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Post by cecilia on Sept 8, 2023 23:59:36 GMT
Wow, breetheflea I just can't relate to that at all.😲 Laundry detergent is completely unrestricted in my neck of the woods. Off the top of my head, the only things I can think of that are locked up in supermarkets are cigarettes, tobacco/filters/papers, and vaping products. ETA: And those things are locked at the checkout so the checkout assistant unlocks them on request as part of the checkout process. When I first started working for Walmart (2005), that store had to put the baby formula at the check out that was manned 24/7 due to the theft of it. When I transferred, that store didn't have it stored like that
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Post by crazy4scraps on Sept 9, 2023 1:10:40 GMT
Probably by sticking it under the basket of the cart and going through the self checkouts with other stuff at a busy time when the attendant isn’t paying attention. ETA: They also likely tag team, with one person having the detergent or other contraband in/under the cart and another person making a separate purchase but needing “help” from the attendant at another self checkout register. The one person occupies the attendant while the other one goes out the door with the stolen stuff. Or just load up a cart with it and roll on out the door like someone said they heard happened at a Home Depot. Out Home Depot doesn’t have any real cashiers anymore, it’s all self checkout. Let's go into business together, you've got it all worked out 🤣👍🏼 I owned a tiny retail store and had more theft than you would imagine. People who are determined can find some pretty creative ways to steal. 😕
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Post by auntiepeas on Sept 9, 2023 6:31:16 GMT
When I first started working for Walmart (2005), that store had to put the baby formula at the check out that was manned 24/7 due to the theft of it. When I transferred, that store didn't have it stored like that I just checked at our nearest New World supermarket and the most expensive baby formula I could see was Karicare Goat Milk Baby Infant Formula 900g for $48.55 NZD (about $44.78AUD, £23.93, $28.58USD). Here's how it's stored:
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Post by AussieMeg on Sept 9, 2023 6:46:46 GMT
Probably something like this and probably earlier: Amazon Go StoresFor good and/or bad, this is likely the future. That sounds kind of similar to Uniqlo. They use RFID tags on their items, and at the self serve checkout, you just dump everything into the designated area, which is like a box, and the machine calculates everything automatically. It's pretty cool. I assume Uniqlo uses this RFID technology worldwide - they have it at the Uniqlo stores here and in Singapore.
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Post by katlady on Sept 9, 2023 7:03:23 GMT
Probably something like this and probably earlier: Amazon Go StoresFor good and/or bad, this is likely the future. That sounds kind of similar to Uniqlo. They use RFID tags on their items, and at the self serve checkout, you just dump everything into the designated area, which is like a box, and the machine calculates everything automatically. It's pretty cool. I assume Uniqlo uses this RFID technology worldwide - they have it at the Uniqlo stores here and in Singapore. I haven’t been inside a Uniqlo store in awhile, but I heard it is available in all the US stores. Kind of neat. I have to go check it out one day.
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Post by auntiepeas on Sept 9, 2023 7:04:06 GMT
The Walmart that is in the city here had men's underwear and T-Shirts locked up. Didn't realize underwear were so special. Have you bought men's underwear lately? You're looking at about $17+ here, for a halfway decent quality pair of boxer briefs. Double that for brands like Step One. I haven't seen the Step One brand here but we're typically paying $26.95NZD (about $24.86AUD) for a pair of Mitch Dowd cotton boxer shorts.
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Post by AussieMeg on Sept 9, 2023 8:02:53 GMT
Have you bought men's underwear lately? You're looking at about $17+ here, for a halfway decent quality pair of boxer briefs. Double that for brands like Step One. I haven't seen the Step One brand here but we're typically paying $26.95NZD (about $24.86AUD) for a pair of Mitch Dowd cotton boxer shorts. It's ridiculous, isn't it? Co-incidentally, just after I posted that, DSO and I went shopping for clothes for him. He was shocked that a three-pack of boxers was $60. He usually buys his boxers from K-Mart. We bought the three pack, only because it was 30% off.
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Post by smasonnc on Sept 9, 2023 11:32:01 GMT
One staff member, covering multiple aisles to do the unlocking. The wait times are ridiculous and annoying. We encountered this in San Francisco. Had to track down that one employee who was in the stock room looking at her phone. “No customers in the store—online and pick up only” model. Or one where they bring it to your house. Oh, yeah. Amazon. Shoplifters are inadvertently making Jeff Bezos even richer, or rather not prosecuting shoplifters like in some cities.
