NEUHAUSEN, Switzerland — February 27, 2018 —“Shrink,” otherwise known as a reduction in inventory due to shoplifting, employee theft, or other errors, significantly impacts a retailer’s bottom line. Tyco Retail Solutions, a global leader in data-driven loss prevention, announces the release of the new Sensormatic® Global Shrink Index. According to a study conducted by global retail market intelligence provider PlanetRetail RNG, shrink cost retailers nearly $100 billion globally. The objective of this research—one of the largest loss prevention studies in recent years—is to understand global shrinkage across 14 countries, spanning four regions. Attendees at EuroCIS 2018 will get an exclusive preview of the European data in advance of the full global report coming soon.

The report provides insights on the sources and impact of global shrink rates based on PlanetRetail RNG’s methodology of using macroeconomic data and retail sales. A total of 1,120 respondents representing a mix of retailers across 13 verticals in 14 countries participated in the study. They operate over 229,000 stores and generated $1.56 trillion in sales during 2016-2107. The retailers operate in the world’s leading economies, which account for 73 percent of global GDP and retailers account for 80 percent of total retail sales.

Findings revealed shrink is still a major concern for retailers all over the globe. Shrinkage rates are reported at 1.82 percent of annual retail sales. As a region, Europe has a slightly above average shrink rate (1.83 percent), and has below average loss prevention budgets (at 1.51 percent of revenue). Of the regions surveyed, Europe had the second highest shrink rate as a percentage of sales, totaling a shrink value of $29 billion. The report states that the United Kingdom is the third largest economy behind the U.S. and China, and has a shrink value at $7.5 billion. Country-level results indicate having the technology and visibility to track shrink enables retailers to manage its degeneration.

In addition, the study explores how different verticals are performing and shrink patterns from a regional and global perspective, as well as reports on data elements and tools being used by retailers to monitor and predict shrink in their businesses. As Loss Prevention’s role continues to evolve, the study identifies how they’re incentivized and measured; and what technologies and services they’re investing in to round out their loss prevention budget. It also looked at the top stolen items and brands; if retailers are source tagging; if they use or plan to use RFID technology; and what data is being mined to help combat all sources of shrink.

“Best in class retailers are optimizing their physical stores to ensure operational controls are in place for growing problems such as retail shrink,” said Tony D’Onofrio, chief customer officer, Tyco Retail Solutions. “The Sensormatic Global Shrink Index benchmarks retailer performance globally and sheds light on other factors effecting loss prevention. Knowing the state of shrink helps retailers better assess the challenges and solutions to make merchandise secure yet accessible for a better customer experience. As a trusted global leader, we’re helping retailers discover new ways to control loss and leverage it as an opportunity to increase profitability.”

“Know What’s in Store” with Tyco Retail at EuroCIS 2018: Experience EuroCIS 2018 , the leading trade fair for retail technology, at the Düsseldorf Fairgrounds in Germany. Visit Hall 9, Stand A03 from 27 February to 1 March to see firsthand how Tyco Retail Solutions is helping retailers “Know What’s in Store.”

You can learn more about Shrink Management as a Service (SMaaS),here.