7 ms·

Two in three shoppers won't buy products in locked display cases

50 points by kawera 2y ago

josefresco 2y ago
Talk about a downward spiral of terrible decisions. Cut staff and add checkout machines to save money. Customers start stealing (legit or not) so they lock down items behind glass, but have no staff to help customers so they see less sales! Wild. I hope the shareholders who accepted these changes feel pain.
- coolspot 2y ago
  In civilized, high-trust societies self-checkout works well and is very convenient. Of course if you refuse to prosecute crime you will have everything locked.
  - vkou 2y ago
    > In civilized, high-trust societies self-checkout works well and is very convenient. There's nothing convenient about me having to do the cashier's job, but badly, while having a tiny space to do my bagging in, while a computer yells at me. Maybe for someone with truly crippling social anxiety, this is preferable to an actually functional check-out counter, but I'm blessed to not be afflicted by it.
    - diggernet 2y ago
      And someone with truly crippling social anxiety isn't going to be standing there in the store with a line of people staring at them while a computer yells at them. They are gonna be sitting at home waiting for the gig worker to drop off their stuff.
      - vkou 2y ago
        Some people with social anxiety aren't able to afford to have their groceries delivered to them.
  - dangitman 2y ago
    [dead]
  - OptionOfT 2y ago
    The problem with self-checkouts is that (1) it shifts the work to me without any benefit to me. I don't get a % off (and often asks you to tip [0]). And (2) it actually presents a legal risk. If I genuinely forget to scan I can still be banned from a store, or worse, charged, because I am doing a job I am not trained for, or because of a glitch in the system. [0]: https://nypost.com/2023/05/15/self-checkout-machines-now-ask-customers-to-tip/ https://nypost.com/2023/05/15/self-checkout-machines-now-ask...
    - Doxin 2y ago
      > The problem with self-checkouts is that (1) it shifts the work to me without any benefit to me. A well implemented self-checkout is much faster than waiting in line for a cashier. Ever since the local supermarket implemented self-scan I haven't had to wait for a register to become available for more than maybe 30 seconds. Of course if the self-checkout is of the "UNEXPECTED ITEM IN BAGGING AREA" variety it'll be infuriating and much slower than a regular cash register.
- giantg2 2y ago
  Walmart locks their spraypaint now. Lowes does not. I'll go to lowes since it's easier than tracking down a associate at Walmart.
  - LordKeren 2y ago
    I would assume that is more tied to vandalism then theft though
    - giantg2 2y ago
      How so?
      - fragmede 2y ago
        At least in my jurisdiction, you have to be 18 or 21 to buy spray paint in an attempt to stop kids from spraying graffiti so the store legally has to check id before selling spray paint.
      - LordKeren 2y ago
        My assumption was that they are looking to stop kids from spraying the cans; in-store vandalism
        giantg2 2y ago
        Ok, that makes sense
  - deafpolygon 2y ago
    Breaking news; stores lock and store ammo separately from guns.
- _blz2 2y ago
  yes, people are stealing because of cut staff at checkout machines.
anigbrowl 2y ago
I certainly don't. I resent having to go find someone to unlock, and then being pressured to pick what I want when I haven't had a chance to review the product differences/prices etc. The company near me that went long on this approach (Walgreens) also spent a small fortune recently on replacing glass refrigerator doors with giant screens to serve me adverts when what I want is a cool drink. It didn't work out well. https://www.techdirt.com/2023/10/06/startups-tech-for-displaying-ads-on-walgreens-cooler-doors-is-on-fire-literally/ https://www.techdirt.com/2023/10/06/startups-tech-for-displa...
- akira2501 2y ago
  "Hey, let's attach a small heater to every refrigerated case, so we can annoy customers and waste energy efficiency all in one throw!"
coolspot 2y ago
But also 99 of 100 thieves won’t steal products in locked display cases.
taeric 2y ago
I'm torn on this. First, yes, I find locked items obnoxious. Still not happy that the easy to find nasal medicine in many stores was found to be garbage. That said, by the numbers here, it isn't clear how often people succeed at buying the item in another store. For a truly hilarious spin, you could think that having the item out where folks can touch things is itself the dark pattern that is encouraging people to buy things they don't need.
- quickthrowman 2y ago
  > Still not happy that the easy to find nasal medicine in many stores was found to be garbage. At least with pseudoephedrine you can just walk up to the pharmacy and say ‘sell me as many generic pseudoephedrine tablets as I’m allowed to purchase’, sign the FDA log, and pay for it.
  - taeric 2y ago
    I'm concerned I can't see sarcasm anymore... :(
vel0city 2y ago
> “A year ago, America’s stores declared a shoplifting epidemic,” stated the CNN article. “This year, retailers are telling a very different story—or no story at all. It’s as if the shoplifting crisis suddenly vanished.” Or maybe because they closed down a lot of stores which were the worst and then on the borderline stores, they put up all the locked cabinets. Maybe now the rates of shrink have been reduced. There's no data here to go either way on this, just pure speculation.
- vkou 2y ago
  Here in Seattle, all the worst-for-shoplifting stores are still open. Mysteriously, a bunch of locations that were not bad for shoplifting, but were bad for overall sales (because of shitty layouts, small footprints, limited selection) ended up closed. Perhaps shoplifting was just the excuse regional management gave for why they closed badly ran locations.
  - farnsworth 2y ago
    I've always wondered why all the big chains are closing stores, blaming shoplifting, to the point where Belltown no longer has a single pharmacy. But I haven't seen any of the small independant shops/bodegas close, including a small grocery shop right next to the 3rd/bell bus stop. I can't imagine that nobody is shoplifting from those. I'm no expert but it's never added up to me.
    - vel0city 2y ago
