Shrink includes customer theft, but it also accounts lost or destroyed inventory and employee theft, to name a couple of other examples. But companies such as Target and Walgreens have cumulatively reported billions of dollars in losses from theft by citing shrink numbers. Often, company executives use "shrink" and "theft" interchangeably, while providing no breakdown of how much of their shrink is attributable to theft. Retailers could be pointing to theft to prompt government action or distract from operational issuesIf so many elements contribute to shrink, then why are some retailers pointing to theft only? Do you work at a major retail store such as Walmart and have a story idea to share?

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Persons: —, Matthew Schroeder, Melodie van der, William Blair, Gillian Flaccus, der Baan, van der Baan, Jennifer Ortakales Dawkins, Blair Organizations: Service, Target, Walgreens, Aid, Home Depot, Max Retail, National Retail Federation, Walmart, AP Locations: Harlem , New York, Manhattan , New York