The Midlands has been named as one of worst hit regions in Britain for retail crime with almost twice the number of offences as Wales.
The area achieved an index score of 112, compared to the UK norm of 100, in the statistics compiled by the British Retail Consortium.
London was top with an index score of 160, followed by Yorkshire with 120, the north West with 116, and then the West Midlands.
The figures show that retailers in Wales experience the least retail crime in the UK, with a target index score of 64 .
Following closely behind Wales was the South West of England, which encountered the second least retail crime with a target index score of
72.
Kevin Hawkins, at the BRC, said: "The implications of retail crime are far reaching.
"Shop thieves can severely disrupt retail businesses and have a demoralising effect on shop owners and staff.
"These same individuals are often also associated with vandalism, abuse and violence, creating a trail of damage that leaves a scar on the wider community.
"It is because of these problems that the BRC recently announced a campaign entitled 'SCAR' to raise the profile of retail crime with the Government, police and wider society geared to 'Stop Crime Against Retail'.
"This analysis of patterns of theft highlights significant problems for policing in some regions. Retailers are clearly challenged by the varying profile of retail crime across the country."
Julia Barclay, of Retail Loss Prevention, which helped compile the study, said: "Every year RLP handles in excess of 50,000 civil recovery claims on behalf of our clients.
"This has enabled us to build up a significant profile of where these offences occur, which is imperative if we are to help our clients in their constant battle to combat retail theft and fraud."