      I steal a bunch of candybars from a convenience store. What am I going to do, sell them for $1-2/ea just like the bodega? The high-margin goods like beer and wine require licenses to sell; I lose any benefit of plausible deniability in where I got these goods when I try and fence these on the street or online. Selling them without proper license is always a crime and practically impossible online. Meanwhile I steal a bunch of vitamins and OTC drugs I can sell at $10-20/bottle, packs of underwear at $10-20 a package. A lot of this can even be sold through Amazon at full retail pricing, I don't even have to try and sell it on the street.
nemomarx 2y ago
This being an opt in survey definitely makes the numbers suspect, but I agree with the sentiment at least.
lesuorac 2y ago
> Dworsky acknowledged that the results might be skewing high because it was an opt-in survey that readers took rather than a random one, and said his audience tends to be “interested in consumer matters,” which may mean they have a lower threshold for consumer inconvenience. Well, I'm not a reader of his survey and my general solution to inconveniences is to do something else also. That said, if my purpose of going to the store was to get that item I would try to find an employee to open it. However, I might not go to that store again if I thought items I wanted were going to be locked. Nothings lock online :/ What should the stores do? Honestly, not too sure. I don't find getting receipt checked at costco a big deal so that's definitely an approach.
- vel0city 2y ago
  > What should the stores do? Honestly, not too sure. I don't find getting receipt checked at costco a big deal so that's definitely an approach. In some of these stores, its not about someone putting one or two items extra in their bag. Its people filling up trash bags full of merchandise and walking out the store. People here will say it doesn't happen or it happens rarely. I've only been to San Francisco one time for a week, and I saw it happen in front of me at a Target. I've seen it happen in Austin a few times.
garbageman 2y ago
[flagged]
- deleted 2y ago
  [deleted]
akira2501 2y ago
> “If I encounter a locked case, I’m not going to start looking for a store clerk going up and down every aisle or pressing the button and waiting for someone to come over,” Dworsky told Retail Brew. “But the fact that it was over 50% of people that felt the way I did? I was really surprised.” You're surprised that bad customer service leads people away from the business providing it? This was a 101 problem. If you lock it, you need someone around to quickly unlock it, to satisfy your shoppers. To me, locking it up was _never_ about shoplifting, but about reducing customer service to it's bare minimum while still utilizing monopoly control and government interference and mismanagement to maintain a position without any actual competition. I mean, who _else_ but someone unconcerned with competition would even _think_ to lock up their products, as an _opening move_?
- vel0city 2y ago
  If there wasn't any shoplifting, would they still put things in cabinets? No? So how is this action not related to shoplifting? Like, how does putting it in a locked cabinet reduce their customer service needs? Doesn't this increase their customer service needs, as now they need more people to constantly help unlock cabinets and escort people around the store? Wouldn't they just prefer to have a store with no employees in it, if shoplifting wasn't a thing?
  - akira2501 2y ago
    > If there wasn't any shoplifting, would they still put things in cabinets? The article points this out. The problem was likely overblown in the first place or it has magically disappeared without any effort. So, "organized shoplifting" almost certainly _wasn't_ the real reason they did this. > No? Obviously, yes, because it looks very much like that's what they did. > Doesn't this increase their customer service needs Yea, that's _exactly_ what I meant by this being a "101 problem." The question you _should_ be asking is, why didn't they hire _more_ people when they put the locked cases in? They obviously didn't. Do you have an explanation for this? > if shoplifting wasn't a thing? It's about removing competition, particularly from smaller stores, that can offer better service even if they don't have the variety and hours that the large chain stores do. No coincidence that in my town Walgreen's then closed 3 of it's major central locations and pushed everyone out to their more favorable and less expensive locations. These companies want to extract the maximum value from your city at the least cost to themselves. You are now seeing the very long tail of decades of their mostly illegal strategies being allowed to play out unchecked against the population.
massysett 2y ago
“The whole thing has a whiﬀ of pawnshop, which might actually be unfair to pawnshops.” Totally unfair to pawnshops: small stores typically have good service. Goods are behind the counter, but there is a person staffing that counter typically every minute that the store is open. The liquor store keeps expensive beverages behind the counter. I don't hesitate to go there, because the clerk is always there to retrieve items behind the counter. Go to Target, Home Depot, or CVS, and good luck finding anyone to help. I'm pushing a button and standing around helplessly, or asking a nearby employee who looks up quizzically and says "I don't have the key." If someone finally unlocks it, then they might have to escort the item across the huge store, where a cashier now has to get it and ring me up. Unlike tiny stores, big box stores are based on self service. Remove the self-service and the whole concept falls apart.
legitster 2y ago
> Mentions of “shrink” on earnings calls for the first two quarters of 2024 were down 20% compared to the same period a year ago according to a FactSet analysis cited by CNN. > “A year ago, America’s stores declared a shoplifting epidemic,” stated the CNN article. “This year, retailers are telling a very different story—or no story at all. It’s as if the shoplifting crisis suddenly vanished.” Kind of disingenuous of CNN here to declare that a 20% reduction in mentions is equivalent with "vanishing".
elric 2y ago
I recently tried to buy a single button cell battery at my local store. They're in a locked case near the entrance. I told the attendant which one I wanted, they handed it to me, I tried to putting it in my basket and was immediately told "no, you can't do that, do your shopping first and then come back for this". I went home and ordered it online. With free shipping. It ended up being cheaper than the one in the store to boot. Play stupid games, lose paying customers. Same goes with shops that refuse entry to people with bags (even a small backpack! but a purse is OK for some reason). I just won't shop there. Goodbye.
