- Locking up retail items like toothpaste became common due to corporate moral panic, not actual rise in shoplifting.
- This strategy backfired, causing sales to drop and contributing to Walgreens' decline.
- Data on shoplifting is unreliable, often based on perception from industry groups rather than hard evidence.
- Retail executives used shoplifting narrative to justify store closures and reduce staffing, while ignoring other factors.
- The practice harms customer experience and disproportionately affects lower-income neighborhoods.
- Efforts like CORCA bill treat a largely non-existent organized retail crime problem, while real issues like SNAP theft are ignored.