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Post by crazy4scraps on Sept 9, 2023 12:50:44 GMT
I haven't seen the Step One brand here but we're typically paying $26.95NZD (about $24.86AUD) for a pair of Mitch Dowd cotton boxer shorts. It's ridiculous, isn't it? Co-incidentally, just after I posted that, DSO and I went shopping for clothes for him. He was shocked that a three-pack of boxers was $60. He usually buys his boxers from K-Mart. We bought the three pack, only because it was 30% off. Wow, that’s insane! I buy DH’s Champion boxer briefs at Costco, $17.49 for a five pack! Once he bought a single pair from Duluth Trading for $20 and after wearing them decided they weren’t any more special than the cheap ones he usually gets so he never felt compelled to buy more of the expensive kind. Ironically enough, that expensive pair almost never leaves the drawer.
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Post by LavenderLayoutLady on Sept 10, 2023 10:57:05 GMT
Yes, pretty much.
Laundry detergent, toiletries, cold beverages (like individual soda & energy drinks), tobacco products, vapes.
Meat has security sensors on it.
It is depressing.
I buy household goods and toiletries online to avoid the hassle.
I buy most of my groceries at Aldi, which doesn't lock up most of their food.
I don't like walking into a store to spend my hard-earned money, only to be treated like a criminal under constant suspicion from the second I walk in the door.
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Post by cindytred on Sept 10, 2023 15:59:51 GMT
Earlier this year, the Walmart that I frequent the most had all of its Dove products locked up in a case. I'm talking about Dove bar soap, body wash, hand lotion, etc. I thought it was so bizarre. All of the other brands of bar soap were just sitting out on the shelf not locked up. I was at Micheals the other day to get a Posca Paint Pen. They were locked up and I had to get assistance. I was talking to the clerk about why this was necessary because right next to the Poscas were other paint pens that weren't locked up. She said no one steals those because they aren't as good as the Poscas. Cindy
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Post by refugeepea on Sept 10, 2023 22:31:51 GMT
My husband does most of the shopping, but I don't think so.
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Post by mymindseyedpea on Sept 11, 2023 10:02:40 GMT
Our grocery store where I work has our expensive liquor, baby formula and cbd oils locked up.
And installed those push buttons for assistance. The thing is we are timed by corporate to respond to a call within 3 requests. The thing is not many know how to turn the request off so we got dinged for no reason.
I have noticed other stores have their shaving blade refills locked up. Half priced books has their card decks locked up. But nothing new.
Our biggest theft seems to be liquor.
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Post by melanell on Sept 11, 2023 21:18:41 GMT
I was completely sure this was going to be an old thread. I could swear we had this exact thread before. I kept looking at the date over & over again. It's so weird, LOL! Anyway, no, nothing is locked up around here that hasn't been locked for ages---like razors at CVS, for example.
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Post by papersilly on Sept 11, 2023 22:05:54 GMT
I don't understand, why does the laundry detergent need to be locked up? have you seen the price of Tide? it's laundry gold. LOL
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Post by auntiepeas on Sept 11, 2023 23:06:17 GMT
I don't understand, why does the laundry detergent need to be locked up? have you seen the price of Tide? it's laundry gold. LOL As far as I know we don't actually have Tide here but I don't have any trouble believing you on that one. 😂 Just out of curiosity on Sunday I had a quick look at the New World supermarket closest to me and the most expensive laundry detergent they had was Persil Front & Top Loader Ultimate Laundry Powder 4kg with a regular price of $34.05NZD (about $31.35AUD, £16.11, $20.16USD). Here's how it's stored and sold there (it's the one on the bottom shelf in the photo):
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Post by melanell on Sept 12, 2023 0:57:39 GMT
I don't understand, why does the laundry detergent need to be locked up? have you seen the price of Tide? it's laundry gold. LOL I've never purchased Tide, but the Seventh Generation squirt bottle of laundry detergent is so small it can practically fit in your coat pocket & that's $13 & change, so I can only imagine. Ironically, despite being small enough to slip in a pocket, it's not locked up.
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SweetieBsMom
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,612
Jun 25, 2014 19:55:12 GMT
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Post by SweetieBsMom on Sept 15, 2023 18:44:26 GMT
This was in the WSJ today:
America’s Battle With Shoplifting Is Getting Dangerous for Workers
Death of CVS store manager highlights worst risks to staff confronting surge in retail thefts.
Michael Jacobs, a CVS store manager in Mesa, Ariz., thought a man was stealing from his store so he confronted him and called the police.
