It goes without saying that business owners and area retailers depend on customers coming in to their stores throughout the year, but it’s especially important during the holiday season when gift-buying and giving provide a healthy boost in sales.
But with that increased customer foot traffic comes an increased risk of shoplifting. Madison Haggin, communication specialist with business.org, said a recent study by the organization shows that more than half of all small businesses report an increase in shoplifting during peak shopping seasons like Christmas.
And more than 4 in 10 shoplifters get away – with the merchandise.
Here are a few results from the survey of small businesses:
- 25 percent have had to deal with customers using stolen credit cards.
- 25 percent of small businesses have increased the prices of their products because of shoplifting.
- 25 percent of small businesses experience shoplifting on a weekly basis, while 23% experience shoplifting on a daily basis.
- 15 percent of small business owners have had a shoplifting incident turn violent, while 2 in 3 businesses have called the police.
Haggin recommends that small-business owners develop a shoplifting policy to guide employees to deal with shoplifting incidents. Consider using an inventory management software program to keep track of merchandise in the store. Having a security camera or alarm may not reduce shoplifting, but it could deter would-be offenders and could potentially provide video evidence.
Business.org partnered with Pollfish to conduct an anonymous survey of 700 small-business owners with a +/- 2% margin of error with a confidence level of 95 percent.