(TheConservativeTimes.org) – A grocery store chain in Europe recently spoke out about their experience with shoplifters and how increasingly clever they have become.
They stated that they actually had more loss than profit in 2023 since shoplifting is becoming more discreet.
Ton Van Veen, CEO of grocery store chain Jumbo, said “You sometimes fall over in shock to witness how creative people are to take products without paying. We often catch people not scanning products, or not paying at the cash register. People are becoming increasingly sophisticated in not paying for products.”
Jumbo is a grocery store chain in Europe that has over 700 store locations. The company, when detailing its earnings, spoke out saying that the value of items stolen was 25% higher than the profits that the stores brought in. The chain stated that the shoplifting loss was around $100 million, and the annual profit is expected to be $88 million after taxes.
“In many stores, the loss due to stolen products now amounts to around 1 percent of turnover, and store employees are confronted with unpleasant situations and increased tensions,” the company said speaking out about the losses.
Jumbo officials said that shoplifting is becoming more and more popular and frequent, especially as the cost of living rises. There was a 60% increase in shoplifting incidents from 2022 to 2023.
Jumbo even said that they, and others, have started putting security guards in their stores in hopes of preventing shoplifting.
Some studies have emerged revealing how concerning and widespread this issue is becoming. One stated that in Belgium, four in ten people would leave a grocery store with at least one item that they didn’t pay for.
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