Know the latest report of the National Retail Federation.

National Retail Federation: Big-Box Retail Chain Target Corporation Announces Several Store Closures (Photo: SmallBizClub)

According to the National Retail Federation, Target announced the closing of several outlets due to staff security and theft concerns.

In the midst of an upsurge of news stories about occasionally violent organized thefts at stores, retail executives have spoken frequently about shrink, or the losses they suffered due to theft, fraud, or employee error over the previous year. 

However, according to the findings of a survey by the National Retail Federation issued on Tuesday, the indicator only slightly increased in 2017.

According to a survey from the National Retail Federation, a trade association for retail sector, the average shrink rate as a percentage of sales increased from 1.4% to 1.6% in 2022. The 2022 figure is comparable to those from 2020 and 2019.

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The report of the National Retail Federation states that the losses were in the billions of dollars coming in at $112.1 billion up from $93.9 billion in 2021. 

The report from the National Retail Federation also stated that the violence of those crimes was causing retailers growing anxiety.

According to David Johnston, the National Retail Federation’s vice president for asset protection and retail operations, these crimes’ severity and safety worries continue to be a top focus for all retailers regardless of size or their field.

People who work in asset protection and loss prevention were surveyed by the National Retail Federation in collaboration with the Loss Prevention Research Council. 177 retail brands provided comments or information for the research. 

The report from the National Retail Federation was released on the same day that Target Corp TGT, -2.48% announced it would close nine locations across four states in the upcoming month due to employee safety concerns and theft.

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