- pixxel 2y ago
  You’re blaming the wrong people. You’re blaming the response.
AnotherGoodName 2y ago
It’s near impossible to buy those things. I live in a region of the world where condoms are locked up at the local mega chemist. Absolutely no embarrassment here on buying them of course. It’s just that pressing the button does nothing. None of the minimum wage staff give a fuck (can’t blame them). You’ll just be standing there waiting in an almost empty store. The sole clerk at the counter can’t really leave their post and there’s no one else around. Not to mention not being able to look at the boxes first so you’re going to have to take 10mins of someone’s time at least while they stand there with the display open for a sale that nets $.50 profit. I buy online. Would suck to be a kid in that situation though.
- bonestamp2 2y ago
  They basically need a store full of vending machines. Then the items would be locked up AND you could actually buy them.
- wccrawford 2y ago
  I think this gets to the real reason of why people say they won't buy from the locked cabinets. As someone whose job was to carry that key in an office supply store, I can say that it's awful. We have other things to do, and even if you're acknowledged, you have no idea when that clerk will get to you. (And the clerk doesn't know either.) Aside: I once had a customer snap their fingers at me while I was walking another customer to a product because they wanted in the case. I looked at them, but was so thrown off that I didn't nod or anything, and just kept helping that customer. By the time I got to the case, they were gone. Later, I found I had a complaint issued against me for ignoring them, which I hadn't actually done. It just wasn't their turn yet. Management tried to turn it into a big thing in a meeting with the entire store, singling me out (not the first time). Someone else stood up for the situation and said they wouldn't help someone that snapped their fingers... Management started to rebut, but then a guy from furniture said, "Yeah! And I won't help people that whistle at me like a dog, either!" and management quickly changed the topic. Ah, such fun memories.
  - giardini 2y ago
    When a customer interrupts you while you are aiding another customer, merely acknowledge their presence and tell them "Yes, ma'am, I'll help you after I've helped this customer. Thank you!" I say this b/c not acknowledging someone, even someone who is rude, is also rude. Manners (etiquette) are the key to civility. Really! They work but few even have heard, much less spoken of, manners or etiquette.
create-username 2y ago
You can buy a hundred shaving razors for like $10, as of 2016, the last time I bought. They will last you a long time, if you bought them. But you can’t buy them at any supermarket that I know of. They only sell Gillette or Wilkinson’s, which, at around 2,5 each, are a bad deal. These blades must be held behind display cases because consumers would rather risk their honour than paying the deal. Other products that are behind supermarket locked glass are alcohol bottles (overtly expensive poisonous water), perfume (ditto), and I don’t know what else. So, at the end of the day, supermarket locked display cases show overtly expensive products which are not worth their money; so why bother?
- DiggyJohnson 2y ago
  Alcohol and perfume are literally among the oldest luxury items imaginable.
bluetidepro 2y ago
> For 55% of respondents, it’s a lost sale, because when a product is locked up, they try to buy it elsewhere. It's wild to me that someone would rather go back to their car, drive somewhere else, HOPE it's not locked up there also, and THEN finally purchase the item at the new store instead of just waiting for someone to come unlock it at the current store you're at. I've personally never had to wait more than a few minutes for someone to come unlock a locked display. I find it very hard to believe anyone would rather add 30+ mins to their overall trip than just wait at the current store. My hunch is 2 things: 1) This is a case of "wishful" thinking rather than what they actually do. For a survey like this, people probably just unintentionally lied rather than what they would ACTUALLY do (wait for it to be unlocked). 2) The study would be much more accurate if you could actually somehow track what they did rather than just survey them on what they think they would do. Also, I could see this being a case of not purchasing impulse items. However, if you go to the store for toothpaste that you need, and all the toothpaste is locked up, then again, I find it hard to believe you don't wait. As someone else said in another comment: "What people say they won't do and what they actually won't do are not the same thing"
- leoedin 2y ago
  Presumably this depends a lot on what the item is. I’ve definitely thought about and decided against an impulse purchase because of a locked case. It turns “ooh I need that” into “ah, but I have to find someone and delay things”.
  - bluetidepro 2y ago
    Yeah, I have no doubt about this stat for an impulse item. I agree that I wouldn't wait on an impulse item. But for an item you "need" or specifically came for, I don't believe anyone would not wait.
- daft_pink 2y ago
  I think it’s true for two reasons: 1. We generally go into multiple stores anyways. If there isn’t someone around, I won’t bother waiting around. Those razors at Walgreens are genearlly available at the Costco I goto once per week. 2. I generally will just order something online if there is any amount of friction. Amazon Prime and Target Circle 360 are easy. I didn’t upgrade my iPhone this year, because they canceled the Apple Leather case and getting a Leather case was a huge pain last year when I upgraded and I don’t want to bother this year while case manufacturers work out their camera button. I bet Apple executives would be shocked how just introducing a tiny bit of friction stops people from spending $1,500 to upgrade their device.
deleted 2y ago
[deleted]
vr46 2y ago
What people say they won't do and what they actually won't do are not the same thing
joshruby16d 2y ago
I was in a CVS where they had all the Tylenol/Advil behind a locked glass display, and all the CVS headache relief on the shelf. I mentioned to an employee that this seemed unfair/illegal, and they responded that "people only steal the brand name Advil, so that's what we lock up". Seems unlikely to me. Anyone else see something like this at CVS?
- massysett 2y ago
