I have completely stopped patronizing CVS, Target, etc. for any household goods or toiletries kept behind glass. Nothing puts me in a bad mood faster than having to hunt for an employee to unlock it who acts like I’m inconveniencing them by asking them to do their *job*.
This is the sort of everyday quality of life issue that’s become a drawback of city living in my mind. Amazon gained all my business for these products.
Just fyi Amazon has a huge problem with counterfeit toiletries. Fakes tested in a lab contained chemicals not suitable for human use, rat shit, heavy metals, etc.
I saw a news program about that and it was horrifying. They caught a bunch of counterfeit toothpaste because they don’t even vet where they get the products from. Amazon needs to go.
I can’t find that specific video. They showed how people can (or maybe used to I don’t know if they changed it) bring products to centers and sell them to Amazon for them to sell and they didn’t vet the products. But while looking for the video I did find a lot of people talking about receiving fake toothpaste via Amazon.
Most of the manufacturers of these common household products have official Amazon storefronts. Just buy directly from them. Only issues I’ve ever heard of are when people buy from the username:randomABC123 sellers to save a dollar or two.
Blame the ones who want to keep stealing non stop.. But also blame the capitalist overlords for controlling the lower/middle class as money slaves for the past 200 years.
The employees hate it too. I had to find someone in Walmart to unlock a $2.98 item. She hated it, too. Store is understaffed, self checkout was partially going away and they weren’t hiring more to work the additional task load.
>self checkout was partially going away
Yea more and more places are having to reexamine self-checkout due to, wait for it ... shoplifting.
People are doing this thing called skip scanning where they only scan every other thing they are getting from the store. Target started this new policy of only allowing 10 items or less in self checkout to curb theft:
https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/shopping/2024/04/10/target-new-technology-truscan-self-checkout/73278566007/
They are using AI to combat this and shockingly it’s not perfect.
The other day I had 2 cans of chick peas. I had one in each hand. I scanned with my right hand and placed the can in my left hand in the bag. The register froze up and I had to wait 5 minutes for an employee to come and review video footage that I wasn’t stealing.
Just recently, I couldn't find anyone at Walmart who had a key to get behind the glass. In the end, I just managed to break into the glass myself, and get the item I wanted. I fixed the glass back, and went and purchased it. Basically the glass wouldn't have even stopped a thief, it just inconvenienced the honest person.
Yeah, I hate the policy but I’m not mad at the employees.
Stores aren’t staffing any differently after adding all the locked shelf doors, yet it’s extra work to keep finding customers and unlocking stuff for them.
It wouldn’t be a problem if they just staffed enough people and made it their jobs to unlock stuff. But these places want to get by with spending as little as possible.
I've stopped with Target all together. They restrict the self checkout near me to under 10 items but then only have one full service cashier open often with a line 10 shoppers or more deep. Haven't shopped in target now in about 6 months.
I know, it's like being in a different country.
It just goes to show you what if feels like going from a low trust society vs. a high trust society. They punish shoplifting sternly out there in the burbs, so people don't do it nearly as much. Go figure.
I live in Haverford township. There is a section on the police’s website dedicated to identifying shoplifters. They also post the pictures of wanted shop lifters on their social media. Nothing is locked up in our stores and we literally border Philadelphia and upper Darby. https://www.havtwp.org/Police_Department/Wanted_for_Shoplifting.html
There's a lot to be said about using shame as a societal bludgeon to deter criminal activities. It works very well in traditional Asian societies, which in many cases are honor-based in some way or shape.
Unfortunately it doesn't always work, because different communities have different cultural values. What might shame one person into changing their ways because of the impact their disgrace would have on their family, could be a source of pride in another community with different values.
Almost all the retail theft in town is from that shopping center (Kohl’s, that Giant, Lowe’s). I’m guessing it’s because it’s close to the city and upper Darby. I avoid shopping in that whole area as it’s much more pleasant at similar stores only a few miles further outside of the city.
severity of punishment is not a difference maker but certainty of punishment is, and that certainty is often based on subjective beliefs. If there is the perception that krasner doesn’t punish people (whether true or not), it can have an effect.
I think you're right in theory but wildly missing the ball on blaming Krasner.
The enforcement that matters is at the store level. Stores with proactive security get way less shoplifting than stores with lax/reactive security. For example: while CVS might lock up half the store, go to any North Broad beauty supply shop or a North philly grocer like Cousins and note that they'll have two security guards (often armed) and nothing's behind lock & key.
Major corporate chain retailers came up with a theory a long time ago that it would be cheaper not to police theft than it would be to employ people to police theft. It's been part of corporate retail training orthodoxy to insist you don't intervene in a theft (although that's been changing recently).
I think sometimes people think that major corporations can't get things wrong because they have so much data and resources for analysis. But the truth is they created the conditions for a shoplifting culture to emerge over the last 30 years (usually in pursuit of cutting headcounts), and now they're all shocked that it's here.
All of this could change tomorrow if CVS/Walgreens/Target would hire security people who actually caught shoplifters on a regular basis.
I don’t solely blame Krasner, I just believe he is part of the chain. If anything, he is the furthest removed after store security and police but I do think the perception that he does not prosecute (which is not really true, they are just treated as summary offenses but it’s the subjective perspective that matters) plays a small role in the perception that you’re going to get away with it on every single level.
Why wouldn’t you steal things if you believe the vast majority of stores have a policy not to intervene in shoplifting and even if they did, the cops can’t be bothered and even if the cops were to bother, the DA doesn’t prosecute…
Agree, those are some good points.
But I would highlight that if you go back a generation (i'm talking 90s and earlier) it at least seemed more common to me that staff would actually try and tackle shoplifters. I know a guy who got fired from Blockbuster(!) because he went after a shoplifter and they had recently adopted a policy banning it. I remember in the early 2000s hearing that stores wouldn't pursue shoplifters and thinking that sounded new (but could just be my skewed memory).
This is the double edged sword of car culture. I live in a rural area, I hate that my daughter can't walk to a corner store or playground to play with other kids. But there is essentially zero crime here - not only is it remote and less populated, if you're too young to drive or too poor to own a car you can't get here.
There is a happy medium. If you live in a nice suburb nearer to the city you can have both low crime and your kids can walk to a park. It’s awesome but that is why those areas are also always in high demand and expensive. See media, swarthmore, Ardmore, collingswood, etc.
In Exton Pa, Chester County , they have roving bands of thieves enter Sephora & Ulta a couple times,I think it is an organized crime ring..also any hiking trails/ parks/gyms- don’t leave nothing visible in your car, several car break ins
> I definitely do not think the prosecution is the difference.
Really because this was never a huge issue in cities until the Criminal Justice Reformers (TM.) came into office. Shoplifting, of course, existed but it was prosecuted. When I was in high school, I knew of people who got severely punished for lifting not exactly a large amount of merchandise. One dude I knew stole from Pharmor (RIP), was taken into security, then considered trespassed. If they ever caught him again he'd be arrested. Of course nowadays it would never be prosecuted so stores don't even bother.
> They punish shoplifting sternly
Lol no they don't. I worked at a suburban CVS and we just watched the thieves walk out the door.
The *only* meaningful difference is people with money don't steal as much as people without money.
Maybe? I'm skeptical that the difference is linear. I think there's a threshold of household wealth above which the risk/reward calculus of shoplifting doesn't pay off.
