Locked displays push shoppers online

Retailers are increasingly locking merchandise and adding staff‑mediated checks to deter shoplifting; those anti‑theft frictions make in‑store shopping less convenient and drive some purchases to online platforms. The result is a hidden cost of theft: not only stolen goods but higher operational spending, slower service, higher prices, and accelerated platform concentration. — This shifts the public debate about shoplifting from a narrow criminal‑justice frame to an economic one—asking who ultimately pays (workers, shoppers, or platform shareholders) and how anti‑theft measures reshape local retail ecosystems.