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Subscribe to RSSThe TODAY anchors discuss Ad Week magazine's list of the top five items that get shoplifted during the holidays, including luxury meat, razors, and liquor.
TODAY.com staff
If it is the season to give, it may also be the season to take. As in shoplift.
As shoppers crowd the malls supermarkets and liquor stores (stay with us on this), the tarde publication Adweek has some distressing stats on the crime and a sometimes surprising list of what gets taken the most.
The economy doesn’t help.
"The economic environment has led to stealing for need-based purposes," Johnny Custer, director of field operations for Merchant Analytic Solutions, told AdWeek.
"Most shoplifters simply succumb to temptation," he said. "But add a sense of desperation because of the economy and holiday pressures, and you have the recipe for theft soup."
A couple of the stats:
- Shoplifting is up 6 percent compared to 2010
- Three-quarters of shoplifters are adults, and most of them have jobs.
A few of the items on the most-shoplifted list:
- Filet Mignon
- Let’s Rock Elmo
- Electric toothbrushes
- Axe deodorants and body washes (ewwwwwww)
Watch a video of the TODAY anchors discussing the trend above.
Read the whole article, stats, and list here.
Leave a Comment:
i once tried to shoplift a 747 jumbo jet but then i realized it wouldn't fit in my coat pocket. what an idiot i am.
weren't u successful stealing a butter nut squash up your keister??
I once stole a Presidency, just call me "Dubya"!
Obama*
Good one, trust.
I ate a donut at grocery store before I got to check-out,,is that theft?
Yes, it is theft if you ate it and didn't pay for it.
just make sure you go into the restroom and crap it out before you leave the store !
hahahahahaha!!!! Nooooooooo Just Hungry!!!!! LMAO....
If they're stealing toothbrushes, bodywash and deodorant, at least they care about hygiene. No dirty crooks here.
I was working in EMS 911 for 10 years and did a call to a house were a guy had vegetables on his nightstand, when we asked about the squash on the nightstand his wife said he liked have veggies stuffed up his poopchute while they had sex. We died laughing wondering if they cooked them up after getting freaky. Youd be surprised what people shove up their a$$.
How is this comment relevant to the article on shop-lifting - ? We really did not need to know about this . . . .!
Jim, next time make sure to hit the reply button instead of starting a new comment. Your squash story is moving further and further away from the comment that inspired it above.
Vegetables are healthy and you need to be a bit whacked to help people who often won't help themselves. Tell em the zucchini story Jim.
Deoderant, toothbrushes, Filet Mignon, and Elmo? Sounds like the economy is taking a toll on date nights.
Shower, use the deodorant, eat the steak, then brush your teeth. What you do with Elmo is your business.
Holy smokes.... electric toothbrushes? Aren't those all bogged down with security tags? And how in the name of God is anyone taking Tickle Me Elmo? Has anyone seen the size of that thing? I actually gave my son, who at the time was sitting in the front of the cart something to play with, he got tired of it, put it down next to him and when I went to put him in the car, I found it, but I took it back in and explained what happened. It was just a little teddy bear, but still. This was at Target and they were really nice about it. We don't need prices going any higher than they already are.
Let's Rock Elmo... I stand corrected.
My brother in law worked as a Meat Market Manager for a major grocery store. Meat was often stolen...they caught a few of the shoplifters but not many...NO, the store did not require any of the stolen meat to be returned.
But what kind of meat? Meat/seafood is often stolen at the store here, but it is never hamburger, chicken, catfish, or anything you could call 'economy'. It's always filet mignon, NY strip... sometimes even lobster.
Don't often question women if they have a salami in their slacks.
I shoplift all the time...get a thrill out of beating the system.
Great! We pay higher prices to pay for the merchants loss, thanks. Why don't you seek your thrills in the middle of the highway....
please
You may think you are "beating the system", but you are just a THIEF! I hope they catch you soon, take you to jail, fingerprint and take a mug shot, search you (more throughly than the airport) and throw you in a cell until you can bail out, which will be anywhere from $1,000 and up, depending on the Judge. Then your fingerprints and stats will be on file with all the other thieves out there.
Hey I used to feel the exact same way till 1 time I got caught.(there's too much surveillance these days) It was right after a hurricane in in S.FLA at a Publix which only had emergency lighting.They didn't call the police but took a polaroid of me holding up the item which was less than 5 bucks & a got a bill from a law firm for $250.Believe me after that humiliation the thrill was gone.
Why does the writer say "eww" when mentioning body washes? Is he/she/it not familiar with body washes? Weird.
I also question the entire report with no references to how the statisitics were derived. This is typical of "staff" writers who are probably first year interns trying to impress management with their articles. This won't do it.
