- Retail Rundown
- Posts
- Retail Rundown 9.8.25
Retail Rundown 9.8.25
 | A violent confrontation turned deadly inside a South Loop business when an employee fatally shot a man during a fight. The incident unfolded on Michigan Avenue near 13th Street, drawing a massive police response. Authorities are investigating whether the shooting was in self-defense. It's the latest in a string of retail-related violent encounters putting frontline workers in danger. |
 | An 88-year-old jewelry store owner in California was viciously attacked by a masked crew during a bold daytime smash-and-grab. The gang stormed the shop, smashing cases and fleeing with stolen goods—leaving the elderly victim bruised and bloodied. The assault underscores the increasingly reckless nature of retail crime. Community members are outraged, calling for tougher crackdowns. |
 | Tragedy struck at a Best Buy in Augusta when a shooting left two people dead and another injured in the store's parking lot. Police say the victims were targeted, not random. The scene shocked employees and shoppers alike, with crime scene tape wrapping the perimeter of what should’ve been an ordinary retail evening. It’s another troubling reminder of violence bleeding into commercial spaces. |
 | A high-stakes smash-and-grab in downtown Chicago saw six suspects charged after making off with $170,000 worth of Rolex watches. The crew stormed a jeweler with sledgehammers, snatching timepieces in seconds before fleeing. Fast police work led to swift arrests and recovery of some merchandise. This case highlights how organized theft crews are getting bolder—but not always faster than law enforcement. |
 | A deputy-involved shooting rocked a Walgreens in Houston when an altercation escalated, ending with an armed suspect being shot. Officials say the man posed a threat inside the store before the situation turned violent. The deputy is expected to be okay, and an investigation is underway. Retail pharmacies, once quiet storefronts, are increasingly becoming flashpoints for danger. |
From Zipotle to RFID: Retail’s Boldest Tech Moves
 | Retailers in August 2025 focused technology efforts in areas including drone delivery, RFID, and mobile POS. Here are some of the most noteworthy and innovative technology stories as reported by Chain Store Age in August, starting with the most recent. |
Walmart launches next-day delivery for third-party orders in major cities: Walmart has unveiled a suite of tools and initiatives designed to accelerate the growth of its Marketplace sellers. The discounter introduced new AI-powered tools and seller incentives to help sellers grow faster, operate more efficiently and reach more customers. It also announced expanded next-day delivery in major metros and enhanced omnichannel opportunities — including showcasing Marketplace items in-store.
Chipotle launches 'Zipotle' drone delivery in Dallas: Chipotle Mexican Grill is partnering with an autonomous drone provider to offer a new delivery option. The quick-service retailer is utilizing quiet, zero-emissions automated drone aircraft from Zipline to fly digital orders to a small number of customers in greater Dallas. Eligible customers can download the Zipline app and place their Chipotle order. Employees will then place the order into a "Zipping Point," which allows Zipline drones to autonomously pick up the order for delivery.
From drone-delivered burritos to hyper-personalized shopping, retailers are rewriting the playbook. And that’s just the beginning… here are 10 more innovations changing the game.