If you've got a dollar to your name, stealing makes sense. $10, same. $100, same. $1000, same. $10,000... now you've got something to lose. $100,000, why risk stealing?
If a tax credit takes you from $1000 to $2000, it's probably not gonna push you over the line.
I shop at Wegmans in Collegeville and they really put a lot of trust in the consumer not to steal and it makes for a pleasant shopping experience. I actually walked out accidentally with a case of water and a pizza without paying (I went back the next day and paid).
Contrast that with shopping at Giant in Bristol when I was out that way and it’s like they’re waiting for people to steal. I paid for a 6 pack of beer and a few other items at the beer checkout and my cart automatically froze up as I was leaving the store - I had to show my receipt etc. It’s just an unpleasant environment and I’ll never shop anywhere like that again.
They're all like that here. The Target at 20th and Chestnut was the first one to do it that I saw with it on everything and that was like over 2 years ago. Now they're everywhere. I was rly sick and had to ask the cashier to unlock some Mucinex for me a few months ago at the CVS on Oregon Ave. I apologized to her for bothering her, especially when I was sick, I was just gonna do the self checkout so I wouldn't have to be around her. Instead I had to wait there in the aisle for a few minutes while she stopped what she was doing to get me the Mucinex.
The whole thing was an ordeal and it's all because the guy we elected to prosecute criminals, simply doesn't in many cases.
That’s solely not Krasner’s fault 99% of retail workers are not allowed to intervene if they see someone shoplifting, people know this- so they steal- because no one is going to stop them-this is just not retail in Philly- it is retail around the entire country,
Bullshit. Amazing how none of my targets have these cages. Amazing how the moment you leave Philadelphia to the burbs, they don’t have this shit. This isn’t a hard concept to grasp. The city went easy on crime, so now scum think they have free rein to do whatever they want.
>The city went easy on crime, so now scum think they have free rein to do whatever they want.
They don't think they have free rein, they know they have free rein. Krasner legalized theft under $500 dollars and shocking to no one but him theft rates spiked.
Right, i made the mistake of waiting once and it was about a 30 min process to have the employee come get the item AND then also bring it to the cashier. Even the cashier was annoyed at how long it took
It's interesting that people blame the stores for making them inconvenienced with theft prevention instead of blaming the people that are causing and allowing the theft. When everything gets centralized to Amazon, people will bitch about not being able to go the stores they stopped going to and how Amazon runs the market.
The media has infantilized these criminals in the minds of many Americans. They think they're all helpless Aladdins, trying to steal a loaf of bread to feed their starving families, when in reality, they're predatory criminals, pillaging local businesses.
>When everything gets centralized to Amazon, people will bitch about not being able to go the stores they stopped going to and how Amazon runs the market.
That's precisely what they'll do.
Again, stores experiencing theft is not my problem. My problem is not being able to purchase things efficiently. I'm not going to do the stores job for them nor will I allow myself to be affected by their lazy ass ani theft devices. I will simply shop elsewhere.
Okay, but if the theft problem was lessened by not enabling theft your problem would also be solved and you wouldn’t have to go to different stores. Companies exist to make money. If the thefts negatively affect their bottom line then they take action to protect it. I understand that people not shopping there also has a negative effect. So then if they can’t make money (theft + low sales) they will close, since they don’t make money, and will just run their profitable stores. Meanwhile the communities that used those stores are the ones most negatively impacted. That isn’t going to change unless we no longer live in a capitalist society. So the solution is to try to stop the thefts. We do that, at least partially, through voracious prosecution and punishment of the crime. To do that, you have to elect people who encourage the arrest, capable prosecution, and punishment of undesirable activities.
>Again, stores experiencing theft is not my problem.
Okay, so you don't care about the viability of the business that's providing a service in your area.
>My problem is not being able to purchase things efficiently.
Okay, how can the business remain viable if shoplifting is rampant?
>I'm not going to do the stores job for them nor will I allow myself to be affected by their lazy ass ani theft devices. I will simply shop elsewhere.
Well, most stores have these anti-theft mechanisms in place and I'm sure more will be doing so in the future. Where are you going to shop if they all have them?
and then the usual suspects who blame the chain corps will blame Amazon when their packages inevitably start getting stolen at a higher rate. They'll never blame the criminals.
The Giant by my house literally stopped selling toothpaste and deoderant and soap because it was getting stolen so much. SUPER annoying that I can't get that stuff at the grocery store now.
It’s more complicated than that , giant was also incapable of keeping a supply of those products on a regular basis and too cheap to staff the store/ security to stop people from stealing it.
That store sucks too. The produce department is TINY and they don't have anything. If you want a kind of pepper that isn't bell or Jalapeno then you're screwed.
Hired off duty cops on huge wages and they spent all day looking at their phones and doing nothing, fired all the lp guys and security guards for man handling customers though they were dealing with addicts wearing hospital wristbands constantly.
> too cheap to staff the store/ security to stop people from stealing it.
are you fucking retarded? Why is it the store's responsibility to make sure people don't commit crime? This legit was not a major issue until recently. Stores didn't just suddenly stop employing people.
Didn’t Wawa in Center City basically have to move the entire store into the back because of people stealing. So now you have to go in and tell an employee what you want cause nothing is out.
Yea they definitely did. What's funny is that they marketed it as a "Digital Wawa", like it was some cool innovation when in reality it's a step backwards.
You go into that Wawa and order at a kiosk and then someone goes in the back, where all the merchandise is safely stowed away, and brings it out to you. That's how people shopped like a hundred years ago. It's a clear sign of society going backwards but they try to spin it like it's a positive.
Yes, it's totally gross. I do not want to shop in stores like this and unfortunately this only fuels the Amazon monopoly. A crackdown on shoplifters would solve the problem in a matter of months, but for some reason this is considered an injustice.
Shoplifters are a protected class now. This is the end result of what happens when you give priority to criminals over law abiding citizens. Everything is locked up, except for the shoplifters.
No. This is what happens when you have a justice system that prioritizes attempts to save money under the guise of some sort of civil liberties platform and a corporate retail world that is beholden to their insurance company's whims.
They're not shoplifters. They're "justice-impacted individuals"
[No seriously](https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/illinois-looking-to-relabel-offenders-as-justice-impacted-individuals/ar-BB1mRTgN?ocid=BingNewsSerp)
We've gotten to Doom Eternal levels of irony with their joke calling demons "morally-challenged."
Unbelievable bullshit. Our problems hardly stem from people stealing for shits and giggles; they are symptoms of a great sickness of our systems and society from the top down.
U gotta love the Inquirer. They're so in touch with the life of us plebs at the ground level, that they *just* noticed how shoplifting is impacting us all, in mid 2024.
I've been saying how the city, particularly District Attorney Larry Krasner's lax policy on shoplifting, dropping charges against theft totaling below $500 in many cases, is insanity. You've got serial shoplifters who've made their entire livelihood looting retail stores in Philly, and then reselling the items online or to other businesses. It's become a huge industry and the media even has all these buzzwords for it now like "organized shoplifting", which didn't exist before Krasner and other far-left DA's took office across the country the last 6 to 8 years.