  This makes perfect sense: Advil might have resale value, CVS brand certainly doesn't. Tide also has brand currency and is stolen a lot.
- robocat 2y ago
  > I mentioned to an employee that this seemed unfair/illegal Complaining to employees about about shit the employee had no control over should be illegal. It's a job - they don't set the rules and often are not even told why the rules exist...
- barryrandall 2y ago
  I ran into that at a CVS a few years ago and stopped shopping at CVS.
- stephenbez 2y ago
  What law would this be breaking?
- epoxia 2y ago
  Unlikely that its problematic, brands/stores know that positioning/caging on shelves matter and negotiate accordingly. Eye level sells more than top/floor shelf.
- vel0city 2y ago
  People buy Tylenol off Amazon all the time. Who buys CVS brand acetaminophen on Amazon? You really think the market for CVS brand acetaminophen is as big as Tylenol?
  - 2y ago
kayodelycaon 2y ago
I recently went to a store and they had no Apple products on display. It looked like they only sold accessories for iPhones. There weren’t even placeholders or signs. You had to ask the right employee for the specific product and you had to pay for it at a specific register before you could have it. The only reason I thought to ask was because their website said they had plenty in stock.
JoeAltmaier 2y ago
My local big-box home store had measurement devices (e.g. laser range finder; fancy tape measures) in a locked glass-fronted case. But the gap between the shelf above and the top of the glass was wide enough for me to fish around in there and get the one I wanted. Which I proceeded to checkout to buy, without incident. I wonder if they later had some inventory issue. No I guess I don't wonder; that's all on them.
abeppu 2y ago
Also in the 'solution to shop-lifting makes me shop elsewhere', there are two locally-owned independent hardware stores in walking distance from my home. One has a 'buzz to enter' vestibule with two doors whose locks are controlled by the cashier. You ring the exterior bell, the cashier buzzes you through the first door, and only after it closes will they buzz open the second door -- so you're trapped. The same is true on the exit. No one can run out of the store with an expensive power tool they didn't pay for. But even though I'm not stealing anything but I find the whole experience so deeply unpleasant that I've stopped going there at all. The second independent hardware store now has multiple security people at the front, and a mandatory bag-check policy. Except the bag check line is the customer service line, and I've literally waited 30 minutes total to drop off and then pick up my bag, stuck behind people with elaborate customer service requests. They have a bunch of staff on the floor, but they often don't actually know where stuff is, whether they carry X, etc. It becomes impossible to make a quick purchase of a single item. So more and more, I'm apt to buy whatever it was online. I don't want the extra amazon packaging. I tried going literally out of my way to buy at the local independent business. But they made it such a crap waste-of-time experience.
- bsder 2y ago
  > But even though I'm not stealing anything but I find the whole experience so deeply unpleasant that I've stopped going there at all. You're offended just for being buzzed in and out? Why? That's about the least offensive thing a business can do. If they were selling jewelry instead of hardware, everybody would consider it a mark of being upscale.
  - abeppu 2y ago
    I'm not offended. I'm uncomfortable being trapped in an enclosed box in which I'm reliant on another person (who clearly distrusts me) taking 4 separate actions for me to enter and exit. The article points out that shoppers at Walgreens would rather go to another store than ask and wait for for a staff person to unlock their razor cartridges or whatever. This hardware store has effectively wrapped their business in such a barrier, and I would rather go to another store than ask and wait for a staff person to unlock 4 doors for me. Also, implicit in all of this is that: - you are submitting yourself for judgement based on how you look for them to decide whether you're likely to be a paying customer. I doubt whether any set criteria are used, but I fully expect that race, age, gender, and a range of class markers are involved. - though they the business are distrustful and unwelcoming of you the prospective customer, you the customer are forced to be entirely trusting of their staff. They start the interaction off by broadcasting the presumption that you may be a threat, and establishing unilateral physical control to restrain people on entry or exit. I read this as both hostile and inequitable.
neilv 2y ago
> National chains including Target have put much of their inventory behind glass in recent years as a response to what they call organized retail crime The Target personnel around here are usually nice, but the stores have the most conspicuous Loss Prevention activity in recent years, especially (besides the locked shelves) with what comes off as LP soft interventions. As a result, despite being a non-shoplifter, I've become self-conscious whenever I go into a Target (which is pretty often, lately, for location convenience reasons), unlike most other stores. I really wonder whether Target has considered how various measures intended to thwart shoplifters -- not only the locked shelves -- have negative implications for genuine customers. For example, take subtle signaling intended for shoplifters: it's not like shoplifters are the only ones who pick up on that. (Some people don't notice, but some people do.) I thought Target was supposed to be like Walmart, but with more designer style, and relatively upscale pretense. Yet lately it's like they're insinuating that shoppers are in a bad neighborhood, that ordinary individual shoppers are suspect, and they've got their eye on you.
- red-iron-pine 2y ago
  Target has taken a hard stance on shoplifting for a while, and have invested a lot of money into surveillance, facial recognition, etc. Most major retailers do to some degree but Target led the pack. At some point they had to realize that wasn't going to do much and just called in the Pinkertons to stare everyone down
- m463 2y ago
  There's a target I've gone to and the sketchy homeless people sort of invade the store. They bring their bicycles into the store with them (like down the aisles) I think they could use some loss prevention personnel to clean things up.
blinded 2y ago
I just wait and get it elsewhere.

