By the Stats: Shoplifters, Dishonest Employees Continue to Erode Retail Profits

More than 750,000 shoplifters and dishonest employees were apprehended in 2004 in 12,908 retail stores, and these stores had combined annual sales in excess of $441 billion, according to the 17th Annual Retail Theft Survey, which was conducted by Jack L. Hayes International, a loss prevention consulting firm. Other data of interest to catalogers in the retail channel:

¥ Only 2.7 percent of retail losses in 2004 resulted in recovery.

¥ For every $1 recovered, $36.47 was lost to retail theft.

¥ Total dollar recoveries from apprehended shoplifters and dishonest employees in 2004 exceeded $112 million, an increase of 3.3 percent from 2003.

¥ One in about 28 employees was apprehended for theft from their employer (based on 1.7 million employees).