Repeat shoplifting had become an increasing operational and financial concern for a regional Canadian grocery chain. Despite maintaining a watchlist of known offenders, staff often had limited ability to identify these individuals in real time, leaving stores vulnerable to repeated incidents and ongoing inventory losses.
The challenge comes as Canadian retailers face continued increases in shoplifting and retail crime. Statistics Canada reported 182,361 police-reported shoplifting incidents of $5,000 or under in 2024, up 14% from 2023 and 66% from 2014.¹ The Retail Council of Canada reported approximately $9.2 billion in annual retail shrink, while 76.2% of surveyed retailers said violence during theft incidents had increased.²
The chain deployed FaceMe® Security with Blocklist screening as part of its existing loss prevention process. The system integrates with its Hanwha Wisenet WAVE video management environment, with recognition alerts delivered through Notification Monitor. No camera replacement or new infrastructure was required.
Employees had to recognize people from posted photos while also managing their regular responsibilities on the store floor. When someone on the list went unnoticed, the individual could enter the store and commit another theft before staff realized who they were.
The chain needed to:
· Identify known shoplifters when they arrived.
· Bring potential matches to employees' attention.
· Keep pace as the Blocklist changed.
· Support loss prevention without adding personnel.
By automating the identification process, FaceMe Security reduces dependence on manual observation and enables store teams to become aware of known offenders as they enter the store.
Staff can then assess the situation and respond according to store procedures. Depending on the circumstances, they can approach the individual, observe them, or ask them to leave.
The retailer controls who is added to its Blocklist, why they are included, how long related records are retained, and which personnel can access the information. Matches can be reviewed by authorized staff before any action is taken.
FaceMe Security can also be configured not to retain records of individuals who are not recognized. This helps limit stored information to people who generate a relevant match rather than creating a record of everyone who passes through the monitored area.
FaceMe Security gives store staff earlier awareness when a known shoplifter arrives, helping them respond before another incident occurs. By working with the store’s existing surveillance cameras, the solution adds automated identification without requiring additional camera infrastructure, while allowing staff to spend less time watching entrances and more time on other store responsibilities.
¹ Statistics Canada, police-reported crime statistics, 2024 data (released 2025).
² Retail Council of Canada, Retail Crime in Canada Report (2025).
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