Alpha Spider Wrap

Double Up- Prevent Shoplifting

November 2, 2014 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

My store apprehended a shoplifter recently using a rather unusual method to conceal his merchandise. If it wasn’t for our retail anti theft devices to prevent shoplifting, we might not have discovered what was going on.

This was a situation where we didn’t catch on to this particular shoplifter right away. We actually had several interactions with him before we realized what was going on.

He came into our store and used a wheelchair with one of our handheld shopping basket in his lap. He would go about his business and come to the register to pay for the items. No matter how diligent my cashiers were when they rang him up; the EAS alarm was set off when he left.

We always double-checked for retail anti theft devices accidentally left on his paid for items, but could not find any. After about a month of this happening every time he came to shop, we started to get suspicious that something else was going on.

We watched as he came in one day and realized that he had picked up two shopping baskets, not one. At first we thought they had just stuck together, until we saw inside the baskets. As it turned out, he was hiding merchandise in one of the baskets, stacking the second one on top and adding more merchandise that he would pay for. When he left, he would leave with all of the extra merchandise sandwiched between our shopping baskets- unpaid for.

Visit the Loss Prevention Store for Alpha 2Alarm, Alpha 3Alarm, Alpha Fashion2, Alpha Jewel Lok, Alpha Nano Gate, Alpha Shark Tag, Alpha Spider Wrap and other retail anti-theft devices from Alpha Security to use in conjunction with your Electronic Article Surveillance or EAS system that can help you prevent shoplifting in your business.

For more information on how you can use Alpha Security retail anti-theft devices and your Electronic Article Surveillance or EAS system to prevent shoplifting contact us or call 1.770.426.0547

This was a situation where we didn’t catch on to this particular shoplifter right away. We actually had several interactions with him before we realized what was going on.

He came into our store and used a wheelchair with one of our handheld shopping baskets in his lap. He would go about his business and come to the register to pay for the items. No matter how diligent my cashiers were when they rang him up; the EAS alarm was set off when he left.

For more information on how you can use Alpha Security retail anti-theft devices and your Electronic Article Surveillance or EAS system to prevent shoplifting contact us or call 1.770.426.0547

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Alpha Fashion2, Alpha Jewel Lok, Alpha Nano Gate, Alpha Shark Tag, Alpha Spider Wrap, Fashion2, Jewel Lok, Nano Gate, Prevent Shoplifting, Retail Anti Theft Devices, Shark Tag, Spider Wrap

Plug And Play- Alpha Security

October 30, 2014 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

The Alpha Nano Gate is a smaller version of the cumbersome EAS towers most retailers are using to manage their retail anti theft devices. It is also infinitely easier and more cost effective for a small retailer or specialty shop to use.

Conventional EAS towers are maintained under service contracts, require complicated hard wiring to install, and need to be tuned and service regularly to ensure that they are functioning properly.

The Alpha Nano Gate literally is plugged in and ready to go. Without a need for a service contract, bulky wiring, or tuning, it is easy to see why the Alpha Security Alpha Nano Gate won an award in the economic efficiency category.

The small design is easily installed with six screws and a battery to back up the system in case of power failure or intentional tampering. This design makes it easy to be installed into the smaller entryways often found in specialty boutiques and locally owned retail establishments.

When you are a small retailer, you are constantly on the look out for ways to reduce your overhead. Finding a cost effective way to prevent shoplifting is beneficial in not only reducing your operating costs, but to also increase your revenue through maximizing inventory availability.

For more information on how you can use Alpha Security retail anti-theft devices and your Electronic Article Surveillance or EAS system to prevent shoplifting contact us or call 1.770.426.0547

Conventional EAS towers are maintained under service contracts, require complicated hard wiring to install, and need to be tuned and service regularly to ensure that they are functioning properly.

For more information on how you can use Alpha Security retail anti-theft devices and your Electronic Article Surveillance or EAS system to prevent shoplifting contact us or call 1.770.426.0547

Shoplifting Policies and Procedures

October 23, 2014 by admin Leave a Comment

Every business is different, and their policies and procedures varied from store to store or office to office. In a retail store, the policies and procedures concerning a shoplifting accident have to concise and known by every employee in the store. Knowing what to do and how to react to those kind of situations is important and financially responsible to the business. If your policy is to prosecute every shoplifter regardless of age, or the amount of merchandise they steal, your employees should be aware of it. If your policy is to get the merchandise back without prosecuting, they should be aware of that too. Avoiding a lawsuit against your store regarding a shoplifting accident should be an important subject to discuss with your employees and your management team.

