Retail group pulls back on claim organized retail crime accounts for nearly half of inventory loss

By ANNE D’INNOCENZIO
AP Retail Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — The National Retail Federation has revised a report released in April that pulls back the claim that organized retail crime accounts for nearly half of overall industry shrink, which measures overall loss in inventory, including theft. The revision of the group’s organized retail crime report on Dec. 1 follows an analysis from online news site Retail Dive that found mistakes in the data. NRF said it recognizes the challenges that the retail industry and law enforcement face in tracking theft. Indeed, a shoplifting report by a nonpartisan group released last month examined 24 major U.S. cities and showed that shoplifting incidents were 16% higher compared with the first half of 2019. But excluding New York City, reported incidents actually fell 7% over the same time period.