ORC Investigations Up 212%, Arrests Up 106% in California
Organized retail crime enforcement results in 800+ arrests, recovery of $7.2 million in stolen goods
Governor Gavin Newsom today announced record progress by the California Highway Patrol (CHP) in combating organized retail theft, with July seeing a 212% increase in criminal investigations and 106% more arrests than the month prior. Last month, California’s Organized Retail Crime Task Force (ORCTF) conducted 128 investigations leading to the arrests of 167 suspects, more than doubling the total arrests from the previous month. Since January, the ORCTF has facilitated 884 arrests and 448 investigations in 2024 and recovered over $7.2 million worth of stolen goods.

This effort led by the CHP is part of the state’s comprehensive approach to combat organized retail crime, which includes new measures to crack down on property crime and unprecedented police funding to local communities.

Since the task force’s inception in 2019, the CHP has arrested more than 2,900 suspects and recovered over $45 million worth of stolen assets.


Local support to fight organized retail crime

Governor Newsom has invested $1.1 billion since 2019 to fight crime, help local governments hire more police, and improve public safety. That investment has helped bring the task force results reported above. Today’s announcement is part of the Governor’s Real Public Safety Plan – which focuses on strengthening local law enforcement response, ensuring perpetrators are held accountable, and getting guns and drugs off our streets, including by deployment of California Highway Patrol to hot spots including Oakland, Bakersfield, and San Francisco.

The Governor announced last year the state distributed $267 million to 55 communities to help local communities combat organized retail crime. These funds have enabled cities and counties to hire more police, make more arrests, and secure more felony charges against suspects.

Last year, the California Highway Patrol reported an annual 310% increase in proactive operations targeting organized retail crime, and special operations across the state to fight crime and improve public safety. gov.ca.gov


Retailers Celebrate 'Historic' Retail Crime Legislation
CalRetailers President Joins Gov Newsom TODAY as He Signs Landmark Retail Crime Legislation
CRA President and CEO Rachel Michelin joins Governor Gavin Newsom today as he signs a Cal Retailers-supported package of bi-partisan Retail Theft bills.

Governor Gavin Newsom – joined by Senate President pro Tempore Mike McGuire, Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas, law enforcement leaders, representatives of retail associations, and local and state elected officials – will be in San Jose to sign groundbreaking legislation aimed at combating retail crime in California.

A key component of the legislative package introduces a new crime classification for possessing stolen goods over $950 with intent to resell, punishable by up to three years in prison.

New laws require online sellers to prove the legality of their products and larger retailers to share data with law enforcement to combat the sale of stolen goods.

Additional bills include extending jurisdiction for prosecuting theft, making the California Highway Patrol's organized retail crime task force permanent, and increasing penalties for related crimes.

Watch the bill signing at the governor's YouTube page.


ORC is a Bigger Problem Than Self-Checkout Theft
Self-check out can lead to shoplifting; Group says ORC is bigger issue
Self-checkout is now offered by 96% of retailers nationally, according to a recent study from the Food Industry Association.

The Connecticut Food Association has been studying trends in shoplifting, said Wayne Pesce, president of the organization, which does research on food safety and education. “Shoplifting is a big business and is constantly evolving in terms of nefarious tactics,” he said.

Theft from self-checkout transactions is more likely compared to a human cashier interaction, according to a statistics sheet from Capital One Shopping Research, which published data summaries from a combination of studies on retail trends.

Capital One reported that 15% of shoppers admitted using self-checkout to shoplift.

According to Pesce, although there is a growing tolerance for individuals who choose to shoplift in response to price gouging, the rise of organized retail crime groups is a significantly bigger issue.

Pesce said employees are one of the most important aspects of preventing shoplifting.

“Well-trained staff are essential in maintaining store security and preventing losses,” he said. “They’re the first line of defense against potential shoplifters.”

In practice, however, some grocery stores are not practicing this line of defense. The National Retail Federation, in its latest Retail Security Survey, reported more than 40% of stores surveyed do not authorize any employees to stop shoplifters, up from 38% in the previous year’s study. courant.com


How Theft Is Impacting Pharmacies
Retail theft is jeopardizing access to pharmacists
The pharmacy profession can no longer ignore retail theft or push it off as a simple cost of doing business. Retail theft in today’s world is sophisticated, and—in major metropolitan areas such as Los Angeles, Seattle, Washington DC, and New York—is led by organized crime rings. A New York Magazine investigative article published in March 2024 describes the problem in great detail. If you think this isn’t an issue you should care about, take this real story from my recent travels.

In Boston, there is a community pharmacy in an upper middle-class neighborhood dispensing over five hundred prescriptions a day. In 2023, theft of front-end items from every conceivable shelf in the store has now totaled in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. The staff of the pharmacy have to work for 10 full months to regain the revenue of the stolen merchandise. Think about it: going to work in a pharmacy and working hard to be profitable, only to have your profits eliminated and your coworkers realize they are working hard every day for essentially nothing—for 10 months out of the year. That’s demotivating. It’s no wonder hiring in today’s world is difficult.

