Walking the Walk (to Fight Retail Crime)

District attorneys from across the U.S. are meeting with local retailers to walk the aisles of their stores to explore added ways of addressing organized retail crime, habitual theft and its impact on employees and communities. The initiative, launched by the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) and the National District Attorneys Association (NDAA) in September, has thus far resulted in 80 store walks.

Among the retailers to host such walks are Ulta Beauty, Home Depot and Target.

During the strolls, local prosecutors and retail management teams exchanged insights, shared best practices and identified opportunities to work collaboratively to combat crime. Demand to participate was so strong among DAs’ offices and retailers that the project has been extended through November.

“Ulta Beauty strongly believes in the power of partnerships and by working together, we know we can positively impact the communities we serve,” says Julie Giblin, the retailer’s VP Loss Prevention. “As organized retail crime continues, retailers must work together with DA Offices, law enforcement, landlords, other retailers, solution providers and industry organizations to share learnings and insights to create change and progress. We appreciate the various District Attorneys for taking the time to engage with our loss prevention and store associates, learn about our crime mitigation strategies and discuss best practices that can aid criminal case prosecutions.”

Said Frederick County Maryland’s State’s Attorney J. Charles Smith III, who is also President of the NDAA, “This experience was more eye-opening than I thought it would be. Retailers are doing an incredible job on the front end, and this was a great opportunity to see how those of us in the criminal justice community can collaborate with retailers on the back end.”

Click here for more on the program.