retail security — Page 15

Background Checks Should be Standard Operating Procedure

April 29, 2015 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

It’s not every day that I bring someone new to my team. I’m a regional Loss Prevention Manager and I manage a very small, but highly motivated and productive team. I need someone to work independently, make good business decisions and get results all with very minimal supervision. I also need someone that is of good moral character and has integrity above all else. Normally, when I have an open position, it will take me weeks to fill. I’m extremely selective and always go with the person that I know will fit into my team the best. So running a background check is one of the first things I do when I have a potential candidate, and it should be something you do as well.

It wasn’t all that long ago when I was looking for a market investigator. The position had been posted for a few weeks and I had already interviewed a group of candidates. I had narrowed it down to three and had to make a hiring decision. They all had tons of experience working investigations, retail operations or law enforcement. I knew who I wanted and made a job offer, which was contingent on the successful completion of a background check. We shook hands and he assured me that his record was clean.

A few days later, my background check company sent the results back to me. I was completely taken back. What seemed like a very qualified, motivated person was a complete fraud. His rap sheet was ¼ mile long and he was recently convicted of several counts of fraud. There was absolutely no way I could bring this person onto my team. Had it not been for a solid background check, this person could have potentially cost me and my company thousands of dollars and untold hours of frustration and heartache. This should be a lesson to any owner out there. It doesn’t matter how clean someone appears to be, how well the interview, or even how great their resume may look, there’s always the potential for skeletons to be hiding just below the surface. Do yourself, and your business a favor and always run a background check on new employees.

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Background Checks and Employer Liability

April 29, 2015 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

Seems like every time I turn on the news, I hear about another person who walks into their office and starts hurting people. Is this happening more and more, or do we just hear about it more? Do you ever think about those companies and wonder what goes on after something like that happens, or even before? Even more perplexing is a recent airliner crash that seemed to be caused by one of the pilots. Every day, employers around the country have the potential risk for a disgruntled, or mentally unstable employee to cause harm to their staff, or customers. Can you prevent this and if not, how can you limit your liability?

My personal opinion on random acts of violence is that you can never prevent every occurrence. You can definitely limit your exposure to the risk by barring firearms in your workplace, having a no tolerance violence policy and running background checks on all of your employees. This however, will not stop someone that is hell bent against causing harm. Again, my opinion here is that if someone wants to “go postal,” nothing on Earth will stop them. That’s a fact of the world we live in. There are ways to limit liability on your end (as a business owner).

Take for example the other day. I terminated an employee for performance related behavior. Hours later, another employee came to me with a screen shot of the terminated employee’s social media page. There, was a threat of violence towards the store and myself personally. I immediately contacted the local police. Did I really thing this person was capable of what they were posting on social media? No. Did I see it as a way to blow off steam from being terminated from a job? Absolutely. Then why did I contact law enforcement? The idea that a threat was made forces me to take that approach. Had I shrugged the threat off as “blowing off ;steam” and then 3 hours later I had that former employee burst through the front doors with a firearm, I, and my company could be potentially liable for any injuries due to failure to appropriately react to a known threat; sounds completely crazy, but it’s the truth.

You can relate this to running background checks on your employees. Let’s say you don’t perform a background check on a new hire and with 2 weeks he loses his temper with a fellow employee and severely injures that employee. Worst case scenario is that employee is no longer able to work. You find out after the incident that your new hire has 15 arrests for domestic violence and other crimes against persons. You could be potentially held liable for creating a violent workplace due to a failure to properly screen applicants. Again, it sounds completely crazy but this has happened and will continue to happen. Background checks are standard practice and every single big box retailer across the country and they should be for you as well.