Follow the links for more news about shoplifting.

NM shoplifters as early risers

EDGEWOOD — Five-thirty in the morning might be an odd time for a shopping spree, but it’s a common time of day for shoplifters.

Combatting shoplifting, especially in those wee hours of the morning, is a common struggle for operators of 24-hour stores, and Wal-Marts throughout the area have been experiencing individuals pushing fully loaded shopping carts out the doors without paying a dime. Edgewood Police Chief Fred Radosevich said his department received a call two weeks ago reporting four suspected shoplifters attempting to leave the premises, with what later turned out to be nearly $2,000 worth of goods.

“It happened on Oct. 8 at about 5:30 in the morning,” he said. “We got a report of people possibly shoplifting. Officer (David) Lovato responded. Through the investigation two people were arrested.”

Lovato identified four people on the scene as suspects – three females and one male. He arrested Joyce Newman, 50, of Bernalillo and Jacee York, 19, of Rio Rancho. The pair both have extensive records, including past charges for shoplifting.

The remaining two suspects had not exited the store when they were stopped so they have not been arrested, but they will be issued a summons, Radosevich added.

Armed Kingsport shoplifter assaults employees, flees police

An attempt to swipe $72 in Walmart merchandise escalated to felony charges, according to Kingsport police, as the suspect pulled a knife on store employees and was Tasered by a responding officer, then briefly escaped across a parking lot after being handcuffed.
At approximately 6:20 p.m. Wednesday, police were alerted to the incident at 2500 W. Stone Drive. It was reported a shoplifter had been detained by loss prevention officers but was resisting.

While en route, officers were told that the suspect had brandished a knife and fled the store, running toward the adjacent Lowe’s. A Kingsport Police Department incident report states an officer spotted the described suspect crossing Deneen Lane. When the officer exited his patrol car and ordered the man to stop, he allegedly began “running faster.”

The suspect, later identified as Joseph B. Hall, 25, reportedly ignored additional commands during the ensuing foot pursuit, prompting the officer to deploy a Taser. It immediately halted Hall’s flight, with a second officer then attempting to bring him into custody.

Hall allegedly resisted by “violently kicking” and holding his arms beneath his body. At that point police observed a knife in his pocket, with concerns that he would attempt to stab police prompting a second deployment from a Taser.

Gabriel Brothers Protects Prices by Standing Up to Shoplifting with CAP

SALT LAKE CITY – Sept. 30, 2014 – Loss prevention cloud technology company Turning Point Justice and the National Association for Shoplifting Prevention (NASP) today announced that Gabriel Brothers (Gabe’s), fashion retailer and first choice destination for savvy shoppers, has adopted the CAP for Shoplifting crime accountability program. A collaborative retail theft solution created by TPJ and NASP, CAP is based upon the principle that cooperation between retailers, law enforcement and the justice system saves time and money for everyone while improving offender accountability and reducing recidivism.

“Shoplifting prevention is essential to keeping prices low for customers, and CAP provides an innovative approach to holding more offenders accountable for retail theft,” said Mark Stovich, Gabriel Brothers Inc. Director of Asset Protection. “Gabe’s customers know they can count on us for great prices, and with CAP, we can meet those expectations while helping our communities fight shoplifting and support positive values.”

Filed Under: Shoplifting Prevention Tagged With: Alpha 2 Alarm, Alpha 3 Alarm, Alpha High Theft Solutions, Alpha Jewel Lok, Alpha Nano Gate, Alpha Security, Alpha Spider Wrap, Anti-shoplifting training, anti-theft devices, anti-theft tags, anti-thefts devices, Loss Prevention Seminar, prevent shrinkage, retail security

Providing Valuable In Stock Positions- Retail Anti Theft Devices

October 23, 2014 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

When customers can walk into a retail location, find the merchandise items they want, and the quantities they need, sales will increase increase. Taking it one step further, you also get the advantage of repeat business. The customer knows they can rely on your retail location to be in stock for their consumer needs. When you prevent shoplifting, you assure your customers that you will consistently have the right in stock availability to satisfy your customer’s needs.