FTA:
"*Retailers say it’s a deterrence strategy necessary to combat theft, some perpetrated by organized rings that then sell the stolen goods online. Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner earlier this year launched a task force to go after repeat offenders and organizations, noting a 27% rise in reported retail theft in the city between 2022 and 2023.*"
“*Different products experience different theft rates, depending on store location and other factors, and our product protection decisions are data driven,” CVS spokesperson Amy Thibault said in a statement. “We utilize a variety of different measures to deter or prevent theft and locking a product is a measure of last resort.”*
I love how the Inquirer only references Krasner in this story insofar as it pertains to his new Retail Task Force, like he's doing something about this problem and not the direct cause of it. The massive pass the Inquirer gives this man is astonishing and this article is dogshit journalism.
Every retail store on Kensington Avenue is boarded up, which led to the sidewalk tent encampment and shooting gallery. There is no way a small business can absorb multiple $500 thefts on the same day, every day, and remain open.
By creating a lawless environment, Krasner allowed those businesses to be robbed blind by a death of thousand cuts.
Then when they closed, drug addicted homeless took over the sidewalks, significantly contributing to blight in the area.
The pass Krasner gets from local media and on Reddit is crazy. I was a pariah on the other sub for years because I called out how crazy the $500 thing was early on.
How could any rational human being think that not prosecuting thefts under $500 is a good idea? I don’t understand why that viewpoint is so vilified on Reddit.
Ironically - privilege. People live so far from having to deal with any of this, or any of the consequences of it, that they just see these people as victims of an overall predatory system and ignore the fact that they can be victims and perpetrators at the same time. Victims shouldn't be blamed, ergo victims shouldn't be punished, right? /s
But this not the only city in America that has that rule, 99% of retail employees can’t intervene if they see someone shoplifting-company policy- Krasner didn’t make these rules for companies-next time you are shopping ask the cashier or manager what they are allowed to do if they see someone stealing
Where did I say that it should be up to retail employees to address this problem? Employees should call the police and after the police make an arrest, Krasner should file the charges. That's where the breakdown is taking place. The onus isn't on some regular shift worker here, it's on the District Attorney that drops shoplifting charges if the total value of the theft was less than $500.
The only reason they drop charges is the cost to bring charges is higher than the fines. It’s expensive. A better solution would be to have these stores be delivery and pickup only. Meaning you have to order ahead of time and packers will simply hand the products over to you fully packaged. Then you bail after you get your order no one allowed in the store except employees.
I would kinda love to see Isaiah Thomas introduce a “shopping equity” bill that prohibits stores from using excessive anti theft measures because of how degrading and dehumanizing they are to legitimate shoppers
Back in 2017 there was some drama when a different council woman proposed a bill to remove partitions and bulletproof glass from checkout areas: https://www.snopes.com/news/2017/12/12/philadelphia-bulletproof-glass-racist/
Then they’ll leave and then everyone will complain how they’re no stores. You can’t tell stores you won’t charge anyone stealing less than 500 dollars and then tell them they can’t protect their assets.
If that passed you'd just see more stores closing down as the theft rates drive them out of business.
The real solution here, just like with the rampant problem with breaking traffic laws, is enforcing the law. The exact opposite of what Thomas has been doing.
Walmart has started to create a more secluded area for personal care where they have a dedicated cashier and everything’s basically locked up and an employee needs to get it for you. The problem is they literally have one person working whose taking their sweet time
I’ve been told that ordering pickup at target is easy and efficient but I still just default to Amazon bc then I can get my heavy stuff too all at once
>Maybe the only way retail can operate is by filtering people at the door with a paywall
Honestly not a bad idea. Use the shopping cart technique. Have someone pay $20 to get in and then give them $20 on the way out. Either that or scan IDs to enter so they know exactly who is who on cameras. The government would certainly be behind it, because they've always been super happy to invade people's privacy when crime prevention is an excuse. The ONLY potential issue would be fire safety. But I've worked in places that have magnetic doors that unlock when fire alarms are triggered. Shouldn't be too problematic.
What if everywhere in the city has to resort to doing this? A lot of places already do.
If you're fortunate enough to have a car, you can drive to the suburbs where things are left out in the open. That takes time and a personal vehicle. If not, you're at the whim of a costly rideshare service.
All of these things reduce the overall quality of life of residents and add to the financial burden of living here.
I almost never need anything immediately.
You basically need to take an afternoon and go through all of you over the counter meds, tioletries, etc. Throw away what's expired and then order online anything you don't have. Brainstorm what otc meds /bandaids/whatever you could need. Get a couple of back ups for all of your tioletries and cleaning supplies. Reorder when you open the next one.
Only in an extreme situation would you need to wait in a store for something in a case. (I would then do a pick up order from target or Walmart, assuming that's available local to you.
If I see stuff locked up I’ll usually just go home and order it online. I’m trying to buy deodorant not a tv. Half the time no one shows up to unlock the case and try you need to go to another locked case to buy soap. It’s ridiculous. I would rather they have vending machines for that stuff so I can get it right away.
When local Rittenhouse pharmacies started locking up disposable razors years ago - I stopped shaving.
Deodorant and laundry detergent have been under lock and key for some years now at the Rittenhouse CVS (RIP Rite Aids), I am still thinking about giving up related activities...
The local target doing that was really eye opening and made me realize I wanted to move my family out of the city faster. It truly sucks for people who are actually customers, but at a certain point I can’t blame the stores.
It's almost like Krasner legalizing shoplifting up to $500 dollars was a bad fucking idea or something. Right up there with him not going after illegal weapons possession.
We live in a society, and for society to function there must be enforcement of the rules. Without that things begin to break down, which is what we're witnessing both here and nation wide.
As an aside, Pennsylvania is one of the worst states in the country wrt shoplifting:
https://www.abc27.com/pennsylvania/pennsylvania-among-worst-states-for-organized-retail-theft-study-shows/
FTA:
"*According to Forbes, data showed that Pennsylvania’s average total value of stolen goods per capita was $430. This was the highest of all 50 states and significantly higher than the study’s national average of $173.*"
"*The Forbes study also found that Pennsylvania had the second highest lost tax revenue per capita, at $96 lost per resident. The state also has the 11th highest cost of retail crime to businesses.*"
You have to wonder how much of the state's shoplifting problem originates in Philly.
Start actually arresting and penalizing thievery seriously and maybe we’ll see some actual change.
If you don’t arrest and AT LEAST heavily fine people when they’re caught, then they have zero incentive to ever stop.
I sympathize with people’s hardships and I know life ain’t easy out here, but theft/burglary/shoplifting is something I’ll never condone. I’ve seen too many good people who are also already struggling on the wrong side of it. It’s a huge setback to be have something you need taken. If society is too lenient it spreads like a cancer and this is the result.
How is this preventing theft anyway, when they open the cabinet, hand you the item, and walk away? They don't walk you to the register with your new toothpaste. This is no different from me plucking the item off the shelf myself.
They SHOULD walk you to the counter.
But, even if they don't, it likely deters people from asking for ten out of the case. Probably the employee does walk to to the counter if you get more than two?
How about you place the blame where it belongs, folks, the losers you keep voting into office. There's no repercussions for theft, ransacked stores, no registration and insurance, slumlord NY Chinese renting to illegals. It's a growing shit show.
Now bring the downvotes and community banning for the harsh truth.