The "ewww" is about AXE body wash and deodorant, not just body wash. If you have ever smelled it...well, the "ewww" is self-explanatory.
The article came from a trade magazine, Adweek. MSN.com just gleaned the info from it. Please read the article before making comments!
I have the right to comment on the writer regardless of the article. If MSN wants to print the article, so be it. If a freshman writes comments, we have the right to comment on their writing. I've wasted too much time as usual on an MSN sub article.
What's wrong with AXE? I think it smells great, and it definitely beats the other alternative smell (b.o.).
Walmart's policy is (or so they told me) was that unless the item was of significant value, they turn a blind eye. I see it all the time. Mostly children putting items in their mom's purse. You suppose they're "trained" to do that???
Not true... WalMart is one of the most vigorous prosecutors of shoplifters. Doesn't make a difference if what you steal costs .10 or $100. My friend's kid got arrested for eating a couple of JoJo potatoes from the Deli on her way to the check out. WHen she realized she left her wallet on the seat of her car and went to get it they busted her in the parking lot. It cost her a $600 fine, 6 mos probation at $40/mo. for about .50 worth of food.
That's what I've always heard Smc... WalMart is ruthless about prosecuting shoplisters, as they should be really.
I was getting a bunch of cheap stuff in Walmart for prizes for kids at church, whole bunch of things less than a dollar each, and one of my bags beeped on the way out. Had to stand there for an hour while Walmart security matched each item with the receipt (and they lost their place and started over several times). They wouldn't do it the easy way and just count the items in the bags and count the items paid for on the receipt. If I wasn't in a small town with few other places to shop, I would have just asked for my money back and left. Thank goodness we finally got a Target. Ironically, I was in the same Walmart another time buying school supplies, and the person just ahead of me was clearly shoplifting school supplies under their jacket (a jacket in August in Arizona is suspicious to begin with) and I mentioned it to the clerk when I got up there thinking maybe she didn't see it and could call security with a description before they got out of the store. She just shrugged and said she saw it too and did nothing.
you gotta try this. i hate wal-mart and have named a disease, walmartitis, after the phenomenon observed where my ex-wife, former fiance', and current wife all have gone in to walmart for a single item, wandered hypnotically for hours, and came out with hundreds of dollars of merchandise...except for the single item they initially sought, masters of marketing and impulse buying is walmart. ever notice how you must wander through multiple aisles to get basic goods? anyway, the only thing that bothers me more is the "accidental" beeping of the scanners when you leave, many times because the cashier forgot to remove the security tag. after witnessing this several times, and after it happened to me more than once, i found a solution. the last time a cashier forgot to remove the security tag and the alarm sounded as we (my wife, our two children, and i) were leaving. as soon as the alarm sounded, i dropped to my knees, put my hands in the air and then behind my head (ala Midnight Express) to the utter shock of my family, the "ticket checker", and everyone in sight. once we were checked and cleared of any wrongdoing, i informed the manager how angry i was for having my receipt checked everytime we leave the building, and for being treated like criminals whenever their employees fail to do their job, and for the managements inability to stop shoplifters. i received an apology letter, along with a gift card, and now i am greeted by name whenever i enter the holy grail of shopaholics. my ex is still mad at me for telling her the end of the world began when walmart started staying open 24/7, and i bought a bumper sticker that says "when i die, bury me close to a walmart, so my wife will come visit"...
I stole a couple of t-bones from the grocery store by sticking them in the front of my pants and buttoning up my coat. I don't feel too bad about it because I did make a couple of purchases.
Buck, please see my reply to Sunil above.
Dont tell me what I want, I want welfare, Government housing, Social security dissabilty, Unemployment benefits an everything else those crooks get.........
A walmart employie once told me alot of liquor gets stolen by people who simply drink while they shop!
Eight feet of batteries can disappear from a drugstore unnoticed. One shot, wiped out.
When I was a kid I had a thing called pride and integrity that kept me from ever shoplifting, I did believe in being a good citizen for Truth Justice and the American Way. Now as adult I realize that all those ideals were just in comic books and not the real world and I think to myself how sad.
We also had pride and integrity... along with a healthy fear of a leather belt across the ass and 'involuntarily volunteered' labor (a hardware store here caught a kid shoplifting, and the kid's grandmother made him sweep the hardware store parking lot every Saturday for the entire summer vacation).
People can say what they want about our upbringing, but we grew up honest and our kids will too.
"As shoppers crowd the malls supermarkets and liquor stores (stay with us on this), the tarde publication Adweek has some distressing stats".
Tarde publication? Is that politically correct? Is that spelling correct? I think it's supposed to be 'tard, with an apostrophe. But we like to be called "Mentally Challenged."