 Bay Area Retail Thief Headbutts Employee While Trying To Escape: Police A man fought with loss prevention employees, headbutting one of them Wednesday, after they tried to stop him from stealing clothes and cologne from a Macy's Department Store in San Mateo, police said. San Mateo Police Department officers said they responded to Macy's at 115 Hillsdale Mall in San Mateo and found loss prevention employees fighting and chasing a man near the store. Loss Prevention officers detained the man, identified as Fernando Escotorivera, for shoplifting, police said. |  Theft suspect wanted for $12,000 stolen credit card shopping spree in Orange County Police are searching for a retail theft suspect who used a stolen credit card to go on a shopping spree in Orange County. Irvine Police said a victim’s vehicle was recently burglarized at Doheny State Beach and their personal items, including credit cards, were stolen. The male suspect went to a local Apple store and used the stolen card to purchase $12,000 worth of merchandise. He left the store and remains at large. Surveillance cameras captured the man’s image as police continued searching for him. |  A new dawn in digital fraud threats: The rise of agentic AI By 2025, approximately 2.8B people around the world will be shopping online. According to Statista, around 21% of retail purchases currently take place on the internet, a figure expected to grow to 22.6% by 2027. Alongside the opportunities in digital commerce, fundamental changes are taking place in the way consumers shop online, driven by the rise of AI-based shopping agents (Agentic AI). Consumers are increasingly using AI tools (LLMs) such as ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and Perplexity to research products, compare prices, and even complete transactions. |
Scaling and Innovating QSR Operations: How Whataburger Leveraged OpenEye Cloud Video
With a history spanning seventy-five years, fast-food chain Whataburger has gone from a single restaurant in Corpus Christi, Texas, to over one thousand restaurants nationwide. They’ve worked closely with OpenEye over the years to meet their needs, leveraging OpenEye Web Services (OWS) to strengthen their loss prevention efforts, improve workplace operations, and provide an enhanced dining experience for their customers.
Register for OpenEye’s webinar to hear from Whataburger as they discuss what led them to OpenEye, how OWS helped Whataburger meet the various surveillance needs of their organization, as well as Whataburger’s future plans with OpenEye, and how they plan to use OWS to support growth.
Revealed: The Top 10 Items Organized Retail Crime Rings Are Targeting in Retail Stores Now If you've visited a big-box retailer such as Walmart or Target recently and noticed everyday items such as detergent or razors behind locked glass, you're not dreaming. The NRF puts the toll of this chaos at some $94.5B annually, prompting stores to raise prices, increase security, and alter the way we all shop. Let's take a look at the top 10 categories these thieves enjoy, beginning with the fundamentals. | Preventing Workplace Violence: A Strategic Imperative for Today’s Organizations Workplace violence is a critical and growing concern for organizations across all industries. It encompasses a wide spectrum from bullying and verbal threats to physical assaults and, in the most tragic cases, homicide. While acts of extreme violence often dominate news headlines, they are typically preceded by missed warning signs and failed interventions. | North Carolina city declares itself a 'Fourth Amendment Workplace' to protect city workers from ICE A NC city has approved a measure declaring itself a "4th Amendment Workplace" and boosting protections for illegal immigrant workers targeted by ICE. The Durham City Council passed the resolution on Tuesday with a vote to shield city workers against raids and arrests carried out by federal officials, according to The Duke Chronicle. |
The Director of Asset Protection provides overall strategic direction and leadership for The GIANT Company’s Asset Protection (AP) function. This role safeguards company assets while championing team member and customer safety by leading shrink reduction strategies, overseeing investigations, developing talent, and driving cross-functional collaboration. The Director partners closely with Operations, Shrink, Investigations, and law enforcement agencies to ensure programs deliver measurable results that reduce shrink, enhance safety, and protect profitability.
Why patrol officers are key to behavioral threat assessment In law enforcement, the greatest success is the crime that never happens. With agencies navigating recruitment and retention concerns, staffing shortages and multigenerational workplace dynamics, the adage do more with less has never been more apparent. Nationally, as the evolving threat landscape grows — ranging from mass shootings to ideologically motivated violence — proactive policing rooted in Behavioral Threat Assessment and Management (BTAM) has become a mission-critical necessity. | Jaguar Land Rover Operations ‘Severely Disrupted’ by Cyberattack In a brief notice on Tuesday, the company said it disconnected its systems, which severely impacted both retail and manufacturing operations. “JLR has been impacted by a cyber incident. We took immediate action to mitigate its impact by proactively shutting down our systems,” a JLR spokesperson told SecurityWeek. “We are now working at pace to restart our global applications in a controlled manner. |  |
Simply forward this email to your team or colleagues > they scan the QR code or click below to sign up and BOOM > everyone is smarter.
1