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: Anti-shoplifting training, anti-theft devices, anti-theft tags, anti-thefts devices, EAS Devices, Employee Theft, Loss Prevention Workshop, Retail Anti Theft Devices, retail security, retail security and monitoring, security devices, Shoplifting Prevention, surveillance

Social Media and Employee Theft

March 30, 2015 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

There isn’t anything I enjoy more than catching an employee stealing. Whether it be through a lengthy investigation, or through an anonymous tip, it’s very satisfying to me. The idea that you employ someone, put money in their pocket and a chance to succeed, but they steal from you, eats at the pit of my stomach. I can’t stand a thief and to me, it’s even worse when it’s an employee. Throughout my career in Loss Prevention, I’ve handling thousands of employee theft cases. Most don’t really stand out to me, but there are a handful of stories that I like to share when I have the chance.

Social media has really changed the way we communicate and share information. Personally, I rarely watch the 9 O’clock news anymore. I just log into Twitter, or Facebook and see if there is anything relevant to me. No more are our personal communications private. Using social media as a communication device gives the entire world visibility to everything you say, or do. So, if you’re a thief, you should probably know this.

Recently I was having some issues with shoes in my store. I was constantly finding less expensive brands in the more expensive boxes. I started off finding one or two a month, so I chalked it up to a shipping error from the factory. As the weeks progressed, I began to find more and more, and I quickly realized I had a potential thief. I started running the sales for the cheaper shoes and noticed that one individual had purchased every single pair that I had found. Inside those boxes were no doubt the more expensive shoes, but who was this guy? I hadn’t a clue, and without any good leads, my case went cold. Until one of my employees helped me crack the case.

I was closing the store one Saturday night and a few hours before closing time, I started making the rounds to make sure everyone was zoning and cleaning up so we could get out at a decent time. I noticed one of my footwear employees on the computer in the manager’s office, so I started walking that way. He noticed I was heading in his direction, so he quickly left the area. A little while later, I went to check sales on that same computer and noticed there was a window still open. It was that employee’s Facebook page.

I maximized the screen, at first not realizing it was his page. What I saw shocked and amused me all at the same time. The window that opened was his private messages. Out of curiosity, I perused a bit. There, in the open, was a long conversation between my employee and a friend of his. The employee basically taking an order for shoes. My employee described how he would put the shoes in a cheaper pair, where to find them and even what cashier to check out with. I had found my shoe culprit, in the most awesome way possible. I printed out the page and a few days later, after letting his friend buy the stolen shoes, confronted the employee. He admitted to the several thousand dollars’ worth of theft and implicated several others in the store as doing the same. In total, I lost 5 employees. To this day, he has no idea that he led me to himself, and I have no plans on telling him!

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: anti-theft devices, anti-theft tags, Employee Theft, Loss Prevention Seminars, Loss Prevention Training, Loss Prevention Workshop, Retail Anti Theft Devices, retail security, retail security and monitoring, security devices, Shoplifting Prevention, surveillance

Organized Retail Crime and the Effects on Small Business

March 30, 2015 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

Organized Retail Crime, or ORC is something you have probably heard very little about. ORC is, by definition, the organized and planned stealing of merchandise with the expressed intent to resell in order to make a profit. Plainly, it is a group of shoplifters whose full time job is to steal from you in order to make a profit for themselves. If you think that your small business isn’t a target, or hasn’t been targeted by an ORC group, you are wrong. These are not your average shoplifter stealing for personal use. These are well organized, well trained and equipped individuals who can take a single store for thousands of dollars in mere minutes.

I recently worked an ORC case dealing with the theft of a certain product. Over a two month period of time, I had a group of 5 individuals steal this product, then immediately sell them to a pawn shop. This handful of people were able to cause a $20k loss in a very short amount of time. They had a plan, stuck to a routine and committed the theft with near surgical precision. It was well organized, and it took months to uncover. $20k might not be a big deal for a national retailer, but if this were my own store, it very well may have put me out of business. This is the case for small businesses across the country. These groups often target the smaller stores as they feel they are a softer target.

