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State of Shrink Highlights: European Region
Sensormatic Global State of Shrink Series:
With the increasing development of technology and more convenience in shopping options, the retail industry continues to change and evolve dramatically around the world. In Europe, just like in the United States, the retail sector has suffered from decreases in revenue and slow growth, making it critical for retailers to how they are impacted by shrink.
Costing retailers nearly $100 billion globally, shrink continues to be a major concern around the globe. In the European region, this is particularly felt in countries such as the UK, which suffers about $7.45 billion (approx. €6.0 billion) in losses annually, according to the recently released Sensormatic Global Shrink Index[1]. Italy, however, has the highest rate of shrink as a percentage of sales at 2.32% (significantly above the global average of 1.82%), while Germany has the lowest at 1.43%[2].
The shrinkage problem retailers face, often comes from many angles and sources, with external factors such as shoplifting being one of its largest contributors. In Europe, 38.02% of losses are attributed to the aforementioned cause, with Organized Retail Crime (ORC) being one of the most costly problems. For example, in countries such as Italy and France, a single ORC event can end up costing retailers an average of $1,678.85 and $1,625.65, respectively! Discount stores in countries such as France and Russia are being hit the hardest from a shrink perspective, reporting shrink levels as high as 2.70% and 2.55%, respectively.
In light of such daunting market pressures, European retailers are not only faced with the challenge of innovating to drive sales and growth, but they must also react and adapt quickly to increasingly savvy thieves. Just like technology advances have helped fuel market opportunities to enhance the shopper experience, they have also opened a door to other ways shrink can impact an organization, begging the question: is your current loss prevention strategy enough?
To get a copy of the entire Sensormatic Global Shrink Index report, please go here.
Costing retailers nearly $100 billion globally, shrink continues to be a major concern around the globe. In the European region, this is particularly felt in countries such as the UK, which suffers about $7.45 billion (approx. €6.0 billion) in losses annually, according to the recently released Sensormatic Global Shrink Index[1]. Italy, however, has the highest rate of shrink as a percentage of sales at 2.32% (significantly above the global average of 1.82%), while Germany has the lowest at 1.43%[2].
The shrinkage problem retailers face, often comes from many angles and sources, with external factors such as shoplifting being one of its largest contributors. In Europe, 38.02% of losses are attributed to the aforementioned cause, with Organized Retail Crime (ORC) being one of the most costly problems. For example, in countries such as Italy and France, a single ORC event can end up costing retailers an average of $1,678.85 and $1,625.65, respectively! Discount stores in countries such as France and Russia are being hit the hardest from a shrink perspective, reporting shrink levels as high as 2.70% and 2.55%, respectively.
In light of such daunting market pressures, European retailers are not only faced with the challenge of innovating to drive sales and growth, but they must also react and adapt quickly to increasingly savvy thieves. Just like technology advances have helped fuel market opportunities to enhance the shopper experience, they have also opened a door to other ways shrink can impact an organization, begging the question: is your current loss prevention strategy enough?
To get a copy of the entire Sensormatic Global Shrink Index report, please go here.
[1] Sensormatic Global Shrink Index, 2017-2018
[2] Among the countries included in the Sensormatic Global Shrink Index study, 2017-2018
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