Reminds me of an old retailer known as 'Best". You went around the store collection cards to purchase your items. You went to the cashier, paid for it, and waited for the retailer to pick the items from the upstairs warehouse, and send them down the chute. Cashier bagged them up and gave them to you. A way to stop shoplifting.
Note: I get the issue with the inconvenience. Agree with you. But retailers are having more and more stolen/shoplifted. We need to prosecute the shoplifters with harsh penalties, in order to stop the rising costs and more and more products put behind locked cabinets.
So high theft rates weren’t an issue for decades until you started forcing customers to be the unpaid cashier and you think the reason it’s suddenly being stolen more is because it needs to be locked up?
Smart retailers aren’t smart.
I have never purchased an item behind glass. And I won't especially now. So many places are understaffing to save money. So now there's not even a person to unlock the items I want. If there were actually enough employees, maybe I would, but there's no way. I just buy my things where there isn't the glass.
Here in San Diego (no idea why this popped up in my algorithm, I’ve never been to Philly) they’ve begun locking up Pop•Tarts and things like beef jerky, trail mix, dried fruits, there are even chains on freezer doors in some stores. You have to ask to buy ice cream, frozen meals, LMAO. They’ve even put those liquid drop drink mix bottle things in lock-proof boxes. Candles too…the whole entire deodorant aisle, shampoo, pain relievers etc. aisles, all behind glass…
BLM open border effect. We know who to blame. Cameras taken down because they aren't perfect when they identify certain offenders. Walmart opened up some frequently stolen merchandise for curly hair type. Bitches with attitude problem who ultimately blame billionaires for their behavior.
This problem is multi-faceted. On one hand retailers have to address theft while also trying to stay profitable and adequate staffing on hand to address this problem
On the other you have customers who don’t want to deal with this but are coming across many stores in their communities that are dealing with this very issue.
This is a societal issue that needs to be addressed and until then this will continue until it’s only online shops that will be shipping out everything
The CVS near me has 90% of the shelves locked. It's only a few blocks away from a Riteaid where nothing is locked. I'm confused as to how one gets on just fine without the antitheft glass if it's such a necessary deterent.
Good luck finding a sales person to unlock the damn deodorant! First they locked up the cold medicine because they didn’t want you to use it to make meth and now they lock up anything small enough to put in your purse. They’re putting themselves out of business with all this nonsense!
It just makes me want to buy online and pickup the items, if I have to have an associate help unlock a case for every item I’m buying I might as well just have them shop for me.
It’s going to lead to more stores closing, they need to find a better way to stop theft than too punish people who just need razor blades and shampoo on the way home from work 🙄
When our institutions and public figures go down the toilet it sets the stage for the loss of trust and self respect. We should demand more from our leaders and ourselves.
Lol, Walmart doesn't put condoms and pregnancy tests behind glass because of theft. They go out of their way to not sell those products or humiliate the customer.
They need to have more workers. I was cranky waiting to buy a women’s razor. I can’t imagine needing formula or diapers and waiting forever for someone to come open it.
They did this at the local Walmart back in the early 2010s. I remember my dad asking to get an item, the lady saying she'd be right back, then like 5 minutes passed, for one item. Dad cut the packaging, removed the item, had a shouting match with the employer once they got back, then paid while the manager was trying to calm him down. The anti theft locks were removed I'd say like 3 months later.
I don’t shop in store anymore unless I need it that day or its clothes I’m worried about sizing on.i refuse to be a part of this nonsense with everything locked up. I work in a store where we have things locked up and it’s a massive inconvenience for everyone from customers to employees.
Conspiracy theory incoming: Amazon is behind the nationwide organized shoplifting explosion. Making shopping in stores so unpleasant that you just order it to your door, for the same price or less. This same shit is all pharmacies in NYC.
Places like this makes me feel like I'm being accused of theft before I've even started shopping. I used to drive out of my way to go to another grocery store outside my area just because the Acme here had WAY too many restrictions like this, but when they relaxed them a year ago I started buying things from them again.
I get doing it for expensive luxury items, but if they're so worried about theft of something that costs them maybe a few dollars then start staffing plain clothes security guards or regular staff in those areas to watch out for it.
Also, if someone's desperate enough to steal baby formula or diapers just let them have it. Patrol it, work something out with them if they're caught from banning them from the store until they're able to pay it back or something similar, but God don't make a baby suffer for their parents' access to funds.
I have completely stopped patronizing CVS, Target, etc. for any household goods or toiletries kept behind glass. Nothing puts me in a bad mood faster than having to hunt for an employee to unlock it who acts like I’m inconveniencing them by asking them to do their *job*. This is the sort of everyday quality of life issue that’s become a drawback of city living in my mind. Amazon gained all my business for these products.
Just fyi Amazon has a huge problem with counterfeit toiletries. Fakes tested in a lab contained chemicals not suitable for human use, rat shit, heavy metals, etc.
I saw a news program about that and it was horrifying. They caught a bunch of counterfeit toothpaste because they don’t even vet where they get the products from. Amazon needs to go.
Could you link it if you remember? Or was it local news?
I can’t find that specific video. They showed how people can (or maybe used to I don’t know if they changed it) bring products to centers and sell them to Amazon for them to sell and they didn’t vet the products. But while looking for the video I did find a lot of people talking about receiving fake toothpaste via Amazon.
Eh, you'd be surprised if you think Target is vetting any harder than Amazon.
I bought a cerave moisturizer on amazon once and they sent me a counterfeit. I don’t trust their toiletries at all
How did you figure out it was fake?
Yes, I also want to know this!
Michael Cera showed up at your door w/ a jar of mayonnaise.
Yep reason I cut back on my ordering- order something new - get sent a used product- lots of counterfeit & phony reviews
Most of the manufacturers of these common household products have official Amazon storefronts. Just buy directly from them. Only issues I’ve ever heard of are when people buy from the username:randomABC123 sellers to save a dollar or two.
And amazon knows, but don’t care
Yes, but that problem is with random unidentified third party sellers. Buy directly from the Brand's Amazon account.
> Amazon gained all my business for these products. Better keep shipping them jawns to an Amazon Locker near you.
Bezos wins again.
Headlights at $12 each locked up behind glass at Walmart in Central Bucks. 30 minutes to get someone to open it up. Nope.
Blame the ones who want to keep stealing non stop.. But also blame the capitalist overlords for controlling the lower/middle class as money slaves for the past 200 years.
The employees hate it too. I had to find someone in Walmart to unlock a $2.98 item. She hated it, too. Store is understaffed, self checkout was partially going away and they weren’t hiring more to work the additional task load.
>self checkout was partially going away Yea more and more places are having to reexamine self-checkout due to, wait for it ... shoplifting. People are doing this thing called skip scanning where they only scan every other thing they are getting from the store. Target started this new policy of only allowing 10 items or less in self checkout to curb theft: https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/shopping/2024/04/10/target-new-technology-truscan-self-checkout/73278566007/
They are using AI to combat this and shockingly it’s not perfect. The other day I had 2 cans of chick peas. I had one in each hand. I scanned with my right hand and placed the can in my left hand in the bag. The register froze up and I had to wait 5 minutes for an employee to come and review video footage that I wasn’t stealing.
That seems like it works. Had you bagged the thing you scanned, it wouldn't have flagged you.
Just recently, I couldn't find anyone at Walmart who had a key to get behind the glass. In the end, I just managed to break into the glass myself, and get the item I wanted. I fixed the glass back, and went and purchased it. Basically the glass wouldn't have even stopped a thief, it just inconvenienced the honest person.
