Latest news with #CarolynYoung
Scoop
2 days ago
- Business
- Scoop
NZ Retail Industry Gathering For Inspiration And Celebration
The changing retail environment, international retail trends and the customers of the future will be the focus of a national retail conference being held by Retail NZ this year. Registrations are open for the Inspire Retail 25 conference taking place at the Grand Millennium Hotel, Auckland, on Thursday 28 August. The conference will be followed by the Retail NZ Awards gala dinner – the first time Retail NZ has held its awards since 2019. 'With a focus on creating a brighter tomorrow, our Inspire Retail 25 conference sessions are designed to be future-focused, providing attendees with strategic knowledge and practical takeaways that they can implement in their business,' Retail NZ Chief Executive Carolyn Young says. 'We'll dive into how retailers can adapt to a changing retail environment and how to create high-performing teams. Our expert speakers will explore what the retail industry will look like in five years' time.' Retail NZ is excited to revive the retail industry's premier awards programme, with the revamped Retail NZ Awards set to showcase the best of retail in New Zealand. Entries for the Retail NZ Awards are open until 29 June, providing retailers an exciting opportunity to highlight and celebrate their individual and business successes. The eight Award categories are: 'We all know that times have been tough in retail but there is still plenty to celebrate across the industry so we're taking the opportunity to recognise the great work of our best retailers across Aotearoa,' Ms Young says.
Scoop
05-05-2025
- Scoop
Retail Crime Significantly Under-reported
Press Release – Retail NZ Retail NZs COMS Retail Crime Report 2024 found that 99% of respondents, representing more than 1500 stores across New Zealand and online, experienced some form of retail crime or anti-social behaviour, totalling 140,746 incidents. Retail crime rates are significantly under-reported in New Zealand, by almost 40%, a new report by Retail NZ has found. Retail NZ's COMS Retail Crime Report 2024 found that 99% of respondents, representing more than 1500 stores across New Zealand and online, experienced some form of retail crime or anti-social behaviour, totalling 140,746 incidents. The incidents ranged from credit card fraud and shoplifting through to threatening behaviour, criminal damage and physical assault. But almost 40% of those retail crimes were not reported to Police, Retail NZ Chief Executive Carolyn Young says. There were a range of reasons why respondents did not report incidents to Police, such as low value items not being worth the effort; the retailer discovered the offence too late or dealt with it directly. Some also raised concerns that Police would not do anything. 'Our 2023 Retail Crime Report found that the cost of retail crime is around $2.6 billion a year. This cost flows through from retailers to customers to the New Zealand economy, and so is a major brake on the retail sector's contribution to economic growth. In this latest survey, we focused on identifying the actual level of retail crime in New Zealand, confirming that it is much higher than official statistics show,' Ms Young says. 'Every day, retailers are dealing with threatening, violent or simply unpleasant customers, who are trying to steal or damage their property. Almost every retail worker has been affected by crime and aggression which is traumatic for those directly involved and their colleagues.' This is a serious health and safety issue for retail employers, she says. Retail NZ strongly recommends that all crime incidents are reported to the Police, regardless of the scale of the offending. 'This is essential to enable Police to track the full extent of retail crime, ensure that they can assign appropriate resources and keep track of repeat offenders. Full reporting also enables policy makers and Government to see the full scale of retail crime, and implement appropriate policies and support to the sector,' Ms Young says. COMS Systems Director Paul Andrew says it is disappointing that shoplifting and aggressive behaviour have increased, impacting not only profitability but also staff safety and wellbeing. However, the support for Facial Recognition Technology (FRT) within the retail sector is encouraging. 'Embracing technology is essential — it's the future, and it's here to stay,' Mr Andrew says. There has been positive progress on efforts to prevent retail crime in the last 12 months, including Foodstuffs North Island's successful trial of FRT, and the establishment of the Ministerial Advisory Group for the victims of retail crime. Ms Young is a member of this group. Police are rolling out new Community Beat Teams in cities and towns across Aotearoa New Zealand, and stronger sentencing legislation has been enacted. Retail NZ has formed a working group comprising a number of large retailers which is developing agreed approaches to crime prevention measures including legislative change and technology like FRT.