Smaller stores may not have the security measures larger retailers do. Something as simple as CCTV may not even be installed. The store may not have security devices on commonly shoplifted items. More importantly, those smaller stores most likely do not have a Loss Prevention team, and the owners may be unwillingly to prosecute individuals caught shoplifting. This all makes the small retailer a prime target for ORC.

The first step you should take to prevent your store from being a target is to minimize your exposure to the risk of shoplifting. CCTV systems are not big, bulky and expensive pieces of equipment anymore. You can most definitely find a solution for your store under a few hundred bucks. Next, you should be familiar with product security. While you may not have the capital for the newest trends in EAS, a simple checkpoint system will discourage ORC, especially if you are using tags that have your store’s name, or logo on them.

Organized retail crime has gotten the attention of the law enforcement community. In fact, several states now have ORC laws on the books, which carry heavier penalties for individuals convicted of this type of theft. The only way these individuals can be brought to justice is if they are held accountable for their actions. That starts with you and is why it’s always important to prosecute a shoplifter. That guy you just caught stealing all of your razor blades could be the tipping point for a much larger operation. Just because you have a small store, doesn’t mean you can’t lose big from these groups.

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: anti-theft devices, EAS Devices, Employee Theft, Loss Prevention Training, Prevent Shoplifting, Retail Anti Theft Devices, retail security, retail security and monitoring, Shoplifting Prevention

You Can Teach an Old Dog New Tricks…Me

March 2, 2015 by admin Leave a Comment

I was recently the Keynote Speaker at a retail conference. The audience was very engaged! As a speaker and trainer I like those situations best.

We had many great questions and comments. But there is one that I continue to think about. Someone mentioned that a way that shoplifters are now discouraging you and your staff from providing customer service is by using a cell phone.

Let’s step back. The first key to preventing shoplifting is the liberal application of customer service. Impulse, armature and professional shoplifters cannot ply their evil trade if your staff is customer servicing them to death.

So now enters the cell phone. If the shoplifter is on a call, real or pretend then we are likely, out of courtesy not to approach them. What a wonderful way to keep us away from them in our own store! This is something I had never considered before. In fact what I have been thinking about is that there are other tools they could use to accomplish the same thing.

Listening to music with a head set on, talking on a two-way radio as if it is work related or how about being busy with electronic tablet or phone with email. Again any situation they can create to keep us at arm’s length.

However, there is a well-established solution to this. All of these techniques fall under the category of distraction or diversion. The solution to this tactic is simply MORE customer service.

Those actions by a “customer” are at a minimum rude. It is also a red flag that you should now pay attention to. Being in your store, taking your time and resources and being on the phone is rude. But we do not want to respond in kind. Instead apply an even more generous application of customer service.

Stay with them, keep your eye on them and make sure they know it. A legitimate customer will feel it and get off the phone, device…. The shoplifter will have a different reaction. They will get frustrated. You are frustrating their efforts to obtain a bit of privacy so they can conceal your merchandise.

Frustrating a shoplifter is our goal. Drive them crazy and send them on their way hopefully never to be seen again, at least by you!

You can reach Bill Bregar at 770-426-7593 x101 or at [email protected]. Bill has over 35 years of experience in the Loss Prevention industry. He has personally investigated over 2300 employees for theft and dealt with shoplifting all the way from his days of apprehending shoplifters as a store detective to the development of policy and procedure for several major retail chains in the role of Director of Loss Prevention.

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: Anti-shoplifting training, anti-theft devices, anti-theft tags, anti-thefts devices, Loss Prevention Seminar, Loss Prevention Training, Loss Prevention Workshop, mobile POS loss prevention, Retail Anti Theft Devices, retail security, retail security and monitoring, security devices, Shoplifting Prevention

Vendor/Contractor Fraud

March 2, 2015 by admin Leave a Comment

I want you to sit back and think about something for a minute. Other than your employees, how many other peopled have worked in your store last month? Drawing a blank? Think about those lights that needed replacing, or the compactor that needed repair, or even the new display cases that were installed overnight a few weeks back. While you may realize it, you more than likely have a great deal of contactors coming in and out of your store on a fairly frequent basis. These contractors and vendors have access to everything and employee has and sometimes more.