Industry leader Alpha Security products are tried and true retail anti theft devices specifically created to decrease shoplifting, while maintaining better inventory accuracy.

As shoplifting decreases, our inventories become more accurate and more plentiful (due to a lack of missing merchandise). We, as retailers, spend significantly less time worrying about whether or not we have a particular item in stock, and more time getting the customers to actually buy them.

By providing our customer base with valuable in stock positions, sales are maximized and profits are increased. As a customer, it is very frustrating to shop for a specific item and have it be out of stock. It is even more frustrating if the entire shopping trip had been centered on an advertisement or a specifically needed item and the store was all out.

For more information on how you can use Alpha Security retail anti-theft devices and your Electronic Article Surveillance or EAS system to prevent shoplifting contact us or call 1.770.426.0547

When customers can walk into a retail location, find the merchandise items they want, and the quantities they need, sales will increase. Taking it one step further, you also get the advantage of repeat business. The customer knows they can rely on your retail location to be in stock for their consumer needs. When you prevent shoplifting, you assure your customers that you will consistently have the right in stock availability to satisfy your customer’s needs.

Industry leader Alpha Security products are tried and true retail anti theft devices specifically created to decrease shoplifting, while maintaining better inventory accuracy.

For more information on how you can use Alpha Security retail anti-theft devices and your Electronic Article Surveillance or EAS system to prevent shoplifting contact us or call 1.770.426.0547

Don’t Discount Organized Retail Crime- Prevent Shoplifting

October 16, 2014 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

An old colleague recently sent me a news article about his city’s crackdown on repeat shoplifting offenders. In the article, the shoplifters had been stealing so much merchandise that they had enough to sell to local restaurants and corner stores.

As I read further into the article, I realized that I recognized one of the names. It was a habitual shoplifter that we had been trying to apprehend almost ten years ago. This particular shoplifter was stealing from several locations and would sometime return the items without receipt- using multiple aliases to get around our refund system.

Eventually we did apprehend her and ban her from our stores in addition to having her prosecuted. I guess that didn’t mean much to her, since she has continued with her life of crime all of these years.

What we didn’t understand at the time was that this shoplifter we had assumed was just a small time problem, was actually a major part of a local crime ring. Her entire life was dedicated to stealing product from retailers to later resell to other local businesses. She set herself up as a local distributor with lower than average pricing- making it an attractive low cost solution for these local businesses.

For more information on how you can use Alpha Security retail anti-theft devices and your Electronic Article Surveillance or EAS system to prevent shoplifting contact us or call 1.770.426.0547

Profile of A Shoplifter

October 14, 2014 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

It doesn’t matter if you make 20,000 thousand or a half million dollars a year. It doesn’t matter if you are Caucasian, black, Hispanic or any other race. Shoplifters come from all types of life. Some shoplifters have college degrees while some others did not finish high school. Men, women and children shoplift from all types of stores, and the amounts they steal can vary dramatically. If you think you can spot a shoplifter right away, think again. For more news about shoplifting, follow the links below.

Cowboys RB arrested for shoplifting cologne and underwear
Dallas Cowboys running back Joseph Randle was arrested by police in Frisco, Texas on Monday night on charges of shoplifting a bottle of cologne and underwear from a Dillard’s store at the Stonebriar Centre shopping complex.

Lt. Jason Jenkins of the Frisco Police Department told For The Win that Randle was arrested for stealing a tester bottle of Gucci Guilty Black cologne and a two-pack of Polo underwear.Frisco PD released a statement Tuesday morning with further details:

“Upon arrival at the location, Frisco police officers made contact with Joseph Randle who had been detained by in-store loss prevention. Upon further investigation it was found that Randle had removed items from Dillard’s without purchasing them. Randle was subsequently arrested for theft 50/500, which is a class B misdemeanor. Randle was transported to the Frisco City Jail where he was booked in. Randle was released from custody at 1:20 a.m. after a bond was posted.”