Scoop
04-05-2025
- Scoop
Retail Crime Significantly Under-reported
Retail crime rates are significantly under-reported in New Zealand, by almost 40%, a new report by Retail NZ has found. Retail NZ's COMS Retail Crime Report 2024 found that 99% of respondents, representing more than 1500 stores across New Zealand and online, experienced some form of retail crime or anti-social behaviour, totalling 140,746 incidents. The incidents ranged from credit card fraud and shoplifting through to threatening behaviour, criminal damage and physical assault. But almost 40% of those retail crimes were not reported to Police, Retail NZ Chief Executive Carolyn Young says. There were a range of reasons why respondents did not report incidents to Police, such as low value items not being worth the effort; the retailer discovered the offence too late or dealt with it directly. Some also raised concerns that Police would not do anything. 'Our 2023 Retail Crime Report found that the cost of retail crime is around $2.6 billion a year. This cost flows through from retailers to customers to the New Zealand economy, and so is a major brake on the retail sector's contribution to economic growth. In this latest survey, we focused on identifying the actual level of retail crime in New Zealand, confirming that it is much higher than official statistics show,' Ms Young says. 'Every day, retailers are dealing with threatening, violent or simply unpleasant customers, who are trying to steal or damage their property. Almost every retail worker has been affected by crime and aggression which is traumatic for those directly involved and their colleagues.' This is a serious health and safety issue for retail employers, she says. Retail NZ strongly recommends that all crime incidents are reported to the Police, regardless of the scale of the offending. 'This is essential to enable Police to track the full extent of retail crime, ensure that they can assign appropriate resources and keep track of repeat offenders. Full reporting also enables policy makers and Government to see the full scale of retail crime, and implement appropriate policies and support to the sector,' Ms Young says. COMS Systems Director Paul Andrew says it is disappointing that shoplifting and aggressive behaviour have increased, impacting not only profitability but also staff safety and wellbeing. However, the support for Facial Recognition Technology (FRT) within the retail sector is encouraging. 'Embracing technology is essential — it's the future, and it's here to stay,' Mr Andrew says. There has been positive progress on efforts to prevent retail crime in the last 12 months, including Foodstuffs North Island's successful trial of FRT, and the establishment of the Ministerial Advisory Group for the victims of retail crime. Ms Young is a member of this group. Police are rolling out new Community Beat Teams in cities and towns across Aotearoa New Zealand, and stronger sentencing legislation has been enacted. Retail NZ has formed a working group comprising a number of large retailers which is developing agreed approaches to crime prevention measures including legislative change and technology like FRT.
RNZ News
28-04-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
'Complicated' card surcharge fees need to be simplifed
Photo: 123rf Retailers say managing card payment fees is complex and costly, with some struggling to keep up with rising charges. Visa wants to ban surcharge fees , but many merchants argue these fees are necessary to cover the high costs of accepting various payment methods. The Commerce Commission is reviewing card charges, aware that some businesses are overcharging consumers, but it's tough for shoppers to detect. Retail NZ chief executive Carolyn Young told Morning Report post Covid, and with the arrival of new technology like Paywave, fees arrived in a heartbeat and are much more significant than they were previously, Young said. The current regulations allow merchants to charge a surcharge that's equivalent to the fee they are charged, she said. Young said the system was "super complicated" and Retail NZ has asked for this to be simplified. "There are different fees depending on if it's a debit transaction, if it's a Visa or Mastercard transaction, it's different again if it's Amex, it's different if it's a card from overseas, it's different if it's Union Pay, it's different if it comes through a different bank - so it's very complicated. "There are about five different players within the market that take a different fee than the merchant fee." Retail NZ wants there to be the option to charge different fees for each purchase type.