Not only do you have to consider product and equipment theft, what about data or intellectual property theft? Company sales figures, or closely guarded industry secrets? A single thumb drive and a bit of know-how can get a wealth of information into the wrong hands. Thinking about all of that, you probably want to repair your own sinks from now on…

Just as with any LP process, you have to implement a strategy that allows you to identify and react to theft, all while maintain the trust of the 99.9% of your customers that are honest. A few simple policies and best practices can protect your business from vendor/contractor theft.

First, you should establish a check in procedure. Vendors, or outside contractors should have to check in with the manager and then be taken to the area of the store that requires their services. If the area is a sensitive section of the store, or requires an exterior doors to be opened for an long period, a supervisor or key employee should remain in that area. In addition, a simple package inspection policy should be adopted and all employees, and outside vendor should be made to adhere to that policy. Basically, anyone exiting the store that works for you would have any bag, or box inspected by a store manager prior to them leaving the store.

An electronics policy should also be adopted around sensitive areas of the store. Vendors, as well as employees should be barred from using an external hard drive on any store computer system. Recording devices (cellphones) should not be allowed in sales offices, or anywhere that sensitive data is stored. You should also restrict any store Wi-Fi to store management only, and for the sole purpose of conducting company business.

While it may not be an area that you closely associate with shrink and loss, vendor compliance and control can become a major contributor to lost profits in your store. By implementing a few simple steps and practices, you can sure that you are doing all you can to prevent unnecessary loses to your store and company.

Filed Under: Featured 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-thefts devices, EAS Devices, Employee Theft, Retail Anti Theft Devices, retail security, retail security and monitoring

Bad Stops are Bad for Business

March 2, 2015 by admin Leave a Comment

If you’ve been in the LP profession for any length of time, chances are, you know someone who has had their career ended for making a “bad stop”. If you’ve never heard that term, great news for you. This is the term given when an LP agent makes a shoplifting apprehension outside of set guidelines and detains an individual, who in fact, did not partake in any illegal activities. Sounds like something that should NEVER happen, right? Unfortunately, it does and it can spell big legal trouble for your company. If you detain an individual who has not committed a crime, they have the legal right to file a lawsuit against you, your employee and your company. I’ve personally seen more than I would like in my tenure and they usually end with a large settlement and an employee or two in the unemployment line.

How does this happen? If you have an LP program, or policies relating to shoplifting apprehensions, you may ask how does an agent get to the point where they make such a bad decision. Just with any other job, no one is perfect. As a manager, or business owner, you need to have very strict rules and guidelines that are to be followed in regards to shoplifting apprehensions in order to protect not only the safety of your employees, but the very business you are running. Looking back at the incidents that I’ve personally dealt with, one common theme always stands out. An employee who will try to bend the rules as much as possible. When you develop and maintain adequate policies, you have to enforce them. Letting something slip by won’t do you any good. That employee does not have your company’s best interests in mind, and in your position, you have to make sure that your polices are followed to the letter.

One case that stands out happened a few years ago. One of my top performing agents saw a customer place something in her purse and walk out the store. He didn’t see exactly what the item was, but still made the apprehension. Once in the security office, he realized she had placed a shirt in her purse that she entered the store with. The customer had brought the item to compare colors to a new item she wanted to purchase. Understandably so, the customer was highly upset and sought legal action. After all was settled, my company had to pay a substantial settlement to keep the matter out of court and I had to release one of the best agents that ever had worked for me.

During the termination conversation, I asked him why he made the stop without knowing exactly what was concealed. His response was that he had done it several times in the past, and he was normally right. This was the one time he was wrong, and it cost him and my company in a big way. Due to that incident, we implemented more vigorous training programs and did a better job of documenting training with all LP agents in order to prove, it we needed, that all LP agents were trained according to a set policy and that anything done outside of that was the result of poor performance.