50 points by kawera 2y ago

Talk about a downward spiral of terrible decisions. Cut staff and add checkout machines to save money. Customers start stealing (legit or not) so they lock down items behind glass, but have no staff to help customers so they see less sales! Wild. I hope the shareholders who accepted these changes feel pain.

coolspot 2y ago
In civilized, high-trust societies self-checkout works well and is very convenient. Of course if you refuse to prosecute crime you will have everything locked.
- vkou 2y ago
  > In civilized, high-trust societies self-checkout works well and is very convenient. There's nothing convenient about me having to do the cashier's job, but badly, while having a tiny space to do my bagging in, while a computer yells at me. Maybe for someone with truly crippling social anxiety, this is preferable to an actually functional check-out counter, but I'm blessed to not be afflicted by it.
  - diggernet 2y ago
    And someone with truly crippling social anxiety isn't going to be standing there in the store with a line of people staring at them while a computer yells at them. They are gonna be sitting at home waiting for the gig worker to drop off their stuff.
    - vkou 2y ago
      Some people with social anxiety aren't able to afford to have their groceries delivered to them.
- dangitman 2y ago
  [dead]
- OptionOfT 2y ago
  The problem with self-checkouts is that (1) it shifts the work to me without any benefit to me. I don't get a % off (and often asks you to tip [0]). And (2) it actually presents a legal risk. If I genuinely forget to scan I can still be banned from a store, or worse, charged, because I am doing a job I am not trained for, or because of a glitch in the system. [0]: https://nypost.com/2023/05/15/self-checkout-machines-now-ask-customers-to-tip/ https://nypost.com/2023/05/15/self-checkout-machines-now-ask...
  - Doxin 2y ago
    > The problem with self-checkouts is that (1) it shifts the work to me without any benefit to me. A well implemented self-checkout is much faster than waiting in line for a cashier. Ever since the local supermarket implemented self-scan I haven't had to wait for a register to become available for more than maybe 30 seconds. Of course if the self-checkout is of the "UNEXPECTED ITEM IN BAGGING AREA" variety it'll be infuriating and much slower than a regular cash register.
giantg2 2y ago
Walmart locks their spraypaint now. Lowes does not. I'll go to lowes since it's easier than tracking down a associate at Walmart.
- LordKeren 2y ago
  I would assume that is more tied to vandalism then theft though
  - giantg2 2y ago
    How so?
    - fragmede 2y ago
      At least in my jurisdiction, you have to be 18 or 21 to buy spray paint in an attempt to stop kids from spraying graffiti so the store legally has to check id before selling spray paint.
    - LordKeren 2y ago
      My assumption was that they are looking to stop kids from spraying the cans; in-store vandalism
      - giantg2 2y ago
        Ok, that makes sense
- deafpolygon 2y ago
  Breaking news; stores lock and store ammo separately from guns.
_blz2 2y ago
yes, people are stealing because of cut staff at checkout machines.

anigbrowl 2y ago

I certainly don't. I resent having to go find someone to unlock, and then being pressured to pick what I want when I haven't had a chance to review the product differences/prices etc. The company near me that went long on this approach (Walgreens) also spent a small fortune recently on replacing glass refrigerator doors with giant screens to serve me adverts when what I want is a cool drink. It didn't work out well. https://www.techdirt.com/2023/10/06/startups-tech-for-displaying-ads-on-walgreens-cooler-doors-is-on-fire-literally/ https://www.techdirt.com/2023/10/06/startups-tech-for-displa...

akira2501 2y ago
"Hey, let's attach a small heater to every refrigerated case, so we can annoy customers and waste energy efficiency all in one throw!"

coolspot 2y ago

But also 99 of 100 thieves won’t steal products in locked display cases.

taeric 2y ago

I'm torn on this. First, yes, I find locked items obnoxious. Still not happy that the easy to find nasal medicine in many stores was found to be garbage. That said, by the numbers here, it isn't clear how often people succeed at buying the item in another store. For a truly hilarious spin, you could think that having the item out where folks can touch things is itself the dark pattern that is encouraging people to buy things they don't need.

quickthrowman 2y ago
> Still not happy that the easy to find nasal medicine in many stores was found to be garbage. At least with pseudoephedrine you can just walk up to the pharmacy and say ‘sell me as many generic pseudoephedrine tablets as I’m allowed to purchase’, sign the FDA log, and pay for it.
- taeric 2y ago
  I'm concerned I can't see sarcasm anymore... :(

vel0city 2y ago

> “A year ago, America’s stores declared a shoplifting epidemic,” stated the CNN article. “This year, retailers are telling a very different story—or no story at all. It’s as if the shoplifting crisis suddenly vanished.” Or maybe because they closed down a lot of stores which were the worst and then on the borderline stores, they put up all the locked cabinets. Maybe now the rates of shrink have been reduced. There's no data here to go either way on this, just pure speculation.

