Once upon a time, people started stealing Victoria’s Secret underwear and began selling them on eBay. Then the store’s parent company, Limited Brands, fought back with Operation Pink, marking merchandise with UV ink, and catching the culprits who stole and resold them on eBay. The operation was a success.
    But there is no happily ever after for the lingerie chain or for any other retailer hit by organized retail crime, at least not in the near future.
    What once used to be individual crime in unique geographical areas has now exploded onto the retail scene as a significant problem, Limited says.
    The new breed of thieves is organized, with specific roles for each member, and operates on a national level.
    “These groups operate more like a terrorist cell,” said John Talamo, Vice President of Limited Brands’ loss prevention division. “So if we apprehend a group and its leaders, it doesn’t affect or disrupt the operations of other groups.”
    Speaking at the National Retail Federation’s annual expo in New York, Talamo said what used to be petty theft once has now become organized crime, and needs to be handled by professionals. 
    He said Limited has taken matters into its hands, by forming a separate team within its loss prevention division that works with the legal and legislative arms of the government to fight organized retail crime.
    In addition, the NRF’s Retail Loss Prevention Intelligence Network is bringing together companies affected by retail crime by building a national database of incidents of theft at retail stores. 
    The NRF expects the database to help law enforcement agencies and companies to nab thieves. It also hopes to create a geographical map of the network in the future, allowing users to zoom into specific areas and check crime statistics and security measures that stores use in the area before setting up shop.
    So, can Gap and Express expect retail crime to be a thing of the past soon? It looks like moderate victory now, but only time can tell for sure.