It is also dangerous. Criminals engaging in mass retail theft are brazen, sometimes threatening and even physically harming workers. It’s no longer safe to be a cashier at a retail store—including a community pharmacy. As large corporations are downsizing and pharmacy owners are making decisions about locations to close, the amount of “shrinkage” or retail theft occurring at a given location is increasingly part of the equation. Many closures wind up happening in communities where there is no other pharmacy access. It’s heartbreaking. The selfishness and desperation of criminals is leaving many communities without access to critical health care services provided by pharmacists. For that reason alone, pharmacists must care about retail theft and work toward solutions.   pharmacist.com


San Francisco Crime Closures Continue
Last San Francisco Denny's closes due to crime, 'tremendous' business costs, report says
The last remaining Denny’s restaurant in San Francisco closed earlier this month due to high operating costs brought on by crime, according to a report by the San Francisco Gate .

The former owner of the restaurant, Chris Haque, told the outlet he closed his diner on Aug. 1 after nearly 25 years of business. The location is listed as permanently closed on Google. "We’re the only store left, and we operated until the last day that we could,” Haque said. “The cost of doing business is tremendous. There’s vandalism, and people come and eat and walk away, and there’s no one to stop them.”

Several companies have pointed to crime in the Bay Area recently as a reason for closing their stores. Last September, a Target in San Francisco announced it was shutting down because theft was harming the store’s business.

“We cannot continue operating these stores because theft and organized retail crime are threatening the safety of our team and guests, and contributing to unsustainable business performance," the retailer said in a statement, adding that the company can only be successful if the working and shopping environment is safe. cbs12.com


Anti-Theft Lockups Continue to Impact Sales
Instacart, Spark delivery workers avoid stores with locked-up merchandise: report
Stores that have locked up merchandise such as toothpaste and underwear because of rampant retail theft have left many customers frustrated - but now delivery workers have started avoiding the businesses, according to a report.

Delivery workers for apps like Instacart and Walmart's Spark have to fulfill in-store orders on a deadline - so they don't have time to push a button and wait for employee assistance to buy some soap, Business Insider reported.

"Drivers make money per order, not per hour, so every second counts for us," an Ohio-based shopper working for Spark told Business Insider. The Spark worker said he once waited 10 minutes for an employee to unlock a cabinet holding baby formula - a wait time that could hurt their chances of getting a good tip.

Retail theft has plagued many businesses since the pandemic, forcing retailers to take the drastic measures of locking up everyday items. The shopping obstacle has led some customers to pivot to e-retailers like Amazon, where the click of a button doesn't mean waiting 20 minutes for a toothbrush.

A CVS spokesperson said merchandise is locked up based on factors like the rate of theft for each specific product and store location. nypost.com


ORC Grant Money Making an Impact
Deschutes County District Attorney’s Office will use state grant to target organized retail theft crimes
The Deschutes County District Attorney's Office is receiving an initial $18,000 from the state's Criminal Justice Commission's Organized Retail Theft Grant Program. DA Steve Gunnels says the funds will be used to create a training program that partners with retailers and law enforcement to target such criminal enterprises. ktvz.com


Registration Required: Retail Shrink and ORC: Spotlight on Shoplifting —Theft Rates and Responses in the US and the UK
Continuing our regular series on retail shrink and organized retail crime (ORC), we dive into recent developments on shrink from the UK and the US, as well as recent earnings commentary from major retailers in Canada, Europe and the US.

Anti-theft measures in stores such as CVS and Walgreens ‘backfiring’

NYPD addresses retail theft in Harlem as area attracts retailers
 

Bolstering Security at Costco
Costco cracks down on membership sharing in San Francisco
In a bid to bolster security and prevent unauthorized access, Costco has introduced membership scanners at the entries to several locations across California, including its San Francisco warehouse and other Bay Area sites.

The new policy mandates that customers scan the barcode or QR code on their membership card upon entry, replacing the previous practice of showing their card to an attendant.

Additionally, non-members must be accompanied by a member to gain entry. This change comes after an increase in non-members exploiting others’ cards, particularly with the expansion of Costco’s self-checkout facilities.

Costco has introduced membership scanners at various locations in California. Customers must now scan their physical or digital membership card with its barcode or QR code to enter the store, instead of showing it to an employee. If the card does not have the member’s photo, the member must also be prepared to show a driver’s license or other valid photo ID.

The changes follow a rise in non-members using others’ cards, especially after Costco expanded self-checkout options. The measures aim to ensure that only paying members benefit from the store’s offerings and pricing.  sfchronicle.com


Retail Sales Surge 6% in July
US retail sales rise more than expected in July
Overall retail sales in the segments covered by Retail Dive rose 6% year over year in July, according to numbers released Thursday by the U.S. Department of Commerce.

U.S. retail sales rose more than expected in July, which could help to allay financial market fears of a sharp economic slowdown that were fanned by a jump in the unemployment rate. Retail sales increased 1.0% last month after a downwardly revised 0.2% drop in June, the Commerce Department's Census Bureau said on Thursday.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast retail sales, which are mostly goods and are not adjusted for inflation, advancing 0.3% after previously being reported as unchanged. Signs that demand is not collapsing could prompt financial markets to dial back expectations for a 50 basis points interest rate cut next month. The odds continue to favor a quarter-point rate reduction, with inflation rising mildly in July.

Consumers are maintaining spending by bargain hunting and trading down to lower-priced substitutes. Retail sales excluding automobiles, gasoline, building materials and food services rose 0.3% last month after advancing by an unrevised 0.9% in June. reuters.com  retaildive.com
 

Buc-ee's faces a lawsuit after a man tripped over a giant beaver inflatable
A man in South Carolina stumbled over a massive inflatable beaver at Buc-ee's, and now he's suing the Texas favorite travel center for negligence.
 
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