Retail security in Europe. Going beyond shrinkage

The aim of this study is to provide a picture of the losses incurred by retail companies, of the threats on retail security and of the countermeasures adopted by retailers in 11 European countries. It is the result of the cooperation between academic researchers and retailers, who contributed to the project by providing key data, inputs and insights. The study adopts a ground-breaking approach, which relies on a belief: that for having a comprehensive vision of the level of security in the retail sector, it is necessary to go beyond shrinkage. It is not enough to collect and analyse shrinkage statistics provided by retailers, but it is crucial to understand where these figures come from and how they are accounted for by different firms. Further, it is crucial to enrich shrinkage data with information on the geographic and sectoral context in which retailers operate, the modus operandi of shoplifters, the evolution of retail crime schemes and the strategy adopted by retailers to address security threats and to reduce losses. For achieving this purpose, this study carries out a survey on retailers in 9 countries equivalent to about 23,000 stores and integrates it with the collection of shrinkage data for each single point of sale (or store) for about 3,500 stores (the largest sample of this kind ever analysed), the analysis of 1,600 media news on retail crime incidents and information collected through a focus group and more than 40 bilateral interviews with security managers. We are therefore indebted with retailers for contributing in such a crucial way to the study.