vkou 2y ago
Here in Seattle, all the worst-for-shoplifting stores are still open. Mysteriously, a bunch of locations that were not bad for shoplifting, but were bad for overall sales (because of shitty layouts, small footprints, limited selection) ended up closed. Perhaps shoplifting was just the excuse regional management gave for why they closed badly ran locations.
- farnsworth 2y ago
  I've always wondered why all the big chains are closing stores, blaming shoplifting, to the point where Belltown no longer has a single pharmacy. But I haven't seen any of the small independant shops/bodegas close, including a small grocery shop right next to the 3rd/bell bus stop. I can't imagine that nobody is shoplifting from those. I'm no expert but it's never added up to me.
  - vel0city 2y ago
    I steal a bunch of candybars from a convenience store. What am I going to do, sell them for $1-2/ea just like the bodega? The high-margin goods like beer and wine require licenses to sell; I lose any benefit of plausible deniability in where I got these goods when I try and fence these on the street or online. Selling them without proper license is always a crime and practically impossible online. Meanwhile I steal a bunch of vitamins and OTC drugs I can sell at $10-20/bottle, packs of underwear at $10-20 a package. A lot of this can even be sold through Amazon at full retail pricing, I don't even have to try and sell it on the street.

nemomarx 2y ago

This being an opt in survey definitely makes the numbers suspect, but I agree with the sentiment at least.

lesuorac 2y ago

> Dworsky acknowledged that the results might be skewing high because it was an opt-in survey that readers took rather than a random one, and said his audience tends to be “interested in consumer matters,” which may mean they have a lower threshold for consumer inconvenience. Well, I'm not a reader of his survey and my general solution to inconveniences is to do something else also. That said, if my purpose of going to the store was to get that item I would try to find an employee to open it. However, I might not go to that store again if I thought items I wanted were going to be locked. Nothings lock online :/ What should the stores do? Honestly, not too sure. I don't find getting receipt checked at costco a big deal so that's definitely an approach.

vel0city 2y ago
> What should the stores do? Honestly, not too sure. I don't find getting receipt checked at costco a big deal so that's definitely an approach. In some of these stores, its not about someone putting one or two items extra in their bag. Its people filling up trash bags full of merchandise and walking out the store. People here will say it doesn't happen or it happens rarely. I've only been to San Francisco one time for a week, and I saw it happen in front of me at a Target. I've seen it happen in Austin a few times.

garbageman 2y ago

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akira2501 2y ago

> “If I encounter a locked case, I’m not going to start looking for a store clerk going up and down every aisle or pressing the button and waiting for someone to come over,” Dworsky told Retail Brew. “But the fact that it was over 50% of people that felt the way I did? I was really surprised.” You're surprised that bad customer service leads people away from the business providing it? This was a 101 problem. If you lock it, you need someone around to quickly unlock it, to satisfy your shoppers. To me, locking it up was _never_ about shoplifting, but about reducing customer service to it's bare minimum while still utilizing monopoly control and government interference and mismanagement to maintain a position without any actual competition. I mean, who _else_ but someone unconcerned with competition would even _think_ to lock up their products, as an _opening move_?

vel0city 2y ago
If there wasn't any shoplifting, would they still put things in cabinets? No? So how is this action not related to shoplifting? Like, how does putting it in a locked cabinet reduce their customer service needs? Doesn't this increase their customer service needs, as now they need more people to constantly help unlock cabinets and escort people around the store? Wouldn't they just prefer to have a store with no employees in it, if shoplifting wasn't a thing?
- akira2501 2y ago
  > If there wasn't any shoplifting, would they still put things in cabinets? The article points this out. The problem was likely overblown in the first place or it has magically disappeared without any effort. So, "organized shoplifting" almost certainly _wasn't_ the real reason they did this. > No? Obviously, yes, because it looks very much like that's what they did. > Doesn't this increase their customer service needs Yea, that's _exactly_ what I meant by this being a "101 problem." The question you _should_ be asking is, why didn't they hire _more_ people when they put the locked cases in? They obviously didn't. Do you have an explanation for this? > if shoplifting wasn't a thing? It's about removing competition, particularly from smaller stores, that can offer better service even if they don't have the variety and hours that the large chain stores do. No coincidence that in my town Walgreen's then closed 3 of it's major central locations and pushed everyone out to their more favorable and less expensive locations. These companies want to extract the maximum value from your city at the least cost to themselves. You are now seeing the very long tail of decades of their mostly illegal strategies being allowed to play out unchecked against the population.

massysett 2y ago

“The whole thing has a whiﬀ of pawnshop, which might actually be unfair to pawnshops.” Totally unfair to pawnshops: small stores typically have good service. Goods are behind the counter, but there is a person staffing that counter typically every minute that the store is open. The liquor store keeps expensive beverages behind the counter. I don't hesitate to go there, because the clerk is always there to retrieve items behind the counter. Go to Target, Home Depot, or CVS, and good luck finding anyone to help. I'm pushing a button and standing around helplessly, or asking a nearby employee who looks up quizzically and says "I don't have the key." If someone finally unlocks it, then they might have to escort the item across the huge store, where a cashier now has to get it and ring me up. Unlike tiny stores, big box stores are based on self service. Remove the self-service and the whole concept falls apart.

legitster 2y ago

> Mentions of “shrink” on earnings calls for the first two quarters of 2024 were down 20% compared to the same period a year ago according to a FactSet analysis cited by CNN. > “A year ago, America’s stores declared a shoplifting epidemic,” stated the CNN article. “This year, retailers are telling a very different story—or no story at all. It’s as if the shoplifting crisis suddenly vanished.” Kind of disingenuous of CNN here to declare that a 20% reduction in mentions is equivalent with "vanishing".

elric 2y ago

I recently tried to buy a single button cell battery at my local store. They're in a locked case near the entrance. I told the attendant which one I wanted, they handed it to me, I tried to putting it in my basket and was immediately told "no, you can't do that, do your shopping first and then come back for this". I went home and ordered it online. With free shipping. It ended up being cheaper than the one in the store to boot. Play stupid games, lose paying customers. Same goes with shops that refuse entry to people with bags (even a small backpack! but a purse is OK for some reason). I just won't shop there. Goodbye.

pixxel 2y ago
You’re blaming the wrong people. You’re blaming the response.