I would encourage anyone with a small business, or managers of small companies to adopt and implement a written policy regarding shoplifting apprehensions. If your store doesn’t have an LP department that has agents in store, your policies should state that only a salaried manager may initiate a shoplifting apprehension and only before going through some type of standardized training. This will protect your store not only from shoplifters, but it will go a very long way in keeping innocent customers from being detained by an ill-trained, or poor performing associate.

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: anti-theft devices, anti-theft tags, anti-thefts devices, EAS Devices, Employee Theft, Loss Prevention Training, Prevent Shoplifting, retail security, retail security and monitoring, Shoplifting Prevention, surveillance

Start 2015 With Loss Prevention Best Practices For A More Profitable Year

January 9, 2015 by admin Leave a Comment

Now is the time to go on the attack! Fix your loss issues before they cost you this year’s profit margin. To do this, in many cases requires you to change the way you look at losses. First and foremost, if you are not leading with an “LP” mindset, how can you expect others to follow and support your goals? Loss prevention should always enter into decisions even if in a minor way. Decisions on how and where to display merchandise and the standards you set for employees to follow, are just the start.

There are three main sources of loss in a retail environment: External (shoplifters), internal (employees) and paperwork errors.

Let us look at two of these, starting with internal. My experience tells me that about 10% of employees in a given retail store are involved in theft. You may be saying to yourself that “my employees wouldn’t do that to me”. If you find yourself thinking that way, you are actually at a greater risk than most. Because you are in denial. People will steal regardless of how good you are to them, how much you pay them, how many times you have helped them and so on.

Often when I hear someone say that, we end up finding out that they have some of the largest losses. I know this may sound cynical but it is the truth based on my experience and thousands of employee theft investigation I have personally conducted. So what can you do to prevent employee theft?

To start, understand that employees must be held accountable. Employees can steal four different things from you: cash, merchandise, supplies and time. All of these have value including supplies. If you operate at a typical profit margin of 2% after taxes a loss of $100 will cost you $5000 ($100/0.02). So even a twelve pack of toilet paper has value, not to mention the serious morale issue when you don’t have toilet paper! Employees need to understand that the only thing they are allowed to remove from the store is the air in their lungs.

On top of this, what message are you sending employees by your actions? For example, if you have a policy that cash register shortages under $5.00 are not investigated and a cashier held accountable, then you are telling everyone that it is okay to steal up to $4.99.

Look for employees that wholeheartedly share, understand, support (not just to your face) and practice your LP policies. These employees should be held up to be the standard. Others will then follow. Those who don’t, well… you get the picture. We have a great sample document you can use for your LP employee handbook. It sets the standards and lets them know from the very beginning what you expect, tolerate and will not tolerate. If you would like a free copy in Word format that you can customize for your use, please send me an email.

Shoplifters, those horrible people that come into your store and try to steal everything they can. Okay I will say up front, we sell Checkpoint anti-shoplifting systems. These systems are used by most major retailers worldwide and for a reason. They shut down a huge amount of shoplifting. They are commercial grade and meant to stand up to the tough retail environment. With that aside, let me ask you this, Why are you not using one? A Checkpoint System is a proven way to bring your shoplifting losses under control.

Other best practices include the use of CCTV. However, you must have the correct expectations for this. CCTV is a reactive measure. Shoplifters are rarely deterred by cameras as they know you do not have the payroll to watch them all the time or even when they are skulking around in your store. CCTV is good for employee theft prevention and investigation. You can use it in a somewhat proactive way by bringing an employee in, showing them a 60 second clip of them doing something good and then complimenting them on a job well done. They leave with a good feeling but say to themselves and others “wow I guess he/she is watching”. Do that monthly and see what happens. Believe me, word will get around.

