Shoplifting in the US: Problems, Progress, and the Path Forward

"Shoplifting has moved from a manageable nuisance to an urgent threat across the U.S. In large metropolitan and suburban markets alike, retailers, communities, and law enforcement are grappling with increasingly sophisticated theft both opportunistic and organized. According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), retail theft (including organized retail crime) cost U.S. businesses nearly $112 billion in 2022. The consequences ripple beyond balance sheets: consumers face higher prices, employees confront increased risk, and some communities lose storefronts that cannot survive persistent losses."

"Several converging forces have fueled the rise in retail theft: Economic stress and inequality push more people into opportunistic theft or make illicit revenue streams more tempting. Shifts in prosecution policy some jurisdictions have raised felony thresholds or deprioritized low-level theft cases embolden repeat offenders. Resale marketplaces and anonymity supplied by e-commerce platforms make it easier to fence stolen goods. Organized retail crime (ORC) syndicates operate across city and state lines, recruiting individuals to "boost" products en masse."

Retail theft cost U.S. businesses nearly $112 billion in 2022, producing higher consumer prices, increased employee risk, and closed storefronts in hard-hit communities. Multiple forces drive the surge: economic stress and inequality, prosecution policy shifts that lower consequences for low-level theft, resale marketplaces and e-commerce anonymity that ease fencing, organized retail crime syndicates coordinating mass theft, and store vulnerabilities such as understaffing and self-checkout gaps. Policy responses include the federal INFORM Consumers Act to verify high-volume online sellers, state ORC statutes and multi-agency task forces, and the creation of specialized prosecutorial and enforcement units targeting retail crime.

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