AnotherGoodName 2y ago

It’s near impossible to buy those things. I live in a region of the world where condoms are locked up at the local mega chemist. Absolutely no embarrassment here on buying them of course. It’s just that pressing the button does nothing. None of the minimum wage staff give a fuck (can’t blame them). You’ll just be standing there waiting in an almost empty store. The sole clerk at the counter can’t really leave their post and there’s no one else around. Not to mention not being able to look at the boxes first so you’re going to have to take 10mins of someone’s time at least while they stand there with the display open for a sale that nets $.50 profit. I buy online. Would suck to be a kid in that situation though.

bonestamp2 2y ago
They basically need a store full of vending machines. Then the items would be locked up AND you could actually buy them.
wccrawford 2y ago
I think this gets to the real reason of why people say they won't buy from the locked cabinets. As someone whose job was to carry that key in an office supply store, I can say that it's awful. We have other things to do, and even if you're acknowledged, you have no idea when that clerk will get to you. (And the clerk doesn't know either.) Aside: I once had a customer snap their fingers at me while I was walking another customer to a product because they wanted in the case. I looked at them, but was so thrown off that I didn't nod or anything, and just kept helping that customer. By the time I got to the case, they were gone. Later, I found I had a complaint issued against me for ignoring them, which I hadn't actually done. It just wasn't their turn yet. Management tried to turn it into a big thing in a meeting with the entire store, singling me out (not the first time). Someone else stood up for the situation and said they wouldn't help someone that snapped their fingers... Management started to rebut, but then a guy from furniture said, "Yeah! And I won't help people that whistle at me like a dog, either!" and management quickly changed the topic. Ah, such fun memories.
- giardini 2y ago
  When a customer interrupts you while you are aiding another customer, merely acknowledge their presence and tell them "Yes, ma'am, I'll help you after I've helped this customer. Thank you!" I say this b/c not acknowledging someone, even someone who is rude, is also rude. Manners (etiquette) are the key to civility. Really! They work but few even have heard, much less spoken of, manners or etiquette.

create-username 2y ago

You can buy a hundred shaving razors for like $10, as of 2016, the last time I bought. They will last you a long time, if you bought them. But you can’t buy them at any supermarket that I know of. They only sell Gillette or Wilkinson’s, which, at around 2,5 each, are a bad deal. These blades must be held behind display cases because consumers would rather risk their honour than paying the deal. Other products that are behind supermarket locked glass are alcohol bottles (overtly expensive poisonous water), perfume (ditto), and I don’t know what else. So, at the end of the day, supermarket locked display cases show overtly expensive products which are not worth their money; so why bother?

DiggyJohnson 2y ago
Alcohol and perfume are literally among the oldest luxury items imaginable.

bluetidepro 2y ago

> For 55% of respondents, it’s a lost sale, because when a product is locked up, they try to buy it elsewhere. It's wild to me that someone would rather go back to their car, drive somewhere else, HOPE it's not locked up there also, and THEN finally purchase the item at the new store instead of just waiting for someone to come unlock it at the current store you're at. I've personally never had to wait more than a few minutes for someone to come unlock a locked display. I find it very hard to believe anyone would rather add 30+ mins to their overall trip than just wait at the current store. My hunch is 2 things: 1) This is a case of "wishful" thinking rather than what they actually do. For a survey like this, people probably just unintentionally lied rather than what they would ACTUALLY do (wait for it to be unlocked). 2) The study would be much more accurate if you could actually somehow track what they did rather than just survey them on what they think they would do. Also, I could see this being a case of not purchasing impulse items. However, if you go to the store for toothpaste that you need, and all the toothpaste is locked up, then again, I find it hard to believe you don't wait. As someone else said in another comment: "What people say they won't do and what they actually won't do are not the same thing"

leoedin 2y ago
Presumably this depends a lot on what the item is. I’ve definitely thought about and decided against an impulse purchase because of a locked case. It turns “ooh I need that” into “ah, but I have to find someone and delay things”.
- bluetidepro 2y ago
  Yeah, I have no doubt about this stat for an impulse item. I agree that I wouldn't wait on an impulse item. But for an item you "need" or specifically came for, I don't believe anyone would not wait.
daft_pink 2y ago
I think it’s true for two reasons: 1. We generally go into multiple stores anyways. If there isn’t someone around, I won’t bother waiting around. Those razors at Walgreens are genearlly available at the Costco I goto once per week. 2. I generally will just order something online if there is any amount of friction. Amazon Prime and Target Circle 360 are easy. I didn’t upgrade my iPhone this year, because they canceled the Apple Leather case and getting a Leather case was a huge pain last year when I upgraded and I don’t want to bother this year while case manufacturers work out their camera button. I bet Apple executives would be shocked how just introducing a tiny bit of friction stops people from spending $1,500 to upgrade their device.

