The Retailer Autumn 2017_v1

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What is the public affairs strategy around the repeal bill?

Retail crime: if we can’t measure it...

JAMES MARTIN Crime and Security Adviser British retail consortium

Howwill Brexit impact retailers?

RETAIL CRIME IS A KEY AREA OF OUR WORK AT THE BRC. FROM LOW-VALUE THEFT BY CUSTOMERS, WHICH SOON MOUNTS UP AS AN EXPENSE, TO THE MOST COMPLICATED CYBER-ATTACKS AND, MOST CONCERNINGLY, THE RISING TIDE OF VIOLENCE AND ABUSE OF STAFF, IT STRIKES DIRECTLY AT STAFF WELLBEING AND AT PROFITABILITY. Peventing and dealing with it adds cost and complexity, which can, particularly when margins are already tight, make the difference between a site or an offering being viable or not. Retail crime also has more subtle implications for members. It influences the design of the bricks and mortar and the web-based offerings, and how the two interact. It affects staff engagement and retention. It shapes how purchases are made and payments managed. Unless a retailer is on top of these issues it can, more than just about any other area, have damaging implications for the customer experience and for customer trust. That is why the BRC maintains a continuing Crime and Security policy portfolio which aims to help deliver secure retail environments. Part of our work is to look to set the terms of debate as a way of helping to refine the public sector’s offer. On 20 January 2015 the BBC, amongst others, reported that retail crime was at a ten year high, with shoplifting, cyber-crime and fraud at their highest levels since the data began to be recorded comprehensively some ten years earlier. Fast forward two years, to February 2017, and a range of national and specialist outlets carried stories arguing that the authorities should do something about the rising tide of violence and abuse of staff and fast-increasing scale of cyber-crime. Each perspective directly reflected members’ real-world experiences and priorities for the future as set out in the BRC’s annual Retail Crime Survey. The survey gives us a platform to make the case for a better response by the authorities on the key issues. Although we are still pressing for more to be done, and done better, over this period we have seen the creation of the National Business Crime Centre (part of the Metropolitan police), the National Cyber Security Centre (whose increasing focus on cyber-crime has, for example, assisted the production of the BRC Cyber Crime Toolkit hugely) and the National Retail Crime Steering Group, which the BRC co-chairs with the Home Office Minister and which we anticipate agreeing to our Violence and Abuse Strategy in November.

These would be real achievements in ‘ordinary’ circumstances, but against the backdrop of austerity spending policies, significantly increased reporting of other crimes, such as sex offences, and an increasing preoccupation with the EU and Brexit they take on an even more impressive quality. None of the developments came about purely because of the survey but, equally, without it each would have been much less likely. Of course, the real issue is about us knowing what members really want, and focusing organisations such as the Steering Group on tackling the issues members want them to. Again, the survey allows us a great way to do that: without it, we would not know what is important; where things are getting better, and why; and where things most need to get better but aren’t, and why they aren’t. Knowing that allows us to set our own priorities. Finally, the survey gives members a much clearer view of what is going on across the industry. It does not paint a perfect picture, but it does allow for an understanding of whether trends that one member is seeing are fairly common, or whether they are more specific. We know how valuable that can be for business-planning and -strategy decisions. The 2017 survey process has now begun, with the questionnaire here. New areas included a more detailed section on violence, questions aimed at getting us a better way of understanding how much of the cost of retail crime is unrecorded, opportunities to highlight areas of the country where the police or courts are particularly good, or bad, and a request for feedback on the BRC’s Cyber-Security Toolkit, and where we think it should go next. So in a few months we will be working on what those questions tell us – perhaps to focus anti-violence work on particular cities, to build relationships with MoJ’s court transformation programme and to create a new Toolkit that gives Boards and NEDs the support they need to test their organisations cyber-preparedness. We encourage all of our retail members to download and complete it as fully as possible, and let us know here that they’re doing that. We’ve made this year’s edition shorter and more user-friendly, and can reassure you that each member’s return will be kept completely confidential and that only aggregated data will be published or shared.

How should retailers prepare for the next few months?

Following the success of our first ever online event, we’re now presenting the Brexit Webinar: The European Union Withdrawal Bill . Don’t miss the chance to discuss the issues that matter to you with expert BRC policy advisers. You’ll gain a better understanding of how Brexit will impact your work and get a briefing on the latest from the negotiations and our campaign.

FEB 21ST

NOV 15TH

BREXITWEBINAR: THE EUROPEAN UNION WITHDRAWAL BILL

BREXITWEBINAR: BREXIT, IMMIGRATION AND THE RETAIL WORKFORCE

IN ASSOCIATIONWITH:

UNLOCK OUR EXPERTISE

WILLIAM BAIN EUROPE AND INTERNATIONAL POLICY ADVISER, brc

FIONNUALA Horrocks-Burns EMPLOYMENT & SKILLS POLICY ADVISER, BRC