In the wake of skyrocketing retail crime across the country, executives of major corporations like Target and Walmart are asking local governments to intervene before further harm is done to customers, employees, and company profits. Annual losses are hitting record highs and so-called “flash mob robberies” have become a common occurrence, leading to investigations even in cities notoriously soft on crime.
One of the latest smash-and-grab operations was captured on video in a Nordstrom in Los Angeles, California. As Valuetainment reported at the time, the store, located in the Topanga Mall, was raided by a mob of 30-50 hooded thieves that ransacked the store and ran off with designer merchandise worth thousands of dollars. Similar scenes have played out in hundreds of stores in almost every major city, though this incident stood out because of the perpetrators’ use of bear mace to incapacitate security guards.
Law enforcement agencies believe that these thefts, often organized via group messaging apps, are coordinated by third-party sellers that buy the stolen goods from the thieves and flip them for a profit online.
Despite the best efforts of the retail chains targeted by these flash mob robbers, little can be done without the support of local governments—and in places where the government refuses to help, corporate losses are staggering.
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“We do think that in some jurisdictions here in the US, there needs to be action taken to help protect people from crime, including theft,” Walmart CEO Doug McMillon told investors on Thursday. According to Walmart, “shrink,” which refers to inventory lost to theft and other circumstances, has increased in the last two years.
Similarly, Target CEO Brian Cornell told investors during a conference call that “Our team continues to face an unacceptable amount of retail theft and organized retail crime. Shrink remains consistent with our expectations but well above the sustainable level where we expect to operate over time, and unfortunately, safety incidents associated with theft are moving in the wrong direction.”
According to Cornell, Target locations saw a 120% increase in violent theft in 2023 and the company is currently on track to lose more than $500 million in profits to criminal activity.
In response to the growing reports of brazen theft, local governments are beginning to take action. In Los Angeles, the Nordstrom robbery spurred Mayor Karen Bass to create a regional law enforcement task force to specifically focus on retail crime. The interdepartmental group will consist of 22 full-time investigators and a district attorney. “No Angeleno should feel like it is not safe to go shopping in Los Angeles. No entrepreneur should feel like it’s not safe to open a business in Los Angeles,” Bass said.
However, efforts like this may be too little too late. Even before the robbery, Nordstrom announced that it would be closing its San Francisco locations later this year due to “deteriorating economic conditions and rising crime,” and other retailers are following suit.
Government responses also largely fail to address the root causes of the rising crime rates, including lack of police funding, reduced sentencing guidelines, and an end to cash bail.
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