Governments increasingly recognizing the need to curb retail theft
Retail theft is soaring even as the holiday shopping season is fast approaching. With losses exceeding billions of dollars across Europe and US, the situation is looking perilous – for retail players large and small. And governments across the continents are waking up to the fact that retail theft cannot be allowed to continue unabated.
The latest government action comes from the California Legislature, which passed bills to curb retail theft (see news).
An exodus of retail stores across California
The bills do not come as a surprise considering the flight of retail chains from California. Between 2021 and 2024, a fairly large number of retail chains closed their stores especially in California owing to rising retail theft. Walgreens, Target, Starbucks, Subway, 7-eleven, Macy’s, Taco Bell… the list is long and worrisome. Denny's, which had operated in Oakland for 54 years, closed after being hit by a series of crimes.
Key factors that led to the exodus
The primary concern raised by the retailers while closing their stores was around the safety and security of their customers as well as their store staff. Additionally, theft and organized crime brought about a risky environment, making it difficult to conduct business. The threat or acts of violence and the negative impact brought about by retail crime on margins and profitability make the scenario unsustainable for retailer businesses.
Is this a regional or local issue?
California is in the news and is getting all the attention. However, other locations in the US and Europe cannot consider themselves to be insulated from this threat. Theft data across the US and Europe paints a grave picture – losses of USD 2 billion in US and UK is substantial and needs immediate attention.
Visual AI for deeper insights and contextual interventions
Visual AI can help retailers overcome the challenges of monitoring their stores as it can provide real-time monitoring, object detection, and data analysis capabilities. SAI Group’s visual AI can monitor and send alerts to the store staff in a discreet manner on their mobile devices in the store so that they can try to resolve the issue with customers in point before they leave the store.
SAI Group's Visual AI solution boosts customer satisfaction through self-correction, cuts wait times, and eases staff workloads. It also effectively reduces shrinkage at self-checkout counters. Our streamlined AI is cost effective and scalable – and is trusted by the best retailers.
If you are responsible for retail loss prevention and if you are based in Europe or US, talk to us at the earliest about ways to tackle retail shrinkage and unruly customers. We have developed extensive analytics on consumer behavior and can help you take robust, preventive actions to ensure that your retail stores can become self-sufficient in identifying and stopping retail crime – as and when it happens.
SAI Group provides Visual AI, data analytics, intuitive dashboards, and robust reporting capabilities to three of the top retail companies in the UK. Contact us today, if you are on the lookout for a Visual AI solution that provides almost immediate return on investment.
About SAI
As a leader in computer vision technology, SAI Group delivers cutting-edge, multi-modal AI solutions into retail environments. Using a unique platform approach, its technology uses existing camera systems to target losses, increase store safety, and underpin operational efficiencies.
All solutions are built from the ground up to ensure the highest levels of security and data protection, respecting the privacy expectations of the public and operating to stringent ethical standards while delivering substantial value to our clients. Globally, SAI monitors millions of transactions per day, protecting the revenues from tens of millions of product sales and hundreds of millions of customer interactions. Its models also accurately identify anti-social behavior, aggression and violence, helping to de-escalate situations with real-time interfaces to security officers and operations centers.
