. They’re based on commitments the e-retailer offered in July that were made stricter after market testing and public comment conducted through Sept. 9, the E.U. said. Amazon must comply within months, by June 2023, and after that faces fines of up to 10% of its annual revenue or a periodic penalty of 5% per day of its daily revenue for every day of non-compliance. An independent trustee will monitor implementation and compliance, according to an E.U. press release. retaildive.com
60% of consumers abandon purchases due to poor website user experience, costing e-commerce companies billions
Online return rates dropped in 2022, according to NRF studyFor the first time since online data has been captured as part of the survey in 2019, online return rates are consistent with the overall rate of return, the report said. Online return rates dropped to 16.5% in 2022 from 20.8% in 2021.Key takeaways:Fraud and returnsFor every $100 in returned merchandise accepted, retailers lose $10.40 to return fraud. Of the approximately $212 billion in returned online purchases, $22.8 billion (10.7%) will be deemed fraudulent, the report said. Return fraud takes many forms, including the return of items after a single use (typically high-priced apparel.) That’s roughly in line with the expected fraud rates from physical store purchases. Of the more than $3.66 trillion in expected in-store sales, $603 billion will be returned, the report said. Approximately $62.1 billion of those returns, or 10.3%, are expected to be fraudulent. The report is based on a survey of 70 retailers conducted by NRF and online fraud prevention vendor Appriss Retail from Sept. 19-Oct. 14. nrf.com |
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DOJ: Final Defendant Sentenced To 12 Years In Prison For Leading Nationwide Wire Fraud Conspiracy Targeting WalmartGRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN — U.S. Attorney Mark Totten announced today that the last of seven defendants was sentenced for a retail theft and wire fraud scheme they executed at hundreds of Walmart stores in 38 states. U.S. District Judge Robert J. Jonker sentenced the leader of the conspiracy, Adarius Ferguson, of Benton Harbor, to 144 months in prison. “This sentence marks the end of rampant crime sprees by six men who stole from and conducted fraudulent returns at over 300 Walmart stores across the nation,” said U.S. Attorney Mark Totten. The seven men sentenced as part of this scheme are:
As part of the conspiracy, the codefendants stole high-priced electronics, such as internet routers, Apple products, and iRobot vacuums, from Walmart stores. They also purchased high-priced electronic goods matching those that were stolen. Using a variety of means, they altered the Walmart receipts from purchased goods and used them to conduct returns of both the stolen goods and the purchased goods, effectively getting double the return value for each item they purchased as part of the scheme. The group stole over $275,000 in Walmart electronics and conducted fraudulent returns in excess of $400,000. “This crime not only affected a major retailer, it affected the lives of hundreds of Walmart employees. Some store associates had Walmart keys stolen from their hands as they opened electronic cases for the defendants. Others had their vests, name tags, and store radios stolen. One associate required emergency medical treatment after being assaulted during a theft. And countless Walmart employees were pressured by Adarius Ferguson while he made fraudulent returns.” justice.gov
DOJ: Theft of 116 Firearms from Stores in Youngsville & Benton, Louisiana Results in Sentence of 22+ Years in Federal Prison for Pineville ManLAFAYETTE, La. – Salih Reed, 27, of Pineville, Louisiana, has been sentenced by United States District Judge Dee D. Drell for the burglary of two firearms stores in Benton and Youngsville, Louisiana. Salih Reed was sentenced to 270 months (22 years, 6 months) in prison, followed by 6 years of supervised release. Reed was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $38,148.07. Reed pleaded guilty on August 4, 2022 to two counts of theft of firearms from a federal firearms licensee. The charges in this case stem from two thefts from firearms stores in Louisiana. On or about September 1, 2019, Reed stole 54 firearms from the premises of Sentry Defense located in Youngsville. Again, on November 14, 2021, Reed and Jessica Moore stole 62 firearms from the premises of Guns-N-Ammo, a licensed firearms dealer located in Benton, Louisiana. Jessica Moore, 24, of Alexandria, was involved in the robbery of the Guns-N-Ammo store in Benton, Louisiana and pleaded guilty on August 24, 2022 to one count of theft of firearms from a federal firearms licensee. Judge Drell sentenced Moore to time served, which began at the time of her arrest in February 2021, followed by 2 years of supervised release. She was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $2,500. justice.gov Lowe’s combats organized retail crime with blockchain, RFID.Lowe’s Cos. Inc. is leveraging cutting-edge technology in a new