Officers arrived moments later and the suspect was released after the manager said he wouldn’t press charges. The suspect then went home, grabbed a gun and returned a few hours later to the store, where he shot and killed Jacobs, according to police.
Retailers are facing a growing wave of theft that has led companies to take different steps in response, including locking up more merchandise on shelves, hiring off-duty police officers and closing some hard-hit stores. Most shoplifting isn’t violent, but several retailers have reported an increase in organized theft rings and violent incidents that are complicating the task of stopping thieves while keeping workers safe.
A spokesman for CVS Health said that the company was saddened by the Sept. 7 shooting at the Mesa store and that it made counseling services available to Jacobs’s co-workers and was assisting Jacobs’s wife with access to benefits. CVS instructs its employees to avoid conflict and contact police if they observe criminal activity in its stores. Jacobs’s family started a GoFundMe page to raise $10,000 for funeral expenses and said they hadn’t yet received assistance from CVS. The 49-year-old’s death left behind two children and his wife of 23 years, Stacy.
“He gave so much to that store,” Stacy Jacobs said. She couldn’t understand how this happened to her husband while working where he had spent the last 20 years. She said her husband usually would be the one to defuse difficult situations with others.
Scott Glenn, vice president of asset protection at Home Depot, said “the violence and intimidation that’s going along with [theft] is starting to become even more aggressive.”
In April, a Home Depot employee working for the company’s asset-protection program was fatally shot inside a store in Pleasanton, Calif., after attempting to stop a female suspect from stealing. A Home Depot spokeswoman said security personnel at stores are specially trained to address shoplifters to reduce the risks for employees and customers. Other store workers are directed not to approach a suspected shoplifter because it is too dangerous, she said.
A National Retail Federation report this year said eight in 10 retailers responding to the trade group’s annual survey had seen an increase in violence and aggression associated with organized retail-crime incidents in 2022.
Target Chief Executive Brian Cornell said last month that the retailer recorded a 120% increase in theft incidents involving violence or threats of violence during the first five months of the year. The company didn’t immediately provide the number of incidents.
How employees are required to handle shoplifting cases varies depending on the business, according to the retail federation’s report. Small businesses have fewer resources to combat crime and can’t easily move locations. Most big chains, such as CVS and Home Depot, instruct clerks not to confront shoplifters. Some stores ask employees to call the police only in response to thefts that involve violence or pose a physical safety threat. A shoplifting incident in a Walgreens store in Nashville, Tenn., in April led to the shooting of a pregnant suspected shoplifter. A store worker started recording two women as they left the store with items they hadn’t paid for. One of the women turned to spray the man with mace; the employee pulled out a gun and started firing. He later told police he was afraid and didn’t know if the women were armed, according to police. He was charged by the Davidson County District Attorney’s Office with aggravated assault but a grand jury declined to indict him this week. The woman was indicted for theft and assault.
Walgreens didn’t respond to a request for comment. The chain invested last year in additional security and antitheft measures, some of which executives later said was ineffective.
“The safety of employees and customers is always the top priority,” said Nordstrom CEO Erik Nordstrom last month during a call with analysts, after a video of a robbery at Nordstrom inside a mall in Canoga Park, Calif., went viral.
In the video, dozens of people can be seen grabbing as much merchandise as they can carry and running out of the store while staff and others stand by and watch.
Companies are collaborating with law enforcement to track repeat offenders, and some have started conducting their own investigations so they can hand cases to local police. “We do think that in some jurisdictions here in the U.S. there needs to be action taken to help protect people from crime, including theft,” Walmart CEO Doug McMillon said last month.
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pantsonfire
Pearl Clutcher
Take a step back, evaluate what is important, and enjoy your life with those who you love.
Posts: 4,762
Jun 19, 2022 16:48:04 GMT
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Post by pantsonfire on Oct 2, 2023 23:33:05 GMT
So I went inside my local Target today and was sadly shocked.
Not only are a lot of products now locked up (they were not beginning of last month when I went in for paper towels), but a lot of their shelves are bare.
They had extremely low stock on cleaning supplies, toiletries, toilet paper, water, etc. It reminded me of when stores fully reopened and people started to shop in store again (so like May of 2020).
Not only all that but the lights were half off, it was messy, drunk unhoused persons were roaming around, I was hit uo for money, the employees were rude A.F., and their flat bed carts were in the way just sitting there while the stockers gossiped.
Only 1 actual check out lane open.
Every since our Target was reset (grocery store added and it was gutted and redone all over), it doesn't have the same feel anymore.
It is cold and sterile. And I am not going to wait for an item I need because it is locked up.