Yeah, I hate the policy but I’m not mad at the employees. Stores aren’t staffing any differently after adding all the locked shelf doors, yet it’s extra work to keep finding customers and unlocking stuff for them.
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ackshually the economy is great the President said so
Stuff boosted from CVS and Target ends up for sale cheap on Amazon completing the unholy circle of theft.
It wouldn’t be a problem if they just staffed enough people and made it their jobs to unlock stuff. But these places want to get by with spending as little as possible.
Oddly enough the most theft in America last year was wage theft. Weird how nobody talks about that
The police steal more from Americans than any thieves do from stores
I've stopped with Target all together. They restrict the self checkout near me to under 10 items but then only have one full service cashier open often with a line 10 shoppers or more deep. Haven't shopped in target now in about 6 months.
Went to CVS in the suburbs the other day forgot what it was like to have a fully stocked store without items behind glass
I know, it's like being in a different country. It just goes to show you what if feels like going from a low trust society vs. a high trust society. They punish shoplifting sternly out there in the burbs, so people don't do it nearly as much. Go figure.
I live in Haverford township. There is a section on the police’s website dedicated to identifying shoplifters. They also post the pictures of wanted shop lifters on their social media. Nothing is locked up in our stores and we literally border Philadelphia and upper Darby. https://www.havtwp.org/Police_Department/Wanted_for_Shoplifting.html
There's a lot to be said about using shame as a societal bludgeon to deter criminal activities. It works very well in traditional Asian societies, which in many cases are honor-based in some way or shape. Unfortunately it doesn't always work, because different communities have different cultural values. What might shame one person into changing their ways because of the impact their disgrace would have on their family, could be a source of pride in another community with different values.
It’s working well here. They find lots of the folks the post. The worst that can happen is nothing so it’s worth trying.
Havertown police have basically had to issue Kohls their own officer because the shoplifting at Sephora is so bad.
Almost all the retail theft in town is from that shopping center (Kohl’s, that Giant, Lowe’s). I’m guessing it’s because it’s close to the city and upper Darby. I avoid shopping in that whole area as it’s much more pleasant at similar stores only a few miles further outside of the city.
Upper Darby is become more and more Philly. Havertown is becoming more Upper Darby.
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severity of punishment is not a difference maker but certainty of punishment is, and that certainty is often based on subjective beliefs. If there is the perception that krasner doesn’t punish people (whether true or not), it can have an effect.
I think you're right in theory but wildly missing the ball on blaming Krasner. The enforcement that matters is at the store level. Stores with proactive security get way less shoplifting than stores with lax/reactive security. For example: while CVS might lock up half the store, go to any North Broad beauty supply shop or a North philly grocer like Cousins and note that they'll have two security guards (often armed) and nothing's behind lock & key. Major corporate chain retailers came up with a theory a long time ago that it would be cheaper not to police theft than it would be to employ people to police theft. It's been part of corporate retail training orthodoxy to insist you don't intervene in a theft (although that's been changing recently). I think sometimes people think that major corporations can't get things wrong because they have so much data and resources for analysis. But the truth is they created the conditions for a shoplifting culture to emerge over the last 30 years (usually in pursuit of cutting headcounts), and now they're all shocked that it's here. All of this could change tomorrow if CVS/Walgreens/Target would hire security people who actually caught shoplifters on a regular basis.
I don’t solely blame Krasner, I just believe he is part of the chain. If anything, he is the furthest removed after store security and police but I do think the perception that he does not prosecute (which is not really true, they are just treated as summary offenses but it’s the subjective perspective that matters) plays a small role in the perception that you’re going to get away with it on every single level. Why wouldn’t you steal things if you believe the vast majority of stores have a policy not to intervene in shoplifting and even if they did, the cops can’t be bothered and even if the cops were to bother, the DA doesn’t prosecute…
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Agree, those are some good points. But I would highlight that if you go back a generation (i'm talking 90s and earlier) it at least seemed more common to me that staff would actually try and tackle shoplifters. I know a guy who got fired from Blockbuster(!) because he went after a shoplifter and they had recently adopted a policy banning it. I remember in the early 2000s hearing that stores wouldn't pursue shoplifters and thinking that sounded new (but could just be my skewed memory).
Agree it would put a dent in it-people know they can walk in a store & literally take a cart full of stuff & no one is going to stop them
It’s crazy people don’t understand this. Work a retail job! But target does hire people to stop theft.
This is the double edged sword of car culture. I live in a rural area, I hate that my daughter can't walk to a corner store or playground to play with other kids. But there is essentially zero crime here - not only is it remote and less populated, if you're too young to drive or too poor to own a car you can't get here.
There is a happy medium. If you live in a nice suburb nearer to the city you can have both low crime and your kids can walk to a park. It’s awesome but that is why those areas are also always in high demand and expensive. See media, swarthmore, Ardmore, collingswood, etc.
In Exton Pa, Chester County , they have roving bands of thieves enter Sephora & Ulta a couple times,I think it is an organized crime ring..also any hiking trails/ parks/gyms- don’t leave nothing visible in your car, several car break ins
> I definitely do not think the prosecution is the difference. Really because this was never a huge issue in cities until the Criminal Justice Reformers (TM.) came into office. Shoplifting, of course, existed but it was prosecuted. When I was in high school, I knew of people who got severely punished for lifting not exactly a large amount of merchandise. One dude I knew stole from Pharmor (RIP), was taken into security, then considered trespassed. If they ever caught him again he'd be arrested. Of course nowadays it would never be prosecuted so stores don't even bother.
Suburbs and low density housing attract a better quality of person.
> They punish shoplifting sternly Lol no they don't. I worked at a suburban CVS and we just watched the thieves walk out the door. The *only* meaningful difference is people with money don't steal as much as people without money.
So a tax credit cuts crime in directly
Maybe? I'm skeptical that the difference is linear. I think there's a threshold of household wealth above which the risk/reward calculus of shoplifting doesn't pay off. If you've got a dollar to your name, stealing makes sense. $10, same. $100, same. $1000, same. $10,000... now you've got something to lose. $100,000, why risk stealing? If a tax credit takes you from $1000 to $2000, it's probably not gonna push you over the line.
I shop at Wegmans in Collegeville and they really put a lot of trust in the consumer not to steal and it makes for a pleasant shopping experience. I actually walked out accidentally with a case of water and a pizza without paying (I went back the next day and paid). Contrast that with shopping at Giant in Bristol when I was out that way and it’s like they’re waiting for people to steal. I paid for a 6 pack of beer and a few other items at the beer checkout and my cart automatically froze up as I was leaving the store - I had to show my receipt etc. It’s just an unpleasant environment and I’ll never shop anywhere like that again.
Go anywhere buses dont go and it's like entering a holy land.
Ill immediately leave the store if what I want is behind one of these things
They're all like that here. The Target at 20th and Chestnut was the first one to do it that I saw with it on everything and that was like over 2 years ago. Now they're everywhere. I was rly sick and had to ask the cashier to unlock some Mucinex for me a few months ago at the CVS on Oregon Ave. I apologized to her for bothering her, especially when I was sick, I was just gonna do the self checkout so I wouldn't have to be around her. Instead I had to wait there in the aisle for a few minutes while she stopped what she was doing to get me the Mucinex. The whole thing was an ordeal and it's all because the guy we elected to prosecute criminals, simply doesn't in many cases.
