More retailers are doing something about the crime they are facing. This time is Fred Meyer. The chain is planning measures with the city’s law enforcement to provide better interior/exterior store security and prevent theft. Fred Meyer has now formed a public-private partnership with the city of Portland, Oregon, to help fight crime at its stores in Portland.
National studies has numbers. For instance, the National Retail Federation’s 2022 National Retail Security Survey, released last September, estimated retail shrink at a nearly $100 billion problem for the retail sector. Shrink mainly stems from external theft, including incidents linked to organized retail crime.
Fred Meyer is a big chain. It operates 132 stores—ranging from in size from 65,000 to 200,000 square feet and offering food, groceries, pharmacy, health and beauty aids, general merchandise and apparel—in Alaska, Idaho, Oregon and Washington.
The Kroger Co. multi-department store chain said last Thursday that it’s working closely with Portland’s mayor and local law enforcement to provide a safer shopping experience. The move comes amid elevated levels of crime the spiked after the pandemic. Shoplifting, break-ins and robberies have prompted a stream of retailers and other businesses to shut locations.
Measures planned under the partnership with Portland include an increased security presence at stores; heightened safety protocols for store interiors, parking lots and doorways; advanced receipt verification; and “significant investments” in innovative security technology, Fred Meyer reported. Overall, the chain has about 10 stores in the Portland area.
