News

Dec 13, 2023

Home Depot announces major change to clamp down on 'rampant theft'

HOME Depot chiefs have resorted to locking items away in cages as part of

HOME Depot chiefs have resorted to locking items away in cages as part of efforts to combat theft.

The retailer follows the likes of Walmart and Walgreens which have implemented anti-theft measures in stores.

Staffers told The San Francisco Standard that items had started to be locked away in some stores in Bay Area, California from January.

They said it used to be gadgets like power tools before other items were caged.

Items that have been locked away include gloves and cell phone chargers.

One staffer, who works at a store in Emeryville, told The San Francisco Standard: "It used to be big-ticket items, but now even the detergent is locked up."

Workers have hailed the measure to combat theft but it has been criticized.

A staffer said: "I can't unlock hardware because I don't have the code and they can't unlock plumbing because only I have the code."

The anti-theft policy has not been rolled out across all Home Depot stores in California.

It comes after Scott Glenn, the vice president for asset protection at The Home Depot, warned about the risks of shoplifting and theft.

He told ABC News: "Organized retail crime is what I call theft for greed, not theft for need.

"They don't just come to a Home Depot and then decide to go home ... they go to Target, they go to Lowe's, they go to CVS, they go anywhere."

Glenn revealed that chiefs had investigated around 400 cases of alleged organized theft in a year.

Richard McPhail, the CFO of Home Depot, blasted the issue of retail theft.

He told CNBC: "The country has a retail theft problem."

Retailers lost around $94.5billion in 2021 from shrinkage, according to research published in September 2022 by the National Retail Federation.

Shocking data found that there was a 26.5 percent increase in organized retail crime.

Execs at top retailers have scrambled to find ways how they can clamp down on the issue.

Walmart chiefs, like Home Depot, have locked goods away in cabinets, but the measure hasn't been welcomed by all shoppers.

Furious shoppers lamented online that it has made the shopping experience "impossible".

The drugstore chain Walgreens has also stored items in plexiglass containers.

Shoppers have to request the assistance of a worker, who will then open the cabinet.

But, customers have railed at the length of time it can take to retrieve items.

An anonymous shopper in Albuquerque, New Mexico, told local station KRQE News: "Honestly, it takes forever. It takes 10 to 20 minutes."

And, resident Steven Garcia described the policy as "inconvenient."

He said: "Sometimes, when I come over here, I’m in a hurry and stuff like that. It takes a while for them to come get like toothpaste, deodorant, razors. I mean, I think it's very unnecessary for all that."