It was like our WalMart which has been that way for years.
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Post by katlady on Oct 3, 2023 2:46:28 GMT
pantsonfire Sorry to hear your Target is like that. The ones around me are still the same as before. Only a few stuff are locked up (the usual electronics), fully stocked shelves, and employees are still nice and helpful. I don't know how many check out lanes are open because I go straight to the self-check out, but it seems like more than one is open. The WalMart directly across the street from one of the Targets near me does have lots of things locked up. I am in So. Cal.
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Post by andreasmom on Oct 3, 2023 16:22:42 GMT
My nearest Target has all the laundry detergent aisles in locked cases, and my Fred Meyer (grocery store) has not only security guards but these metal arm things that automatically open to get in but you can’t use them to get out of the store. I get why they’re doing it, but it makes it hard to shop when you have to get the cases unlocked and the maze they’ve made to leave the store… ETA: it's the laundry detergent, deodorant, and toothpaste aisles that have locked cases. I had to run in there to grab something a few minutes ago... I went to Target for the first time in months today and was so surprised to see everything locked up. Waiting for a deodorant took like 8 mins.
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pantsonfire
Pearl Clutcher
Take a step back, evaluate what is important, and enjoy your life with those who you love.
Posts: 4,762
Jun 19, 2022 16:48:04 GMT
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Post by pantsonfire on Oct 3, 2023 16:53:44 GMT
Thankfully grocery stores here have open isles. We'll except very expensive liquor, cigarettes, and certain formula. But you get that at check out so no wait.
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Post by sabrinae on Oct 3, 2023 17:02:25 GMT
Probably something like this and probably earlier: Amazon Go StoresFor good and/or bad, this is likely the future. That sounds kind of similar to Uniqlo. They use RFID tags on their items, and at the self serve checkout, you just dump everything into the designated area, which is like a box, and the machine calculates everything automatically. It's pretty cool. I assume Uniqlo uses this RFID technology worldwide - they have it at the Uniqlo stores here and in Singapore. Disney has started using rfid tech and their app in their stores in parks. It does make check out much quicker. I was going to say we haven’t had it except in very limited circumstances. But I went to Walmart a couple of days ago and all the face wash, lotions, treatments were all locked up. I wouldn’t mind so much except finding someone to unlock it is almost impossible. I just won’t buy stuff there or only buy it if I can order online and pick up.
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Post by JustCallMeMommy on Oct 3, 2023 17:07:37 GMT
I haven't noticed that anywhere I shop, but I'll admit, I don't shop for laundry detergent, toothpaste, or deodorant frequently. There are only 2 of us, and even with sending DD a few supplies, we are light users. I've seen a few products in giant. bulky boxes that the cashier has to remove.
What baffles me about those products is that I enjoy watching weekly coupons videos for the stores that offer good coupons (don't use them a lot because keeping a stockpile seems nuts since it would overtake our home in no time), and I've realized I've been massively overpaying for all three of those. On any given week, there is a good deal on one or all of those (and toilet paper, paper towels, and for some reason plug-ins and refills) just using store and manufacturer coupons mostly using Walgreens, CVS, or Dollar General apps.
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None
Full Member
Posts: 453
Sept 17, 2017 13:10:30 GMT
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Post by None on Oct 3, 2023 17:59:01 GMT
I don't understand, why does the laundry detergent need to be locked up? because it's a high theft item. For resale.
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Post by bratkar on Oct 3, 2023 18:13:35 GMT
I feel like I would be lost in a Target, Walmart or larger grocery store lately... I haven't shopped Walmart since pre2020, Target I do curbside pick up (it has cut my overspending there by 200% I think) and grocery's I get at Aldi or the local grocery store (that carries more specialty items)
At this point in my life, spending the time to drive and shop a store, just seems like a nuisance. I am more than happy to place online orders for pick up or shipped.
(and I used to be a big shopper, who would spend her Wednesdays going to all kinds of stores)
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Post by auntiepeas on Oct 4, 2023 0:34:48 GMT
I don't understand, why does the laundry detergent need to be locked up? because it's a high theft item. For resale. Thanks. Yes, a couple of peas have let me know that too earlier in the thread. The video workingclassdog shared was really shocking to me.
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Post by Merge on Oct 4, 2023 13:13:52 GMT
My Target doesn’t have anything locked up that I’ve noticed other than small electronics.
I wonder how all this affects Instacart shoppers, and if IC will stop delivering from some stores. Having to wait for multiple items to be unlocked could cost them a lot of time/money.
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