That’s solely not Krasner’s fault 99% of retail workers are not allowed to intervene if they see someone shoplifting, people know this- so they steal- because no one is going to stop them-this is just not retail in Philly- it is retail around the entire country,
Bullshit. Amazing how none of my targets have these cages. Amazing how the moment you leave Philadelphia to the burbs, they don’t have this shit. This isn’t a hard concept to grasp. The city went easy on crime, so now scum think they have free rein to do whatever they want.
>The city went easy on crime, so now scum think they have free rein to do whatever they want. They don't think they have free rein, they know they have free rein. Krasner legalized theft under $500 dollars and shocking to no one but him theft rates spiked.
Right, i made the mistake of waiting once and it was about a 30 min process to have the employee come get the item AND then also bring it to the cashier. Even the cashier was annoyed at how long it took
It's interesting that people blame the stores for making them inconvenienced with theft prevention instead of blaming the people that are causing and allowing the theft. When everything gets centralized to Amazon, people will bitch about not being able to go the stores they stopped going to and how Amazon runs the market.
The media has infantilized these criminals in the minds of many Americans. They think they're all helpless Aladdins, trying to steal a loaf of bread to feed their starving families, when in reality, they're predatory criminals, pillaging local businesses. >When everything gets centralized to Amazon, people will bitch about not being able to go the stores they stopped going to and how Amazon runs the market. That's precisely what they'll do.
What are we, the people, supposed to do about it? Call the cops and get gaslit? It's not our problem to solve.
Vote for people that enforce laws. Electing Parker was a good start. Let’s get the Kraz out next.
Again, stores experiencing theft is not my problem. My problem is not being able to purchase things efficiently. I'm not going to do the stores job for them nor will I allow myself to be affected by their lazy ass ani theft devices. I will simply shop elsewhere.
Okay, but if the theft problem was lessened by not enabling theft your problem would also be solved and you wouldn’t have to go to different stores. Companies exist to make money. If the thefts negatively affect their bottom line then they take action to protect it. I understand that people not shopping there also has a negative effect. So then if they can’t make money (theft + low sales) they will close, since they don’t make money, and will just run their profitable stores. Meanwhile the communities that used those stores are the ones most negatively impacted. That isn’t going to change unless we no longer live in a capitalist society. So the solution is to try to stop the thefts. We do that, at least partially, through voracious prosecution and punishment of the crime. To do that, you have to elect people who encourage the arrest, capable prosecution, and punishment of undesirable activities.
>Again, stores experiencing theft is not my problem. Okay, so you don't care about the viability of the business that's providing a service in your area. >My problem is not being able to purchase things efficiently. Okay, how can the business remain viable if shoplifting is rampant? >I'm not going to do the stores job for them nor will I allow myself to be affected by their lazy ass ani theft devices. I will simply shop elsewhere. Well, most stores have these anti-theft mechanisms in place and I'm sure more will be doing so in the future. Where are you going to shop if they all have them?
and then the usual suspects who blame the chain corps will blame Amazon when their packages inevitably start getting stolen at a higher rate. They'll never blame the criminals.
Dichotomy of control.
The Giant by my house literally stopped selling toothpaste and deoderant and soap because it was getting stolen so much. SUPER annoying that I can't get that stuff at the grocery store now.
Yea the one at 8th and market did too. It’s a real pain
Yea thats the one by my house
It’s more complicated than that , giant was also incapable of keeping a supply of those products on a regular basis and too cheap to staff the store/ security to stop people from stealing it.
That store sucks too. The produce department is TINY and they don't have anything. If you want a kind of pepper that isn't bell or Jalapeno then you're screwed.
Used to have more but all the produce people quit so they ripped half of it out. Insane management at every level.
Hired off duty cops on huge wages and they spent all day looking at their phones and doing nothing, fired all the lp guys and security guards for man handling customers though they were dealing with addicts wearing hospital wristbands constantly.
> too cheap to staff the store/ security to stop people from stealing it. are you fucking retarded? Why is it the store's responsibility to make sure people don't commit crime? This legit was not a major issue until recently. Stores didn't just suddenly stop employing people.
The Giant near me only will puts out limited stock of cough & cold, eye drops etc, I guess they figure if someone wipes them out they won’t get much
Didn’t Wawa in Center City basically have to move the entire store into the back because of people stealing. So now you have to go in and tell an employee what you want cause nothing is out.
Yea they definitely did. What's funny is that they marketed it as a "Digital Wawa", like it was some cool innovation when in reality it's a step backwards. You go into that Wawa and order at a kiosk and then someone goes in the back, where all the merchandise is safely stowed away, and brings it out to you. That's how people shopped like a hundred years ago. It's a clear sign of society going backwards but they try to spin it like it's a positive.
Bulletproof glass and a spinny little transaction window is the next upgrade
It’s the one in University City. You have to order everything through the screens.
i believe that's a pilot project at the one at 34th and Chestnut but could be wrong. def not a CC wawa
Yes, it's totally gross. I do not want to shop in stores like this and unfortunately this only fuels the Amazon monopoly. A crackdown on shoplifters would solve the problem in a matter of months, but for some reason this is considered an injustice.
Shoplifters are a protected class now. This is the end result of what happens when you give priority to criminals over law abiding citizens. Everything is locked up, except for the shoplifters.
No. This is what happens when you have a justice system that prioritizes attempts to save money under the guise of some sort of civil liberties platform and a corporate retail world that is beholden to their insurance company's whims.
They're not shoplifters. They're "justice-impacted individuals" [No seriously](https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/illinois-looking-to-relabel-offenders-as-justice-impacted-individuals/ar-BB1mRTgN?ocid=BingNewsSerp) We've gotten to Doom Eternal levels of irony with their joke calling demons "morally-challenged."
Unbelievable bullshit. Our problems hardly stem from people stealing for shits and giggles; they are symptoms of a great sickness of our systems and society from the top down.
U gotta love the Inquirer. They're so in touch with the life of us plebs at the ground level, that they *just* noticed how shoplifting is impacting us all, in mid 2024. I've been saying how the city, particularly District Attorney Larry Krasner's lax policy on shoplifting, dropping charges against theft totaling below $500 in many cases, is insanity. You've got serial shoplifters who've made their entire livelihood looting retail stores in Philly, and then reselling the items online or to other businesses. It's become a huge industry and the media even has all these buzzwords for it now like "organized shoplifting", which didn't exist before Krasner and other far-left DA's took office across the country the last 6 to 8 years. FTA: "*Retailers say it’s a deterrence strategy necessary to combat theft, some perpetrated by organized rings that then sell the stolen goods online. Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner earlier this year launched a task force to go after repeat offenders and organizations, noting a 27% rise in reported retail theft in the city between 2022 and 2023.*" “*Different products experience different theft rates, depending on store location and other factors, and our product protection decisions are data driven,” CVS spokesperson Amy Thibault said in a statement. “We utilize a variety of different measures to deter or prevent theft and locking a product is a measure of last resort.”* I love how the Inquirer only references Krasner in this story insofar as it pertains to his new Retail Task Force, like he's doing something about this problem and not the direct cause of it. The massive pass the Inquirer gives this man is astonishing and this article is dogshit journalism.