Employee training is something we almost always overlook. Or we just say that they are learning as they go. You invest a lot of effort and money into a new hire. Spend a few hours with a structured outline and make sure they understand what their new job is, the standards you have and what you expect them to do each and every day. The document I offered you above for free will help with this.

Pre-employment screening is also overlooked. For example, have you ever confirmed that a person you are looking to hire can actually count money? Do you test for that? Put $100 on the table and see if they can make correct change without the assistance of the cash register. If they cannot, do you really want them handling your cash?

Paperwork errors are just as deadly as any other form of loss. Keeping a correct inventory not only helps with reordering but is a critical component of controlling theft. How can you react to loss, if you do not know what items are stolen? For example, you might not know that a particular item is being stolen because shoplifters have found a demand for it elsewhere. If you suspect that a particular item is being targeted, then conduct what is called a cycle count on it. A cycle count simply means you are counting it on a daily, weekly or biweekly basis. Comparing that information to your sales of that item will allow you to react quickly before it is too late and the losses become severe.

Are you ensuring that your employees are not making mistakes in their work and then not correcting them? You also need to set the standard that you are watching and reviewing. For example, if an employee is checking-in a shipment and they are to piece count every item, then follow through by picking up the manifest that they just did and spot check their counts on a few items. When they get it right, complement them. If they made mistakes, show them their errors and let them know how the job is to be done and the standard. By the way there are vendors that will try to short your shipment hoping that you don’t check. Vendors and shippers also have employee theft issues and you do not want to be left holding the bag for their issues. I have caught major shipping company employees cutting open the bottom of boxes removing merchandise and then taping the box back up. All of this is done on the truck before they arrive at your business.

I realize that much of this is common sense. However, in many cases we are so busy trying to make money that we forget to keep the money we have on the bottom line. Remember, we are here for you. If you have any questions or issues, we are simply a phone call or email away.

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: Alpha High Theft Solutions, Anti-shoplifting training, anti-theft devices, anti-theft tags, anti-thefts devices, EAS Devices, Employee Theft, Loss Prevention Training, Prevent Shoplifting, Retail Anti Theft Devices, retail security, security devices, shoplifting, Shoplifting Prevention

Prevent Shoplifting This Year

January 7, 2015 by admin Leave a Comment

The shoplifting figures in the United States are nothing to laugh about. Billions of dollars are lost to shoplifters every year and the detrimental effect they have on business is serious. Loss prevention personnel are at risk every time they stop a shoplifter, and the solution to this problem has evaded the retail industry with costly consequences. Retailers spend millions of dollars in loss prevention systems, and studies show that these businesses benefit from the investment. The shoplifting is still there, but retailers are able to maintain and keep track of the inventory more easily. For more news about shoplifting, follow the links below.

Shoplifters Costing Businesses Billions

GREENSBORO, N.C. — Shoplifting is a crime police say affects all types of businesses, and it’s costing a fortune.

WFMY News 2 went to several Triad businesses Friday. Owners at those businesses said shoplifters are crippling their day-to-day operations.

One Greensboro store manager said shoplifters cost his business anywhere from $10,000 to $15,000 each year.

“If somebody really wants to steal something, they’re going to steal it,” he said, “Ain’t nothing you can do about it.”

He’s frustrated, and he’s not alone.

Nationwide, shoplifters steal about $13 billion in merchandise every year, according to the National Association of Shoplifting Prevention. The same organization reports one in 11, or 27 million people in the U.S., are regular shoplifters.

KCSO shoplifting task force makes record number of arrests

KNOXVILLE — A Knox County Sheriff’s Office holiday shoplifting task force made a record number of arrests for 2014.

KCSO’s Safe Holiday Task Force made 372 arrests between Nov. 24 and Dec. 29, according to the Sheriff’s Office. The team was credited with 342 arrests during the same time period in 2013.

While the majority of the 2014 arrests were for shoplifting, they also included 35 felony theft charges, 12 DUI arrests and two fugitive captures.

