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Whilst I find it old school to call a refrigerator such - a common Yeti in these parts filled with ice - eh? My Canyon coolers are boxy …
Walmart removing self checkouts, reported results include significant reduction in theft
- Thread starter GON
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4WD
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Home Despot here in my Canadian city has put the more expensive wall dimmer switches ($50 to $100) behind a locked fence (an isle section about 4 ft wide). I think this is somewhat recent. They've had the house wire (packaged and spools) behind a similar fence for a number of years now.
Not in Bellingham. Added more self checkouts but made the areas more visible for theft prevention
The article only says that police were not being called as much. It doesn't cite any "shrinkage" numbers from the store. With no self-checkouts, "caught cheating the self-checkout" no longer existed as a reason to call police. Fewer people caught does not necessarily mean that theft is down. If someone is caught, the item is recovered, so should that count as a theft loss at all? If no one is caught, the store doesn't know how if left the store. Without the self checkout option there may be a shift back to old methods of simply walking out with goods, or insider cooperation. If the person watching a self checkout is in cohorts with the customer that can facilitate theft the same as at a regular checkout.
Long lines and locked up merchandise will reduce sales, and that effect on the store's bottom line has to be balanced with theft loss.
Long lines and locked up merchandise will reduce sales, and that effect on the store's bottom line has to be balanced with theft loss.
Yes, but without actually disclosing the shrinkage numbers and locations, its all gas-lighting. With Walgreens they disclosed the most shrinkage were in stores that its pretty much legal to steal stuff less than $1000 and so they closed most of those stores. Are the wal-mart numbers the same?
As I said, I know someone in the retail world at a very high level. They have always said the biggest shrinkage comes from employees - the cashier not scanning items for someone they know most likely. So they traded employee shrinkage for self scan shrinkage - then they can blame others not themselves.
They could RFID tag everything - but they don't want to spend the $.
This article seems to confirm this whole contention from Wal-Mart is bunk: https://jobera.com/walmart-shrinkage-statistics/
"Shrinkage Contributors
- Employee Theft: A significant 43% of Walmart’s inventory shrinkage is due to employee theft.
- Shoplifting: Shoplifting contributes to 36% of Walmart’s inventory shrinkage.
- Vendor Fraud: Fraud by vendors accounts for 5.4% of the total shrinkage."
Most self checkouts where I shop are not open. They are staffing more checkouts and no longer checking receipts as much. Walmart can be $2-3 less than Hy-Vee on some of what I buy.
My wife was a Manager at Lowe's . The amount of theft by employees was unreal . Most of the cameras in the front end were aimed at the Cashiers . My wife became incredibly good at catching Cashiers stealing . She even successfully lobbied District to change camera angles to better see the views she needed . Loss Prevention opposed the changes but her District Managers saw that she knew her stuff . The Cashiers hated her and constantly filed complaints with HR over ridiculous things . I guess that's how you know you're doing your job , when the thieves hate you .
I am certain that the managers and even corporate turn a blind eye. Walmart doesn't want a employee mutiny, or inability to hire if word gets around. Easier to blame their customer - now that they have run all the competition out of town.
2 of the Wal Marts near me did away with self checkouts; then lines that are open are manned by 400-500lb lazy people that you can tell don’t want to be bothered. Rural King and Target or Foodland for us. Screw Wal Mart
Hard pass on Target and their politics - retailers should focus on selling product and not get involved. No Rural King here, wish there was.
I would be happy to shop somewhere else if the price were even close. Harris Teeter used to be worth it - more money but better quality, but since Kroger bought them they have fallen a long ways also.
I do prefer the tienda, but they don't sell windshield washer fluid.
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I’m at a loss why Canadians still pack Target. Wife says we sell different things. Really?
Walmarts in Central Texas are not too bad. One location (so Austin) is like a third world hotspot but even it isnt horrible in any way. I avoid it mostly. I buy oil and auto related stuff at Walmart. Cheap sneakers maybe. But I usually order online and pick up curbside as well as have things delivered occasionally. Dont even have to enter the store. Never shop at Target. HEB is the go to for groceries. Amazon Prime for other things.
So in short, WM has found that removing self check up spaces from 'some' selected stores has reduced theft by low life shop lifters. Makes sense to me. Last I checked, no company in business to lose money. I place blame the low life thieves, not WM. Locally, all WM I've been in, 3-4, have self check out spaces.
Yes but what they fail to say is 90% of the problem is in places where shoplifting is acceptable - which makes Walmart complicit to the narrative, IMHO.
I give credit to walgreens for calling a spade, a spade.
Maybe its unpreventable vs acceptable due to police shortages etc in those bad areas. I say close the stores in those places if the theft rate is too high.
Yeah, I blame the CEO and Board of Director too.
Hard for me to feel bad about theft from a company with very questionable practices and poor treatment of employees and vendors.
Yes, I am sure thats part of it.
But its the gas-lighting I don't like. Like they loose more from their own employees than shoppers, but then they get their spokesperson to go out and blame shoppers.
My issue is Walmart wants to infer all their customers are criminals. Walgreens simply said were going to close those stores. However Walmart gets $25B in SNAP sales every year, so my guess is they don't want to follow that road for the optics and lost revenue.
I have had many problems with Walmart delivery thefts as well - so much I stopped. Its actually humorous - the "photo of my stuff" is either a blank screen, or they try to stage the one tiny bag to pretend there is 5 quarts of motor oil behind it, or whatever. I wonder what category that gets lumped under.
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Well, we basically have twin towns 12 miles apart - and the same crews built SuperCenters B2B … The other town had the ding-ding cameras installed about 4 years before us … It’s certainly a rougher looking crowd in the other town - but our population has changed in recent years …
