how much could minor shoplifting add to the economy if:
- it was only targeting businesses that ship their profits offshore and/or avoid paying local taxes;
- the shoplifted items were items that were going to be purchased; and
- monetary savings redistributed to local businesses?
The cost is not so much in losing the product but in deciding when and how much to invest in increased security. The more shoplifting happens, then the owner has to start investing in more security cameras, security guards and legal costs of dealing with law enforcement and courts. Then no matter what products or items you try to discriminate against, the owners and corporations just raise the prices of everything to cover their costs.