initiative to curb store shrink called “Project Unlock.” Project Unlock combines low-cost RFID chips and Internet of Things (IoT) sensors to activate power tools at the point of purchase while also creating a secure, publicly accessible, and anonymized record of legitimate purchases. by blockchain. To support Project Unlock, Lowe’s has built a blockchain record that verifies and tracks all legitimate purchases. As a result, Lowe’s intends to make it easy for customers to see if they’re purchasing stolen goods, or for law enforcement to crack down on organized crime rings that conduct professional shoplifting operations. Under Project Unlock, a unique NFT is created for each physical product. Lowe’s is launching the proof of concept with power tools, but the retailer says it sees potential to use this blockchain- and RFID-based security system for other items in its stores, and ultimately across the entire retail ecosystem. According to Lowe’s, it is the first retailer in the home improvement vertical to develop an anti-theft solution using blockchain and RFID technology. Lowe’s provides more information on Project Unlock and how it works in a short video here. chainstoreage.com Franklin, TN: Watch Tenn. Police Officers Foil Smash-and-Grab Robbery in Progress.Fast-responding Tennessee police officers were able to stop a robbery in progress at a retail store over the weekend and possibly foil a multi-state crime spree thanks to an alert store clerk. The incident happened just before 8 p.m. Saturday at a shopping center in Cool Springs, according to the Franklin Police Department. Officers assigned to the department's Operation Not In Our Mall were contacted by an employee at Jared Jewelers who had seen a suspect entered the store in a hoodie, surgical mask, hat, and sunglasses despite it being dark out. Undercover officers observed and followed the suspect leaving the area in a van with several others inside. Eventually, the van pulled into the fire lane in front of JCPenney at the CoolSprings Galleria, and four masked suspects jumped out and into the store. Officers quickly followed, arresting the getaway driver as he waited outside. Inside the store, which was still open, the other suspects were using sledgehammers to smash glass cases and steal diamond jewelry. One suspect pepper-sprayed an employee. Police confronted the suspects, and one suspect struggled with an officer while trying to grab the officer's gun. Three of the suspects fled, and officers flooded the area, as K-9 officers from nearby agencies were called in to help Two of the suspects were found and arrested in nearby parking lots. A third suspect is still on the loose as detectives try to identify the individual. Investigators are working with other agencies to determine if the suspects arrested are responsible for other incidents, including a similar robbery at Macy's in CoolSprings Galleria on Nov. 4. Over the past several weeks, there have been at least five similar incidents across Tennessee and Arkansas, resulting in a combined loss of more than $1.5 million. officer.com Western PA: Florida man charged in retail theft ring that hit Hempfield Ross store.An undercover state trooper helped crack an organized retail theft operation that officials said has been targeting Ross Dress for Less stores in 10 states, including one in Hempfield, according to court papers. On Saturday, a Florida man police believe is involved in the ring was arrested. Yan R. Duquesne Martinez, 30, of West Palm Beach is being held without bail on charges of corrupt organizations, theft, organized retail theft and related offenses. Troopers said in court papers that loss prevention at Ross have been tracking the group since July 2020. Locally, they said, Duquesne Martinez and an unknown associate took merchandise from stores in Altoona, Johnstown, Homestead and Fox Chapel on Aug. 16, in addition to the Hempfield location. The boxes, destined for the address where Duquesne Martinez lives, were detained at a shipping facility in New Stanton. Police said they contained $11,500 worth of merchandise stolen from the Ross stores in the region, including shoes, clothing, cologne and perfume. Troopers said the suspect and co-conspirators use tools to remove security devices from the merchandise and then conceal it inside other items to remove it from the store. It was unclear if charges have been filed in any other state against Duquesne Martinez. The Westmoreland County case appears to be the only charges filed against him in Pennsylvania. triblive.com Texarkana, AR: 5 arrested for stealing $6K worth of items from Ulta Beauty.Five women are facing charges after police say they stole more than $6,000 worth of merchandise from an Ulta Beauty store and then led police on a high-speed chase. According to the Texarkana Arkansas Police Department, officers were called about a robbery at the store on Wednesday evening. Police said the suspects sped away in a vehicle as officers approached the scene. Officers followed the car, which was clocked at traveling 133 mph. The suspects then began throwing