Target stores have been, well, targeted relentlessly by brazen thieves according to the company’s recent earnings call.
“I got caught stealing from Target, I will try again later,” one man could be heard recently speaking on a cellphone as he marched away from the Kips Bay Target in Manhattan.
This exemplifies just how brash and unashamed would-be thieves have become when setting their sights on the chain. It is not uncommon to spy NYPD vehicles posted up outside the storefront in an attempt to dissuade and apprehend those bold enough to steal.
According to transcripts from a Nov. 16 earnings call with Target executives and investors that focused on the holiday season, speakers pointed out that crime has had a massive impact on earnings.
“This is an industry-wide problem that is often driven by criminal networks, and we are collaborating with multiple stakeholders to find industry-wide solutions. For example, because stolen goods are often sold online, Target strongly supports the passage of legislation to increase accountability and prevent criminals from selling stolen goods through online marketplaces,” Target Corporation Executive VP & CFO Michael J. Fiddelke said on the call.
Target Corporation Executive VP & COO John J. Mulligan expanded on this further, telling investors a shrink in margins is driven, in large part, to unwavering career criminals who make a profit by stealing goods. According to past NYPD press conferences, these criminals loot items and then sell them to fences who then flog the items online for inflated prices.
“It started probably in some localized geographies originally, but we see those circles expanding and expanding and the impact continuing to grow. I think from a solutions perspective, we see two things. One, this is a nationwide problem that we need to address nationwide with other retailers. This is primarily driven by organized crime. And so, there is a role for us to work as a retail group with law enforcement with the government to help find solutions. More specific to Target, there are things that we can do from a remediation standpoint. We have put those in place in a number of stores, and we see the impact of that. It’s obviously not something we like to do. It’s far less convenient for guests as they shop our stores, but we think we can manage that from a service perspective. And you can see us continue to do that. As we see stores that are more impacted, we’ll continue to provide additional remediation factors. The biggest focus for us is keeping our team and our guests safe. And so, we start there. And so that drives a lot of our behavior, and that’s the goal. And then the third thing is to prevent theft. But we really start in a place where it is about keeping our team and our guests safe as they’re in our stores,” Mulligan said.
This comes at a particularly difficult time for the company due to inflation and inventory shortage. According to information shared on the call, Target year-to-date, incremental shortage has already reduced their gross margin by more than $400 million when compared to the previous year.
In a statement from a target spokesperson, the retailer told amNewYork Metro that theft is rapidly increasing, leaving them to partner closely with law enforcement.
“Along with other retailers, we are experiencing a significant increase in theft and organized retail crime across our business. We’re partnering with law enforcement, legislators, community partners and retail trade associations to address this growing national problem, including strong support for the INFORM Consumers Act to increase accountability and prevent criminals from selling stolen goods on online marketplaces,” the spokesperson said.
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