By: Elisabetta Borghi
Practice Lead Retail at Amati & Associates
RETHINK Retail Top Retail Expert
Shrink remains a key, growing issue in the retail world today.
Today’s retailers struggle with these rising rates of theft and fraud; notes one NRF study conducted together with the Loss Prevention Research Council, retailers experienced a 26% increase in shoplifting from 2022 to 2023. Moreover, in 2023, shrinkage rose to $112 billion (though only about a third of that can confidently be attributed to theft).
Today’s retail environment is defined by technological innovation, yes, but also innovating and iterating upon existing technologies in new combinations in response to emergent challenges.
In particular, AI and machine learning processes are integrating into long-existing technologies and solutions—such as in-store video monitoring—to create new levels of functionality. That includes predicting behaviors to better personalize content delivered to consumers.
For example, Diebold Nixdorf’s Vynamic Smart Vision, an AI-powered retail platform designed to prevent theft and fraud by detecting it early, has already seen success as a fraud detection system.
The technology comes at an opportune time; a planned adoption deal with the Paris-based Groupement Les Mousquetaires—a French company that manages several retail chains, aims to help brands distinguish themselves as convenient and seamless while ensuring genuine security.
France, like the U.S., has seen a rise in theft—particularly within grocery. A 2023 report in Le Monde notes that reported incidents of shoplifting increased by 14.7% in 2022. Similar increases are being reported across the Eurozone.
Further adds a blog from Diebold Nixdorf, “One recent New York Times piece reported that shoplifting complaints have almost doubled according to NYC police data, while notable incidents such as the closing of a historic Nike outlet in Portland due to an alleged ‘spike in theft’ have gained more public attention.”
This is in part due to struggles with labor retention—in effect, properly trained associates or an insufficient number of them. The primary cause, however, is the systemic effects of inflationary pressures and a cost-of-living crisis that has not abated despite slowing inflation.
Yet by adopting new solutions—particularly at critical touchpoints such as self-checkout—French retail operations like Groupment Mousquetaires are proactively addressing fraud and other loss-generating errors and oversights via real-time monitoring and AI learning.
The Vynamic Shrink Reduction Solution by Diebold Nixdorf was featured at this year’s NRF, demonstrating how the system serves retailers by helping enhance the customer experience. The overall aim, aside from preventing fraud, is to make self-checkout a highlight within the customer journey rather than an often-reported pain point.
Testing of the system yielded significantly positive results for the customer experience, reducing the amount of human assistance required by 15%. That’s a genuine uplift in today’s labor market. This has translated to a general reduction in wait times at a time when customers report being less patient than ever.
Introduced at an Intermarché store in La Farlède in March 2024, this solution reduced erroneous transactions from 3% to less than 1%.
I argue these systems benefit the industry as a whole by improving the employee experience, increasing efficiency, enhancing the customer experience, boosting brand equity, and ultimately improving profitability. The AI-powered anomaly detection systems ensure fair and impartial assessments that help eliminate human bias.
The solution works seamlessly: customers scan their products as normal while AI-powered cameras are able to silently detect if customers forget to scan products or if any other suspicious activity is detected.
That’s important at a time when a rise in ‘swipers’ in retail is making many French retailers turn to new systems to help better monitor stores. AI-powered systems are able to track items, and the hands of customers, whether sudden movements or apparent oversights, such as forgetting items in carts.
While not the only provider of AI at self-checkout, the Vynamic platform difference lies in its focus on enhancing customer-service journeys for both shoppers and store associates, ensuring AI is deployed with finesse and without disruption —resulting in fewer associate interventions and a seamless customer journey. The system identifies over 20 cases, from accidental misses to more intentional forms of theft or fraud and the AI machine learning system will continue to upgrade the self-checkout technology.
In an interview with Morning Retail, Hervé Grelet explains the new Vynamic Smart Vision system. “There are AI driven video surveillance solutions placed inside of the stores to help to analyze and decrypt suspicious actions. There are swipers cases [that are flagrant]…but [there are also] ambiguous [scenarios]…these technologies work, because these solutions [reduce shoplifting] by 40%.”
By deploying systems such as Diebold Nixdorf’s across the entire store area, retailers secure comprehensive, intelligent system monitoring covering both shelves and check-out. AI and machine learning processes continue to learn and add more data to better inform day-to-day operations.
Monica Cannalire, a fellow RETHINK Retail Top Retail Expert and Founder of YOUNICORN, emphasizes how the solution allows store associates to focus on providing excellent service rather than simply monitoring transactions.
“With an “artificial eye” supporting them, staff can cultivate a more positive and helpful relationship with customers, reinforcing trust and satisfaction. This technology is not just about loss prevention—it’s about creating a smoother, more efficient shopping experience for everyone around the brand.”
Ultimately, retailers need to ensure they create a sense of safety with shoppers of all kinds. While it is important to reduce shrink or prevent ‘swipers,’ retail environments must remain welcoming spaces.
That’s why intelligent solutions that do not fundamentally change the retail experience but silently track suspicious behavior are a solid way forward for retail managers who both need to tackle shrink and maintain a positive brand experience—while also significantly improving the shopping experience through shorter wait times and fewer staff interventions—especially at a time when retail competition for loyalty and value is as fierce as ever.
