❤️ Need pink paint? Go ask Barbie

Two Atlanta-area Lululemon employees were fired for confronting shoplifters. It sparked a lot of discussion, but CEO Calvin McDonald has doubled down on the decision, citing the store’s strict safety-first, no interference policy.

“It’s only merchandise at the end,” McDonald told CNBC, clarifying that employees may call police, but should step back and let cameras gather evidence.

Shoplifting is on the rise…

… or is it? We’ve seen the locked cases at grocery stores and pharmacies, but what’s actually happening is a bit murky.

In retail, shrinkage refers to loss of inventory, whether that’s due to theft, human error, or damage. Per the National Retail Federation’s annual survey, retailers saw an average shrink rate of 1.4% in 2021, accounting for $94.5B in losses.

• But shrink has consistently hit ~1.4% for the last 10+ years, per CNN.
• Yet retailers cited a 26.5% increase, on average, in organized retail crime (pro shoplifters who steal to resell); 80% claimed an increase in violent or aggressive incidents.

Also interesting: In San Francisco’s central district, larceny theft was up 88% in 2021 — compared to 2020, when stores closed for months. Compared to 2019, larceny theft was down, per The Atlantic’s Amanda Mull, who tried unsuccessfully to coax more specific data from retailers.

So, essentially, the numbers are hard to parse. Could it be that shoplifting hasn’t increased, but more brazen incidents — those more prone to go viral — have?

What can be done?

Confronting shoplifters can be dangerous, even deadly.

Last week, the California state senate passed a bill that would stop retailers from asking staff to confront shoplifters, in line with Lululemon’s prioritization of employee safety.

Retailers are instead turning to tech, including:

• AI that monitors checkouts for barcode switching or other irregularities
• Self-service cases that customers unlock with personal info
• RFID tags, which track specific items
• Robots

For example: Philadelphia Lowe’s stores are piloting security bots. But they’re much cuter and much less intimidating than RoboCop.

The upcoming Barbie movie has inspired a deluge of memes — but did it also cause a global shortage of pink paint? Well, kinda.

Though the first Barbie, released in 1959, donned a black-and-white swimsuit, her logo has always been a vivid pink.

For the live-action film, director Greta Gerwig insisted that Barbie’s world be unapologetically pink, including her mid-century, modern-inspired “Dreamhouse.”

Production designer Sarah Greenwood told Architectural Digest that the set used so much of Rosco’s fluorescent pink paint, it caused a shortage.

Rosco…

… specializes in paint for film and theater productions. Lauren Proud, VP of global marketing, confirmed to The Los Angeles Times that the film “did clean us out on paint” in 2022. But it was already in short supply due to:

• The pandemic’s grip on the supply chain
• The 2021 Texas freeze, which damaged raw materials

That’s not all

The paint’s back in stock, but the Barbie frenzy is just beginning, with #Barbiecore — full of perfectly pink fashion and decor trends — racking up 349m+ views on TikTok.

The brand generated $1.5B in sales for Mattel in 2022. It’s clearly hoping the movie will boost sales further, dropping a line of related dolls and accessories — including a ~1.8k-piece replica Dreamhouse for ~$150.

BTW: Check out this Barbie-inspired condo in Ann Arbor, Michigan.