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vr46 2y ago

What people say they won't do and what they actually won't do are not the same thing

joshruby16d 2y ago

I was in a CVS where they had all the Tylenol/Advil behind a locked glass display, and all the CVS headache relief on the shelf. I mentioned to an employee that this seemed unfair/illegal, and they responded that "people only steal the brand name Advil, so that's what we lock up". Seems unlikely to me. Anyone else see something like this at CVS?

massysett 2y ago
This makes perfect sense: Advil might have resale value, CVS brand certainly doesn't. Tide also has brand currency and is stolen a lot.
robocat 2y ago
> I mentioned to an employee that this seemed unfair/illegal Complaining to employees about about shit the employee had no control over should be illegal. It's a job - they don't set the rules and often are not even told why the rules exist...
barryrandall 2y ago
I ran into that at a CVS a few years ago and stopped shopping at CVS.
stephenbez 2y ago
What law would this be breaking?
epoxia 2y ago
Unlikely that its problematic, brands/stores know that positioning/caging on shelves matter and negotiate accordingly. Eye level sells more than top/floor shelf.
vel0city 2y ago
People buy Tylenol off Amazon all the time. Who buys CVS brand acetaminophen on Amazon? You really think the market for CVS brand acetaminophen is as big as Tylenol?
- 2y ago

kayodelycaon 2y ago

I recently went to a store and they had no Apple products on display. It looked like they only sold accessories for iPhones. There weren’t even placeholders or signs. You had to ask the right employee for the specific product and you had to pay for it at a specific register before you could have it. The only reason I thought to ask was because their website said they had plenty in stock.

JoeAltmaier 2y ago

My local big-box home store had measurement devices (e.g. laser range finder; fancy tape measures) in a locked glass-fronted case. But the gap between the shelf above and the top of the glass was wide enough for me to fish around in there and get the one I wanted. Which I proceeded to checkout to buy, without incident. I wonder if they later had some inventory issue. No I guess I don't wonder; that's all on them.

abeppu 2y ago

Also in the 'solution to shop-lifting makes me shop elsewhere', there are two locally-owned independent hardware stores in walking distance from my home. One has a 'buzz to enter' vestibule with two doors whose locks are controlled by the cashier. You ring the exterior bell, the cashier buzzes you through the first door, and only after it closes will they buzz open the second door -- so you're trapped. The same is true on the exit. No one can run out of the store with an expensive power tool they didn't pay for. But even though I'm not stealing anything but I find the whole experience so deeply unpleasant that I've stopped going there at all. The second independent hardware store now has multiple security people at the front, and a mandatory bag-check policy. Except the bag check line is the customer service line, and I've literally waited 30 minutes total to drop off and then pick up my bag, stuck behind people with elaborate customer service requests. They have a bunch of staff on the floor, but they often don't actually know where stuff is, whether they carry X, etc. It becomes impossible to make a quick purchase of a single item. So more and more, I'm apt to buy whatever it was online. I don't want the extra amazon packaging. I tried going literally out of my way to buy at the local independent business. But they made it such a crap waste-of-time experience.

bsder 2y ago
> But even though I'm not stealing anything but I find the whole experience so deeply unpleasant that I've stopped going there at all. You're offended just for being buzzed in and out? Why? That's about the least offensive thing a business can do. If they were selling jewelry instead of hardware, everybody would consider it a mark of being upscale.
- abeppu 2y ago
  I'm not offended. I'm uncomfortable being trapped in an enclosed box in which I'm reliant on another person (who clearly distrusts me) taking 4 separate actions for me to enter and exit. The article points out that shoppers at Walgreens would rather go to another store than ask and wait for for a staff person to unlock their razor cartridges or whatever. This hardware store has effectively wrapped their business in such a barrier, and I would rather go to another store than ask and wait for a staff person to unlock 4 doors for me. Also, implicit in all of this is that: - you are submitting yourself for judgement based on how you look for them to decide whether you're likely to be a paying customer. I doubt whether any set criteria are used, but I fully expect that race, age, gender, and a range of class markers are involved. - though they the business are distrustful and unwelcoming of you the prospective customer, you the customer are forced to be entirely trusting of their staff. They start the interaction off by broadcasting the presumption that you may be a threat, and establishing unilateral physical control to restrain people on entry or exit. I read this as both hostile and inequitable.

neilv 2y ago

> National chains including Target have put much of their inventory behind glass in recent years as a response to what they call organized retail crime The Target personnel around here are usually nice, but the stores have the most conspicuous Loss Prevention activity in recent years, especially (besides the locked shelves) with what comes off as LP soft interventions. As a result, despite being a non-shoplifter, I've become self-conscious whenever I go into a Target (which is pretty often, lately, for location convenience reasons), unlike most other stores. I really wonder whether Target has considered how various measures intended to thwart shoplifters -- not only the locked shelves -- have negative implications for genuine customers. For example, take subtle signaling intended for shoplifters: it's not like shoplifters are the only ones who pick up on that. (Some people don't notice, but some people do.) I thought Target was supposed to be like Walmart, but with more designer style, and relatively upscale pretense. Yet lately it's like they're insinuating that shoppers are in a bad neighborhood, that ordinary individual shoppers are suspect, and they've got their eye on you.

red-iron-pine 2y ago
Target has taken a hard stance on shoplifting for a while, and have invested a lot of money into surveillance, facial recognition, etc. Most major retailers do to some degree but Target led the pack. At some point they had to realize that wasn't going to do much and just called in the Pinkertons to stare everyone down
m463 2y ago
There's a target I've gone to and the sketchy homeless people sort of invade the store. They bring their bicycles into the store with them (like down the aisles) I think they could use some loss prevention personnel to clean things up.

blinded 2y ago

I just wait and get it elsewhere.