The following is an excerpt from the free report ‘The rise of smart retail solutions to tackle loss prevention’ which has been produced in partnership with Verkada and CDW. To download the full, free report enter and submit your details on the form on this page.
Let’s say that a retailer has been experiencing frequent theft of high-value items like jackets and shoes. The business’ margins are low, and they’re incurring serious financial damage. Let’s also say that theft is particularly rampant during busy periods, when staff are occupied with customers and therefore unable to be as observant as needed to catch in-store criminals at work.
This retailer finds themselves at a loss about what to do. They install a traditional security camera and simply hope that the sight of the camera is enough to scare away prospective thieves, and that the thefts stop. Job done, they think.
But is it job done? Sadly not. In fact, the reality of modern retail is that, on average, retailers have 34 cameras deployed in each store for video surveillance. Over 70% of UK retailers have also either deployed or are actively considering the deployment of body-worn cameras within their establishments.
And yet, the European Alliance for Safe Retail (EARS) found that retail businesses across the UK forecast that thefts will cost a staggering loss of £7.9 billion in revenue this year alone. Retail losses are up by 33% across all categories compared to pre-COVID levels, with theft now at a 20-year high.
Traditional security cameras don’t provide enough protection
It’s clear from this data that for our (fictional) business, loss prevention is a far more nuanced concept, which cannot be solved by simply installing a traditional security camera and hoping for the best.
This is a persistent issue, which requires a persistent and dynamic solution, for all retailers. The senior leaders at our business are also far from alone in these worries. Recent data suggests that up to 46% of the UK retail C-suite are ‘very concerned’ about the potential for rampant loss within their businesses.
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£1
billion
Theft is costing UK retail £7.9 billion this year.
1
increase
Retail losses are up 33% since pre-COVID.
1
year high
Theft rates are the highest in two decades.
