Retail losses in Germany due to theft and other illegal activities reached an all-time high last year, particularly due to organised crime.
Shops lost around €4.95bn, which is 3% more than in 2023, according to a study by the EHI Retail Institute. Total retail sales in the Federal Republic of Germany are estimated at €495bn.
The vast majority of stock shortages arise from theft by customers, employees, suppliers and service staff. This figure rose to €4.2bn in 2024 (from €4.1bn a year earlier), with thefts by customers accounting for €2.95bn and shop workers for €890m.
At the same time, losses due to the actions of organised criminal groups (usually thefts of at least a thousand euros per offence) increased by 5% last year, the report said.
On average across all sectors, retailers now spend around 0.33% of turnover on security measures. This translates into an average price increase of 1.5% for shoppers.
The EHI Retail Institute’s calculations are based on data from 98 retailers with total sales of around €94.3bn a year, which operate more than 17,400 shops in Germany.