The annual operation also recovered a record amount of stolen merchandise, totaling $65,614 worth of goods, and located two stolen vehicles. About $50,000 worth of stolen items were recovered in 2013.

Drug habit fuels shoplifting ring in Richmond and around Macomb County

A shoplifting ring has targeted Richmond stores for more than two years, according to a detective with the Richmond Police Department. Thieves steal easily marketable goods to fuel drug addictions, particularly heroin addiction, the detective said.

“What we have seen — and what our counterparts in Chesterfield and at the Macomb County Sheriff’s Department have seen — is a loose ring of individuals shoplifting certain high-priced items like Enfamil baby formula, Red Bull and Crest White Strips, and then either taking these directly to the drug house and trading them for drugs or selling them back-door to another store for cash to buy drugs,” said Det. Julia Frantz.

Filed Under: Shoplifting Prevention Tagged With: Alpha 2 Alarm, Alpha High Theft Solutions, Alpha Nano Gate, Anti-shoplifting training, Employee Theft, Prevent Shoplifting, retail security, retail security and monitoring, security devices, Shoplifting Prevention, surveillance

Your Store’s Reputation

January 5, 2015 by admin Leave a Comment

Your store’s reputation is based off of not only customer perceptions, but also how different elements of your community view your store. Beyond your customers, you employees, local law enforcement, criminals, and members of the court system all have a perception of your reputation. How you approach each of these community members plays a big role in how each one interacts with your store.

Customers are probably the easiest to understand. For the most part, they want a clean and safe shopping experience where they are going to get the best value for their money. The value placed on the goods you sell can be either through price reductions, or by offering designer or name brand goods, with stellar employee interaction as part of the shopping experience.

Employees are very similar to customers in their needs. They want a safe and secure place to work. They want to feel valued by their employers. When they see these things, employees are more likely to perform better at their jobs, and take better care of the people entering your store. When employees do not feel safe, secure, or valued, their job performance declines.

Employees are less likely to give good customer service, which can create a decrease in sales over time. It also allows for shoplifters and other criminals greater access to your store’s assets, without the same risk of getting caught. The more these events take place, the lesser of a reputation your store starts to have with the paying customers and your employees.

This can set of a chain reaction where it is now the criminals who favor your store. Your reputation becomes one where it is easy for shoplifters to steal from your store. This reputation will be passed from criminal to criminal and more thefts will begin to happen. The losses will become greater, and more brazen as the risk and fear of being caught diminishes.

Your local police station also has a perception of your store. If you are in a high theft area, but have low case production, they are wondering what is going on in your store. Is your reputation with the local police one of ignorance? Do they think you and your employees are incompetent and unobservant? Or do you maintain a relationship with the local police, and occasionally catch some shoplifters?

When you catch shoplifters, you send a message to your community that you are aware of what is going on in your store, and make efforts to eliminate the criminal element from your premises. Customer’s and employees feel safer and more at ease when they shop. Local police departments are more confident in your store’s level of awareness, as they see more calls and reports being filed from your store.

To maintain your reputation with law enforcement, you also need to show that your cases are reliable when you go to court. A reliable case equates to a stronger reputation for your store within the legal community. When you present shoplifting cases to the prosecuting attorneys and you have solid evidence as proof of who committed which crime, the attorney’s job is much easier. The more often you present solid cases, the better your reputation is within the court system.

Other things you can do to help perpetuate your reputation is to always show up to your given court cases. You should come dressed professionally, and should show up early. This allows you to confer with the attorneys ahead of time, creating a smoother case for everyone involved. You will find that many retailers’ representatives do not show up for court, or do not bring case files or other evidence with them. By doing these things your reputation starts to precede the cases that you bring. Having a consistent history of solid case work and reliability will also filter back into the criminal community, as they can’t plan on your absence to get away with their crimes in court.

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: prevent shrinkage, racial profiling, Retail Anti Theft Devices, retail security, retail security and monitoring, security, security devices, shoplifting, Shoplifting Prevention, surveillance