But seriously, don't you at least run spell check on these before posting them to the internet?
Yes, but my computer unlike yours cuts out in the middle of typing and sends messages before I am done with them or not at all. Think!
I stop all thiefs the same way, I shoot them. Steak, body wash a garden hose.
A thief is a thief, if he steals a penny he will steal a dime!
Abortionist Sam -
I think you'll find that's just a typo. The word is supposed to be "trade".
There are three types of shoplifters. The first is the opportunity shoplifter. This individual has no plans to steal, but when opportunity presents themselves, they go for it. They don't see it as theft since it was not really their plan. The 2nd is the need shoplifter. They need food, or pain pills, or a clean shirt. They are poor, old and can be unemployed. They feel that it is stealing and they feel guilty. The third and most common shoplifter is the druggie. They steal anything, and everything in order to get what they need drugs or alcohol. They have already been caught some many times stealing from family and friends that they cannot get away with it any more. They are selfish and could care less about the theft. Its all about their pain and need. I don't feel sorry for them. They get caught, go to jail, detox, painfully in jail and the first thing they do when they get out is to find a way to get high again.
I came across these stats the other day and I couldn't believe some of the things shoppers are stealing! Who would have that that filet mignon would be a hot item?
Check it out here: www.pavonefood.com/most-shoplifted-holiday-season/
stealing is wrong no matter the victem. any one who believes otherwise should b ashamed of themselves. try spending some time in jail as a thief. i bet ur ass grows up real fast. @!$%#in thieves r useless piles of @!$%#
We all pay for shop lifting with higher prices to make up for lost items and increased security costs. We pay for it in time if we have an item that does not get properly swiped at the cash register and they have to match it to our receipt, or we get home from clothes shopping and find that plastic thing wasn't removed and you have to go back. Most of all, though, we pay for it with the loss of honesty and integrity and trust.
The article said most of these people were employed. It also said most common things stolen were not basics, but luxury items. People are not stealing bread and peanut butter or hamburger, but steak and expensive liquor. They were not stealing basic soap or even cheap body wash, but the expensive stuff, and fancy perfumes. Worst of all, it mentioned people stealing so they could afford the kind of Christmas they were used to. What a way to celebrate the birthday of Jesus!
I used to work for CVS, before it became CVS and was Eckerd Drugs. I once saw a man stealing a pack of toilet paper, we're talking about an 8-pack or 12-pack, not those measly 4-packs. As I was running to confront him and stop him, the manager told me to let it go, because the money he was taking in stealing was not coming out of his paycheck or mine, it was just hurting the corporate people up top and they make tons of money so who cares, he said. I didn't know if it was true at the time (I was only 16 and he was older so I trusted he knew more, plus he was a store MANAGER so I believed he probably knew what he was talking about) but that wasn't the first time I saw theft occur and no one doing anything about it at our store. I guess if you're making minimum wage, they don't think it's worth the employees' efforts to stop shoplifters.
I took a candy out of a candy bin when I was 7 and a little old lady grabbed me by the collar and made me put it back. She never said a word, she didn't have to the look she gave me said it all. Since then I have been hungry and broke but didn't steal. And now, still broke after the bills are paid I wouldn't think of shoplifting. I have gone back and returned money to a store when they have given me back too much change. It may seem silly but it's important to me. And when my kids went grocery shopping with me, they each got some change to pick a fruit and go buy it before eating it. Example is the best teacher. And with all the programs, and soup kitchens and food banks, no one has to go hungry. So all theft is theft. There is no good reason.
I took a candy out of a candy bin when I was 7 and a little old lady grabbed me by the collar and made me put it back. She never said a word, she didn't have to the look she gave me said it all. Since then I have been hungry and broke but didn't steal. And now, still broke after the bills are paid I wouldn't think of shoplifting. I have gone back and returned money to a store when they have given me back too much change. It may seem silly but it's important to me. And when my kids went grocery shopping with me, they each got some change to pick a fruit and go buy it before eating it. Example is the best teacher. And with all the programs, and soup kitchens and food banks, no one has to go hungry. So all theft is theft. There is no good reason.
When my son was about 7-8yrs old he stole, on a dare, a package of caps from the local convenience store. When my husband and I found out about it, we put the fear of God into him, and made him go back to the store, appologize and pay for the item. We explained how people who steal are arrested by the police and go to jail.
A few days later, my son and I were in another store and there was a cop there. I said something to my son as we passed the policeman and said my sons name. When we walked back the officer said, "Hi Paul" (my sons name). That child was so terrified that he was about to be arrested for stealing he looked like he wanted to melt into the floor. We never had another issue with him shoplifting.