Cycle counts are a great way to assist in the fight to prevent shoplifting.

As business owners and operators we all understand the reality that shoplifting happens in our stores.  I think it is safe to say we all understand that we have to put measures in place to prevent shoplifting due to the financial impact that it causes. There are many ways to protect a business from shoplifting.  In most stores we use retail anti theft devices such as EAS tags, Keeper cases, Spider Wraps, etc.  One tool that I find is commonly missed is the use of audits such as cycle counts.

 While it is great to use retail anti theft devices to prevent shoplifting, we must also track our high theft merchandise to make sure the retail anti theft devices are working.  If you simply put an EAS tag on an item (let’s say a drill for example sake) and you never track your inventory then how do you really know if you have provided a sufficient solution?  A cycle count is a routine inventory audit designed to track losses in order to determine if your anti theft solutions are working and to also help investigate losses. 

 If you find that every time you count your high theft product you have more shortages then you may consider using a different approach such as a Spider Wrap or other retail anti theft device.  You may also shorten the period of time between counts to try to narrow down the losses in an effort to pinpoint who is taking the product or to determine if you problem is related to employee theft or shipping errors as opposed to shoplifting.  Never forget that there are numerous ways to take losses and shoplifting is only one piece of that puzzle.

 Visit the Loss Prevention Store for retail anti theft devices that can help you prevent shoplifting in your business.

 For more information on how you can use retail anti theft devices to prevent shoplifting contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 – Atlanta Georgia