Man charged with habitual shoplifting

HICKORY, N.C. – A man charged with shoplifting – police say he committed the offense at Rugged Warehouse on Monday – was charged with habitual shoplifting Thursday afternoon.

James Maurice Wilson, 44, of Taylorsville, was charged with one count of felony habitual shoplifting, according to an arrest report. He was given a $5,000 secured bond.

Wilson was charged with misdemeanor shoplifting Monday after officers said they found items stolen from Rugged Warehouse on him in a search.

Wilson was convicted on nine larceny charges – five felonies, four misdemeanors – between 1987 and 2003, according to the North Carolina Public Offenders website.

Amanda Bynes allegedly tries stealing from NYC boutique 1 hour before being accused of shoplifting at Barneys

The actress has returned to New York City and supposedly tried to swipe merchandise from Pookie & Sebastian before heading to the high-end department store where she attempted to leave wearing a $200 hat.

Amanda Bynes has sticky fingers.

Back in New York City and the troubled star is already wreaking havoc.

Just one hour before trying to steal merchandise from the upscale department store Barneys on Wednesday, Bynes reportedly tried to swipe items from the clothing store Pookie & Sebastian, reports TMZ.

The “Hairspray” star was being followed by the store’s employees due to suspicious activity, sources told the gossip site.

A Better Sell Through- Retail Anti Theft Devices

October 13, 2014 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

Every time an item of inventory is broken, damaged or stolen, a new item has to be purchased to replace the unusable one. As a result, the products that are actually sold need to pull more clout to be able to compensate for the missing item.

Of those three losses, theft is the most common, and the most financially devastating to businesses. It is more likely that a thief would steal multiple of an item, than it is to have multiple of the same items damaged. Even if they are, those can typically be traced back to a shipping problem and either the carrier or the manufacturer can be charged back, mitigating some of the potential financial losses.

Shoplifters, on the other hand, are harder to get a financial recourse from. Even when a shoplifter is apprehended, it can be very hard to charge them with prior incidents. Unless you have evidence that cannot be contested, you will only be able to claim the loss that was incurred during current incident that the shoplifter was apprehended during. That means you may have stopped the cause of the losses, but are still out the inventory from those prior incidents.

For more information on how you can use Alpha Security retail anti-theft devices and your Electronic Article Surveillance or EAS system to prevent shoplifting contact us or call 1.770.426.0547

Make Your Money Count- Prevent Shoplifting

October 10, 2014 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

Before you start to look at electronic article security systems and other inventory security, you need to have an idea of what you have and what you are missing.

When you guess at your inventory levels, stopping theft is actually only one part of your worries. You need to be concerned also with how your business capital is being spent and where that money is going.

Accurate inventory is about making sure you have the right products at the right time. I worked for a company once that only allowed bags to be purchased once a month. I am not talking about a woman’s accessory here; I am talking about the plastic bags used to by the customers when they make a purchase. It was embarrassing to run out, not be able to order more, and then tell customers they have to carry an arm full of items out without bags. It was poor customer service, at the very least.

What we later found out is that the company was spending too much money on inventory they thought they needed, but really didn’t. That tied up the funds that could have been spent on checkout bags, maintenance repairs, and inventory that was actually selling well.

For more information on how you can use Alpha Security retail anti-theft devices and your Electronic Article Surveillance or EAS system to prevent shoplifting contact us or call 1.770.426.0547

Before you start to look at electronic article security systems and other inventory security, you need to have an idea of what you have and what you are missing.

Accurate inventory is about making sure you have the right products at the right time. I worked for a company once that only allowed bags to be purchased once a month. I am not talking about a woman’s accessory here; I am talking about the plastic bags used by the customers when they make a purchase. It was embarrassing to run out, not be able to order more, and then tell customers they have to carry an arm full of items out without bags. It was poor customer service, at the very least.

For more information on how you can use Alpha Security retail anti-theft devices and your Electronic Article Surveillance or EAS system to prevent shoplifting contact us or call 1.770.426.0547

Employee Theft

October 7, 2014 by admin Leave a Comment

The figures for employee theft are staggering. According to a report by the ACFE the loss for fraud in a typical organization is 5% of its revenues. That amount corresponds to losses of more than $3.5 trillion worldwide.