the stolen merchandise out of the car’s windows, police said. Police said the vehicle was finally stopped, and all five women inside the car were arrested. All five women are from Shreveport, Louisiana, which is about 70 miles south of the Ulta Beauty store in Texarkana, Arkansas. wsaz.com Surrey, BC, Canada: Over $6000 in stolen goods recovered by during two-day sting targeting retail theft.A two-day sting targeting retail theft at two of Surrey’s largest shopping centres during the first week of December has resulted in a number of arrests and the recovery of more than $6000 dollars worth of stolen goods. The operation was carried out by the Surrey RCMP Community Response Unit and Mobile Street Enforcement Team, with assistance from Metro Vancouver Transit Police, Loss Prevention Officers from retail businesses, and security staff. Twenty-eight people were arrested, and police are recommending 19 criminal charges which have been forwarded to the BC Prosecution Service for consideration. One person was also arrested for an outstanding warrant, and another was taken into custody for breaching court-ordered conditions. The stolen merchandise ranged in value from a few dollars to thousands of dollars in brand name sports attire. A stolen vehicle was also recovered during the sting. bc-cb.rcmp-grc.gc.ca San Bernardino, CA: Several suspects are arrested in ORC Operation at The Home Depot.Several suspects were arrested for allegedly stealing items from a store in San Bernardino, according to the San Bernardino Police Department. The Southern District Resource Team conducted an operation at the Home Depot on Hospitality Lane to combat a recent increase in retail theft, police said in a Facebook post on Dec. 19. Prior to the operation, the team met with corporate loss prevention and determined the days and times retail theft peaked. The operation consisted of undercover units and uniformed personnel who were in communication with loss prevention inside the store. fontanaheraldnews.com Trumbull County, OH: Warren police chase, catch Newton Falls man suspected of stealing $6300 in power tools(wfmj.com) |
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Shootings & Deaths
Kansas City, MO: Shots fired at Ward Parkway Center, no injuries reported.The Kansas City, Missouri, Police Department is investigating after shots were fired at Ward Parkway Center on Tuesday evening. There were no reports of injuries, according to the KCPD. Ward Parkway Center is located at 8600 Ward Parkway. That’s south of W. 85th Street, and between State Line Road and Ward Parkway. The shopping area goes as far south as W. 89th Street. Police went to the center at 6:45 p.m. after receiving multiple 911 calls regarding gunshots. “Due to the magnitude of the situation, we called for a citywide assist and several area law enforcement agencies quickly responded to assist us,” said Officer Donna Drake, the KCPD’s public information officer. Officers proceeded to enter businesses and search for any victims or suspects. As of this writing, officers have cleared all the businesses and did not find anyone who was injured. The businesses will stay closed for the rest of the night. Ward Parkway Center said they will reopen Wednesday. kctv5.com Charlotte, NC: ‘We’re not going to let this guy die’: Four soldiers run towards danger during NC Mall shooting.Outside Northlake Mall, there were plenty of emergency service vehicles on Thursday afternoon when shots were fired on the upper level. People working in the mall say they knew something was wrong way before the shots because people were arguing. “Soon as we ran up the stairs, we kind of jumped in and tried to separate the people that were fighting,” said Rickey Dixon, a sergeant first class with the North Carolina Army National Guard. Dixon and three others were working in the Army National Guard recruiting office just below Prime Jewelers, where the fight occurred. The men tried to break it up, and a man pulled a gun and started shooting. “Immediately after I heard the shots, I turned around and looked for my partner; I saw him getting up,” added Dixon. “He was alive and safe. And that’s when we saw the victim lying on the ground bleeding.” Dixon called for others to get supplies and made a chest seal out of a plastic bag. “Hey, look, we’re not going to let this guy die on us,” he said. The seal keeps air from entering the wound to prevent further internal damage. Another man entered the jewelry store and placed a tourniquet on an innocent bystander shot. Rickey Dixon served in Baghdad from 2008 to 2010. He has a Combat Infantry badge on his uniform, meaning he saw combat and used the medical skills from that training. “In the course of being trained to be an infantryman, we also have to learn to save our buddies,” says Dixon. “Because if they are injured, we have to immediately perform buddy aid.” The victims were rushed to the hospital for treatment. CMPD arrested Xavior Alexander and charged him with attempted murder and assault. Jadah Van Williams was charged with assault. A 17-year-old was charged with assault.
