Giant Food, which is headquartered in Landover, Maryland, may be forced to close some stores if an uptick in thefts and violence continues, the grocery store chain’s president says.
It鈥檚 a trend other big box stores are seeing around the country.
鈥淭hey steal everything from roasts to shrimp to deodorant to razor blades, you name it,鈥� said Giant Foods President Ira Kress.
Shoplifting has always plagued grocery stores, but Kress said in recent months, Giant has joined a long list of other regional and national retailers that are reporting a boost in thefts, sometimes conducted by large, organized crime rings.
鈥淭hey hire other thieves and provide them with a list of products to steal,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hose thieves then go out and fill the list.鈥�
Along with the thefts comes an increase in violence, which Kress said he is the most concerned about.
鈥淲hat we always must do is ensure we can run our stores safely and profitably,鈥� he said. 鈥淚f I can鈥檛 do both of those things, I鈥檒l have no choice but to close a store. This clearly takes a toll.鈥�
Kress did not say what stores Giant would be forced to close.
Training for clerks and employees includes de-escalation training, but Kress said he doesn’t have all the answers.
“It is scary, and it is really concerning and, unfortunately, I don’t have many solutions for it either,” he said. “But, to the degree that I can limit any of the violence 鈥� which is trying to limit the interactions that are causing these individuals to create the violence in our stores 鈥� I’ll attempt to do.”
Kress blames a lack of stricter laws and punishments that discourage theft and the ease of selling stolen goods on the black market.
鈥淚t is extraordinarily easy to sell stolen items now,” Kress said. “And if it鈥檚 easy to make money and there are little-to-no penalties getting caught doing it, then more people are taking advantage of that.鈥�
The retail chain increased security and made several changes, like putting some items under lock and key, eliminating secondary entrances for shoppers and more training for clerks. Kress acknowledged that limiting the number of items customers can bring through self-checkout has upset some customers.
鈥淲e used to allow full baskets,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e now limit that to 20 items.鈥�
Kress said he knows that the new security measures are an inconvenience for some shoppers.
鈥淭his is not to cause an inconvenience,鈥� Kress said. 鈥淏e patient. If it means you have to ask someone to unlock a product or walk further to the entrance, please understand why we鈥檙e doing what we鈥檙e doing. And have a little patience with us.鈥�
