Costco, often hailed as a retail fortress against theft due to its membership model and vigilant security, may be facing an unexpected challenge at its single Manhattan location. Located in East Harlem at 117th Street and the FDR Drive, this warehouse store is reportedly experiencing significant losses from shoplifting, raising eyebrows and questions about the vulnerabilities even within seemingly secure retail environments. This revelation comes months after a neighboring Target store cited rampant theft as a factor in its closure, adding another layer of concern to the retail landscape in Upper Manhattan. Despite Costco’s corporate confidence in their anti-theft measures, it appears the Costco 117th Street Nyc location is grappling with a persistent issue of “shrinkage” – the industry term for inventory loss due to theft and other factors.
A recent Reddit thread shed light on the alleged scale of the problem at the Costco 117th Street NYC store. An anonymous post, purportedly from an employee, included a photograph of a bulletin board detailing the top stolen items and their associated losses. This visual evidence suggests that the issue is not minor, with losses reaching tens of thousands of dollars for specific items alone. The fact that this is happening within a membership-only store, where customers are checked both upon entry and exit, adds to the surprise and concern.
According to the leaked bulletin board image, the most frequently stolen items at Costco 117th Street NYC are not small, easily concealed goods. Topping the list was the cordless Dyson vacuum cleaner, with losses amounting to over $6,200. Gillette men’s razor packs followed closely behind at nearly $6,200 in losses. Perhaps even more surprisingly, Kirkland brand premium paper towel multi-packs, bulky and hardly inconspicuous, were reportedly stolen to the tune of over $5,000. These items suggest that thieves are becoming bolder and more brazen, targeting high-value goods regardless of size or ease of concealment.
Other items prominently featured on the list of stolen goods at the Costco 117th Street NYC included everyday essentials and health products. Batteries, both AA and AAA, were high on the list, with losses of $3,527 and $2,916 respectively. Centrum women’s vitamins and Nature’s Bounty D3 supplements also appeared, indicating a wide range of stolen merchandise. This variety suggests that the theft is not solely focused on high-resale value items, but may also include goods for personal use or smaller-scale resale.
A bulletin board displaying images of stolen items, illustrating the internal communication within the Costco 117th Street NYC store regarding shrinkage and theft prevention.
While the tens of thousands of dollars in losses at the Costco 117th Street NYC location might seem significant, they represent a small fraction of the overall retail theft crisis in the United States. In 2022, major US retailers reported collective losses of $112 billion due to shrinkage, a figure that has more than doubled since 2018. This national trend underscores the widespread challenges retailers are facing, and suggests that even Costco’s robust security measures may be insufficient to completely deter theft, especially in high-traffic urban locations like their East Harlem store at 117th Street NYC. The situation at Costco 117th Street NYC serves as a stark reminder that no retailer, regardless of its business model or security protocols, is entirely immune to the growing problem of shoplifting.