Kokomo, IN: Suspect arrested after Armed Robbery inside Markland Mall.Police have a man in custody after they say he robbed a business inside the Markland Mall at gunpoint Monday. The Kokomo Police Department said the robbery happened at the Piercing Pagoda inside the Markland Mall. Officers responded to the mall just before 3 p.m. Monday. When officers arrived, they found the suspect, 20-year-old Leevontay Brown, just outside the mall entrance. While arresting Brown, the department said officers found two semi-automatic handguns. Brown faces preliminary charges of robbery, intimidation, and unlawful possession of a gun by a serious violent felon. fox59.com Baton Rouge, LA: Beauty store theft leaves employee ‘critically injured’; 2 individuals sought.The Baton Rouge Police Department is working to identify at least two individuals involved in a theft that left another person seriously hurt. According to authorities, it happened at a beauty supply store in the 6100 block of Airline Highway, not far from Hollywood Street, on Sunday, Dec. 18. An employee was “critically injured” as he tried to stop the individuals from leaving with the stolen merchandise, police added. wafb.com Winston-Salem, NC: DA reviewing June 28 shooting at Target store that led to warning about vigilantes.The Forsyth County District Attorney’s Office is reviewing a June 28 incident during which a man shot one of three men he said attacked him inside Target on Hanes Mall Boulevard. One person was injured and so far, no criminal charges have been filed. Kira Boyd, a spokeswoman for the Winston-Salem Police Department, referred all questions to the Forsyth County District Attorney’s Office, saying that the case had been turned over to prosecutors. She didn’t know when the police department turned over the case to the district attorney’s office. Winston-Salem police detectives had been actively investigating the shooting for the past six months. Forsyth County District Attorney Jim O’Neill did not immediately respond to requests for comment. O’Neill would ultimately determine whether criminal charges will be filed. journalnow.com Stamford, CT: Federal Jury Finds 2 Men Guilty of Charges Related to Robbery and Murder of Stamford Jeweler.According to the evidence presented during the trial, on March 28, 2020, at approximately 2:48 p.m., Stamford Police Officers responded to Marco Jewelers, located at 16 Sixth Street in Stamford. When officers arrived, they found evidence of a robbery and encountered the storeowner, Mark Vuono, lying on the ground in front of an open safe. Emergency medical personnel arrived and pronounced Vuono deceased. Investigators collected and analyzed surveillance video from Marco Jewelers, surrounding businesses and Stamford city cameras. Video obtained from Marco Jewelers revealed that, on March 28, Prosano drove Robert Rallo and Liberatore in a black Jaguar to Marco Jewelers. Rallo and Liberatore then entered the store. Rallo, armed with a handgun, engaged in a physical altercation with Vuono, while Liberatore stole items from the display cases. Vuono, who also possessed a firearm, and Rallo struggled next to a large open safe. During the more than three-minute struggle, Rallo reached into the safe and pulled out a third firearm, a .357 Magnum revolver. Rallo subsequently shot and killed Vuono with the .357 revolver. justice.gov New Haven, CT: Man Sentenced for Role in Attempted Robbery of New Haven Restaurant Where Employee was Shot.According to court documents and statements made in court, at approximately 11:00 p.m. on April 11, 2015, Lopez, Tythrone Ford and another man entered the Smokin’ Wings restaurant on Congress Avenue in New Haven and demanded money at gunpoint. Lopez subsequently discharged a firearm and shot a female employee in the stomach. Lopez, Ford and their associate then fled the restaurant. Responding New Haven Police officers subsequently located a .22 caliber revolver in a nearby trash can. justice.gov Orlando, FL: Florida Man Used Grinch Blanket To Steal Merchandise From Universal Studios.A woman in a wheelchair had two bags of stolen Universal Orlando merchandise hidden under a Grinch blanket on her lap, according to a new Orlando Police report. The woman, however, wasn’t arrested or charged with a crime, but a man in her company, Alexander Gill, was. Gill, 22, of Avon Park, was charged with third-degree felony grand theft for stealing items worth more than $750, according to Orange Circuit Court records. The incident happened Nov. 4 at Universal Orlando Resort. The woman and Gill were inside the Universal Studios Store when a loss prevention officer noticed Gill take a retro pin set worth $16 from a display and then hide it in his back pants pocket in another location of the store, according to a newly released police report. Gill didn’t pay for the pin set, so the officer confronted him and requested the trinkets back. Gill and the woman in the wheelchair went with the officer to the investigations office. That’s when authorities realized the woman in the wheelchair had two bags of unpaid merchandise hidden under the Grinch blanket. The Grinch blanket, the police report, also had not been paid for. Gill had no receipts. Gill was arrested for taking the Universal merchandise. All the stolen items, 41 in total, were worth about $775, the police report said. The woman was not charged. wdwnt.com Studio City, CA: Holiday grinches make off with thousands in merchandise, pillow from Studio City store(abc7.com)
Riverside, CA: Fire causes $1.5 million in damage to Riverside toy-distribution business(abc7.com) |
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36615 Vine Street, Suite 103 |
Retailers may not be able to control the weather, but they can plan for it, according to Planalytics’ Evan Gold.