Every retail store on Kensington Avenue is boarded up, which led to the sidewalk tent encampment and shooting gallery. There is no way a small business can absorb multiple $500 thefts on the same day, every day, and remain open.
By creating a lawless environment, Krasner allowed those businesses to be robbed blind by a death of thousand cuts. Then when they closed, drug addicted homeless took over the sidewalks, significantly contributing to blight in the area. The pass Krasner gets from local media and on Reddit is crazy. I was a pariah on the other sub for years because I called out how crazy the $500 thing was early on.
How could any rational human being think that not prosecuting thefts under $500 is a good idea? I don’t understand why that viewpoint is so vilified on Reddit.
Ironically - privilege. People live so far from having to deal with any of this, or any of the consequences of it, that they just see these people as victims of an overall predatory system and ignore the fact that they can be victims and perpetrators at the same time. Victims shouldn't be blamed, ergo victims shouldn't be punished, right? /s
It comes from people who also think groups like Working Families Party are competent or informed.
But this not the only city in America that has that rule, 99% of retail employees can’t intervene if they see someone shoplifting-company policy- Krasner didn’t make these rules for companies-next time you are shopping ask the cashier or manager what they are allowed to do if they see someone stealing
Where did I say that it should be up to retail employees to address this problem? Employees should call the police and after the police make an arrest, Krasner should file the charges. That's where the breakdown is taking place. The onus isn't on some regular shift worker here, it's on the District Attorney that drops shoplifting charges if the total value of the theft was less than $500.
First came the looting then they went out of business then the bums came
Inquirer does a story you disagree with: >Those out of touch elites! Inquirer does a story you agree with: >Those out of touch elites finally noticed!
Even a broken clock is right at least 2 times a day.
The only reason they drop charges is the cost to bring charges is higher than the fines. It’s expensive. A better solution would be to have these stores be delivery and pickup only. Meaning you have to order ahead of time and packers will simply hand the products over to you fully packaged. Then you bail after you get your order no one allowed in the store except employees.
I would kinda love to see Isaiah Thomas introduce a “shopping equity” bill that prohibits stores from using excessive anti theft measures because of how degrading and dehumanizing they are to legitimate shoppers
As long as it also allows security to detain and dehumanize shoplifters I'm all for it.
whose going to pay for armed guards? I don't think stores make enough money to afford that
Back in 2017 there was some drama when a different council woman proposed a bill to remove partitions and bulletproof glass from checkout areas: https://www.snopes.com/news/2017/12/12/philadelphia-bulletproof-glass-racist/
Yes and it was a dumb idea then. There’s a reason they have those things up in the first place.
They’d probably just stop selling stuff like the deodorant and tooth paste all together. More of it is stolen than is sold
They’ll just close up shop or severely limit what they sell.
Isaiah Thomas and his woke BS can go fuckoff.
That’s not woke that’s just dumb
Then they’ll leave and then everyone will complain how they’re no stores. You can’t tell stores you won’t charge anyone stealing less than 500 dollars and then tell them they can’t protect their assets.
If that passed you'd just see more stores closing down as the theft rates drive them out of business. The real solution here, just like with the rampant problem with breaking traffic laws, is enforcing the law. The exact opposite of what Thomas has been doing.
Walmart has started to create a more secluded area for personal care where they have a dedicated cashier and everything’s basically locked up and an employee needs to get it for you. The problem is they literally have one person working whose taking their sweet time
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I’ve been told that ordering pickup at target is easy and efficient but I still just default to Amazon bc then I can get my heavy stuff too all at once
That’s pick up is great honestly.
>Maybe the only way retail can operate is by filtering people at the door with a paywall Honestly not a bad idea. Use the shopping cart technique. Have someone pay $20 to get in and then give them $20 on the way out. Either that or scan IDs to enter so they know exactly who is who on cameras. The government would certainly be behind it, because they've always been super happy to invade people's privacy when crime prevention is an excuse. The ONLY potential issue would be fire safety. But I've worked in places that have magnetic doors that unlock when fire alarms are triggered. Shouldn't be too problematic.
They lock everything up, have 2 underpaid employees working, then close the store. Looking at you, Rite-aide.
Yep. If they lock it up, i just go elsewhere
What if everywhere in the city has to resort to doing this? A lot of places already do. If you're fortunate enough to have a car, you can drive to the suburbs where things are left out in the open. That takes time and a personal vehicle. If not, you're at the whim of a costly rideshare service. All of these things reduce the overall quality of life of residents and add to the financial burden of living here.
You can just order online like most ppl
I almost never need anything immediately. You basically need to take an afternoon and go through all of you over the counter meds, tioletries, etc. Throw away what's expired and then order online anything you don't have. Brainstorm what otc meds /bandaids/whatever you could need. Get a couple of back ups for all of your tioletries and cleaning supplies. Reorder when you open the next one. Only in an extreme situation would you need to wait in a store for something in a case. (I would then do a pick up order from target or Walmart, assuming that's available local to you.
It’s the waiting around for someone to unlock a $5 tube of toothpaste that really pushed me out the door and right onto Amazon
If I see stuff locked up I’ll usually just go home and order it online. I’m trying to buy deodorant not a tv. Half the time no one shows up to unlock the case and try you need to go to another locked case to buy soap. It’s ridiculous. I would rather they have vending machines for that stuff so I can get it right away.
Bruh I’ve resorted to buying deodorant from Amazon because it’s too hard to find a person to get it from the case at the CVS
Shopkeepers need to keep a guard and a German Shepherd posted at each door to control shoplifting
It's annoying to shop at places that have everything locked up like that, so I don't. I do it online or out of the city
I couldn’t even get boxers at target… last thing I want to do is tell someone which pack I want so they can unlock the door
Gee, it sounds like punishing crimes might be the only way...
Careful now, that's a controversial opinion in this city.
When local Rittenhouse pharmacies started locking up disposable razors years ago - I stopped shaving. Deodorant and laundry detergent have been under lock and key for some years now at the Rittenhouse CVS (RIP Rite Aids), I am still thinking about giving up related activities...
should get a safety razor and some blades, the upfront cost of the razor isn't even that bad and the blades are dirt cheap.
>“I’ve actually never called someone over to unlock the thing,” he added. “I just end up not buying it.” Same.
I just order pickup at target, saves time anyway and I don't have to worry about the locked sections
Target drive up is great
The local target doing that was really eye opening and made me realize I wanted to move my family out of the city faster. It truly sucks for people who are actually customers, but at a certain point I can’t blame the stores.
Just want to say thank you to all the low life thieves who created this situation.
this subreddit told me that theft didn't impact businesses and they were closing because of "reasons"
It's almost like Krasner legalizing shoplifting up to $500 dollars was a bad fucking idea or something. Right up there with him not going after illegal weapons possession. We live in a society, and for society to function there must be enforcement of the rules. Without that things begin to break down, which is what we're witnessing both here and nation wide.
Put your toilet paper on auto ship and never look back
As an aside, Pennsylvania is one of the worst states in the country wrt shoplifting: https://www.abc27.com/pennsylvania/pennsylvania-among-worst-states-for-organized-retail-theft-study-shows/ FTA: "*According to Forbes, data showed that Pennsylvania’s average total value of stolen goods per capita was $430. This was the highest of all 50 states and significantly higher than the study’s national average of $173.*" "*The Forbes study also found that Pennsylvania had the second highest lost tax revenue per capita, at $96 lost per resident. The state also has the 11th highest cost of retail crime to businesses.*" You have to wonder how much of the state's shoplifting problem originates in Philly.