Employee theft is an ever growing social and economical issue that is affecting everyone. The retail industry alone losses are in the billions of dollars every year. Employee theft can be done by employees with seniority or low level employees that find an opportunity to commit the crime. More than three quarters of employee theft is done by employees with no previous record, or that have not been charged with a theft related incident before. To read more about employee theft, follow the links below.

Former Barnes & Noble employee accused of stealing $46,000 in merchandise from Mandeville store

A former Barnes & Noble employee was recently arrested for allegedly stealing about $46,000 in merchandise from the store over a three-year period, Mandeville Police reported Tuesday (Sept. 30). Tomas Santamaria, 32, is accused of selling more than 700 stolen items, mostly DVD’s and novels, on eBay and funneling the proceeds into his bank account, police said.

Santamaria, of 19246 Antenor St. in Mandeville, was booked Sept. 23 with money laundering, computer fraud and theft.

An investigation began July 31 of this year after the bookstore on U.S. 190 reported a suspected employee theft, the police department said in a news release. Detectives determined Santamaria stole about $46,000 in merchandise between September 2011 and July of this year, the release said.

Retail employee accused of stealing cash over time

A retail store employee was arrested Tuesday and accused of stealing thousands of dollars from her register over a period of several weeks.

Alexis W. Causey, 22, of 507 Church St., West Monroe, faces one count of theft.

An arrest report said Monroe Police were sent to Target at 4103 Pecanland Mall Drive in reference to employee theft. Once there, an officer spoke with an employee who said Causey took $2,000 from her register from the first part of September through Monday.

After being questioned, Causey reportedly said she took the money. Causey reportedly said she would remove the cash from her register and place it in a trash can. At the end of her shift, she would remove the money before emptying the can.

A&P Employee From Ossining Charged In Theft Of Meat From Store

WESTCHESTER COUNTY, N.Y. — An Ossining man was charged with grand larceny on Tuesday after he was accused of stealing goods from his employer, according to State Police from the Cortlandt barracks.

Gregory Rodriguez, 46, was accused of stealing $1,200 worth of meat from the Cortlandt A&P where he worked, by hiding the meat on himself before attempting to leave, police said.

Rodriguez was arraigned before the Town of Cortlandt Court and remanded to the Westchester County Jail without bail. He is scheduled to appear in court again on Friday, Oct. 3, police said.

Filed Under: Shoplifting Prevention Tagged With: Alpha 2 Alarm, Alpha 3 Alarm, Alpha High Theft Solutions, Alpha Jewel Lok, Alpha Nano Gate, Alpha Security, Alpha Spider Wrap, Anti-shoplifting training, anti-theft devices, anti-theft tags, anti-thefts devices, Employee Theft, Loss Prevention Seminar, Shoplifting Prevention

Out Of Control- Prevent Shoplifting

October 7, 2014 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

Do you feel like you are slowly (or quickly) loosing control of your business? If your stores were once profitable, but now you are having unexplained decreases in profit, or revenue, you might be having a shoplifting problem.

Shoplifting is an extremely common problem that affects every retailer and shop at some point. Depending on how bad the theft is, how rapidly or how high of a dollar loss per incident, makes a difference in how fast you can respond to preventing theft.

Sometimes, when losses are of a small dollar per incident, it makes it harder to track or identify where the problem is coming from. You end up racking your brain to find out why your inventory numbers are off, or why revenue is starting to take a slight decrease.

If you are experiencing minimal shortages, it could take several months, or even a year to determine that theft is taking place. In that amount of time, all of the small losses add up to a bigger financial decrease. Preventing theft takes a look at ways to prevent even the smallest of losses before they become a big problem.

For more information on how you can use Alpha Security retail anti-theft devices and your Electronic Article Surveillance or EAS system to prevent shoplifting contact us or call 1.770.426.0547

Preventing theft takes a look at ways to prevent even the smallest of losses before they become a big problem.

For more information on how you can use Alpha Security retail anti-theft devices and your Electronic Article Surveillance or EAS system to prevent shoplifting contact us or call 1.770.426.0547