“There are things that businesses can do to better prepare for the impact that weather’s going to have. The first is understanding what demand signal that’s going to trigger in the customer,” says Gold, executive vice president of global partnerships and alliances for the weather analytics firm, on this week’s episode of Retail Gets Real.
“Weather is the most local impact in terms of what we do on a day-in and day-out basis and therefore, it impacts retailers and a lot of national retailers that have the ability to move product to certain places at certain time periods.”
Listen to the full podcast to hear more from Gold on how the weather influenced shopping patterns this fall and holiday season and how retailers can plan ahead for extreme weather events. nrf.com
RFID Tag Costs Are Dropping
Dec 20, 2022 RFID solutions company SimplyRFID is on an education campaign with several messages to radio frequency identification technology users: tags are lower in cost than most buyers think, the supply chain is easing, and some simple tweaks to inventory processing will help businesses leverage the benefits of the technology at minimal expense. The overarching point is simple: RFID has become inexpensive, and its effectiveness just requires the right approach. As the company offers its latest tag priced at 3.6 cents in Asia, with the potential for 128 bits of memory to add data. rfidjournal.com
Dead On - From Retail
Apocalypse to Lockdown USA to Store Revival
Retail is in a much stronger position now since before 2007
Big-Box Real-Estate Revival in 2023
Big-box’s expansion peaked in 2007, when companies leased and built more than 130 million square feet of large-format retail, Mr. Svec said.
The rapid growth halted during the 2008 financial crisis when consumer spending cratered. Within a decade, hundreds of companies, including big players such as Toys ‘R’ Us and Sports Authority, were filing for bankruptcy and closing swaths of stores.
Covid-19 finished off a number of other struggling retailers, but the “right-sizing” of bricks-and-mortar retail was largely completed before the pandemic, Mr. Svec said. The retail industry overall is now in a much stronger position, and retailers have announced far more store openings than closures this year. wsj.com
Barnes &
Noble Plans 30 Stores Next Year
Burlington to Open 87 in 2023
Ross Stores to add 92
TJX added 104 in 2022
Take Some Advice From HR - Get Proactive & Communicate With Your Team Members
Invest Some Time on Retention
‘Career Cushioning,’ ‘Job Cuffing’: Trendy Names for Employee Job-Contingency Plans
Amid economic uncertainty, cutbacks and layoffs, many employees want to keep their options open. While they have a perfectly good job, they're looking around to see what else is available. Now is the time for open and honest communication between employer and employee to put a lid on job hopping.
It's no secret: Many employees have a "Plan B" in case things start to go badly with their current job. But now, even more workers are creating contingency plans to protect their professional and financial futures amid economic uncertainty, cutbacks and layoffs. "Career cushioning" and "job cuffing"—terms adapted from the dating world—are the latest buzzwords to describe employee backup plans.
In the workplace, career cushioning translates to looking for a new job while employed to soften the financial impact of a job change. Cuffing is similar but is seasonal - waiting to hit year-end numbers and leaving in the spring.
"Given the continuing historically high quit rates since April 2021, it would be overly optimistic for business and leaders to depend on job cuffing as a retention strategy,"
Leaders are still overwhelmed from struggling to find talent. Those who have hired enough staff have a new worry—retention. Understanding how and why employees are career cushioning or job cuffing can offer insight into strategies that can encourage them to stay. shrm.org
ICSC: Super Saturday drew 189 million shoppers - 73% of consumers shopped
Walmart’s Opioid Settlement Now Covers 50 States
Restaurant365 Releases 2022 State of the Industry Survey Results
Wawa to open in three new states
Quarterly Results
Rite Aid Q3 retail pharmacy segment: comp's up 7.5%, store prescriptions comp's up 9.5%%, front-end comp's up 2.7%, total revenue down 2.3%
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