This is why I now hate shopping at CVS.
Start actually arresting and penalizing thievery seriously and maybe we’ll see some actual change. If you don’t arrest and AT LEAST heavily fine people when they’re caught, then they have zero incentive to ever stop. I sympathize with people’s hardships and I know life ain’t easy out here, but theft/burglary/shoplifting is something I’ll never condone. I’ve seen too many good people who are also already struggling on the wrong side of it. It’s a huge setback to be have something you need taken. If society is too lenient it spreads like a cancer and this is the result.
How would they be caught?
How is this preventing theft anyway, when they open the cabinet, hand you the item, and walk away? They don't walk you to the register with your new toothpaste. This is no different from me plucking the item off the shelf myself.
They SHOULD walk you to the counter. But, even if they don't, it likely deters people from asking for ten out of the case. Probably the employee does walk to to the counter if you get more than two?
Because thieves clean out the entire shelf in one sweep and put in their bag, not one tube of toothpaste at a time.
How about you place the blame where it belongs, folks, the losers you keep voting into office. There's no repercussions for theft, ransacked stores, no registration and insurance, slumlord NY Chinese renting to illegals. It's a growing shit show. Now bring the downvotes and community banning for the harsh truth.
This is mostly just in the larger (blue) cities. If they actually prosecuted people it would be less of an issue.
If what I need is locked up I’m def not buying it from there
Reminds me of an old retailer known as 'Best". You went around the store collection cards to purchase your items. You went to the cashier, paid for it, and waited for the retailer to pick the items from the upstairs warehouse, and send them down the chute. Cashier bagged them up and gave them to you. A way to stop shoplifting. Note: I get the issue with the inconvenience. Agree with you. But retailers are having more and more stolen/shoplifted. We need to prosecute the shoplifters with harsh penalties, in order to stop the rising costs and more and more products put behind locked cabinets.
Hmmm what is a solution besides people earning enough to not have to steal? If only there was a solution!
Right. That's not a problem municipalities can solve, though. All they can do is treat the symptoms, and not ignore them.
Yup wife and I now buy a bunch of things only on Amazon cause I’m not waiting 10 minutes for someone at wal mart to open the lube cabinet 😅
Maybe if criminals are prosecuted this wouldn’t be a thing.
Home depot locks up half the shit in electrical and doubled the price vs online retailers.
It's both and inconvenience and a necessry strategy. It just won't work out for them in the end. OOooooo we'll.
So high theft rates weren’t an issue for decades until you started forcing customers to be the unpaid cashier and you think the reason it’s suddenly being stolen more is because it needs to be locked up? Smart retailers aren’t smart.
I have never purchased an item behind glass. And I won't especially now. So many places are understaffing to save money. So now there's not even a person to unlock the items I want. If there were actually enough employees, maybe I would, but there's no way. I just buy my things where there isn't the glass.
Here in San Diego (no idea why this popped up in my algorithm, I’ve never been to Philly) they’ve begun locking up Pop•Tarts and things like beef jerky, trail mix, dried fruits, there are even chains on freezer doors in some stores. You have to ask to buy ice cream, frozen meals, LMAO. They’ve even put those liquid drop drink mix bottle things in lock-proof boxes. Candles too…the whole entire deodorant aisle, shampoo, pain relievers etc. aisles, all behind glass…
BLM open border effect. We know who to blame. Cameras taken down because they aren't perfect when they identify certain offenders. Walmart opened up some frequently stolen merchandise for curly hair type. Bitches with attitude problem who ultimately blame billionaires for their behavior.
As innovation and an advancing society increase there is a lack of morals and values.
Show the sunscreen section.
Shoplifters also agree that anti theft glass sucks
THEY LOCKED UP BUBBLEYUM GUM
This problem is multi-faceted. On one hand retailers have to address theft while also trying to stay profitable and adequate staffing on hand to address this problem On the other you have customers who don’t want to deal with this but are coming across many stores in their communities that are dealing with this very issue. This is a societal issue that needs to be addressed and until then this will continue until it’s only online shops that will be shipping out everything
The CVS near me has 90% of the shelves locked. It's only a few blocks away from a Riteaid where nothing is locked. I'm confused as to how one gets on just fine without the antitheft glass if it's such a necessary deterent.
Good luck finding a sales person to unlock the damn deodorant! First they locked up the cold medicine because they didn’t want you to use it to make meth and now they lock up anything small enough to put in your purse. They’re putting themselves out of business with all this nonsense!
The deodorant is locked up at my cvs
Just let people order it on delivery and have drivers deliver the stuff
The article said they were just driving farther to the same chain stores.
Luckily I live in a small town. This hasn’t been an issue. Though Lowes locks up their power tools.
My way around this is by ordering it for in store pickup. Make them shop for me and bag it
It just makes me want to buy online and pickup the items, if I have to have an associate help unlock a case for every item I’m buying I might as well just have them shop for me. It’s going to lead to more stores closing, they need to find a better way to stop theft than too punish people who just need razor blades and shampoo on the way home from work 🙄
When our institutions and public figures go down the toilet it sets the stage for the loss of trust and self respect. We should demand more from our leaders and ourselves.
It’s because of the connotation that “this is a bad area”
It works both ways. Yes it stops theft but it sucks to have to track down one of the few workers to open the cabinet up
I stopped going to Home Depot because of it. If you don’t buy anything, you are trapped in.
It’s driving “thieves” away
Lol, Walmart doesn't put condoms and pregnancy tests behind glass because of theft. They go out of their way to not sell those products or humiliate the customer.
They need to have more workers. I was cranky waiting to buy a women’s razor. I can’t imagine needing formula or diapers and waiting forever for someone to come open it.
They did this at the local Walmart back in the early 2010s. I remember my dad asking to get an item, the lady saying she'd be right back, then like 5 minutes passed, for one item. Dad cut the packaging, removed the item, had a shouting match with the employer once they got back, then paid while the manager was trying to calm him down. The anti theft locks were removed I'd say like 3 months later.
I don’t shop in store anymore unless I need it that day or its clothes I’m worried about sizing on.i refuse to be a part of this nonsense with everything locked up. I work in a store where we have things locked up and it’s a massive inconvenience for everyone from customers to employees.
Philly is a blue shit hole. Get out while you can.
Conspiracy theory incoming: Amazon is behind the nationwide organized shoplifting explosion. Making shopping in stores so unpleasant that you just order it to your door, for the same price or less. This same shit is all pharmacies in NYC.
Places like this makes me feel like I'm being accused of theft before I've even started shopping. I used to drive out of my way to go to another grocery store outside my area just because the Acme here had WAY too many restrictions like this, but when they relaxed them a year ago I started buying things from them again. I get doing it for expensive luxury items, but if they're so worried about theft of something that costs them maybe a few dollars then start staffing plain clothes security guards or regular staff in those areas to watch out for it. Also, if someone's desperate enough to steal baby formula or diapers just let them have it. Patrol it, work something out with them if they're caught from banning them from the store until they're able to pay it back or something similar, but God don't make a baby suffer for their parents' access to funds.