Leakage (retail)

In retail, leakage occurs when members of a community spend money outside that community or when money spent inside that community is transferred outside the community. For example, crossing a border to buy goods forgoes the same purchase that could have been made inside the community. Many chain stores have high leakages rates due to the transferring of sales revenue to a corporate headquarters.^[1]

In addition, in retail trade, leakage, or shrinkage can also mean the loss of stock without payment, typically due to theft by employees or shoplifters.^[2]

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