I’m not a big city fan by any means, but recently my girlfriend and I decided to spend our anniversary in the Big Apple. I thoroughly enjoyed the time in the city and eating. I mostly enjoyed eating. It was crazy to see the big box retailers, the corner stores and the mom and pop shops all crammed together in the sprawling metropolis, lining each city block with more stuff than anyone could ever buy… or eat. Me, being the LP guy, couldn’t help but wonder, how much of this stuff gets stolen? How do these small business prevent shoplifting?
The short answer is they probably don’t and that’s pretty sad. It’s sad that retailers today, with all the advancements in EAS tech, still don’t protect their profits from sticky-fingered little brats. Some of these little places were so wonderful; the people so amazing and they are just trusting that the constant flow of visitors won’t rip them off. They are living in a fantasy. These shops, especially around Time Square and the more densely populated areas probably see thousands of customers pass through the doors each day. If only 2% of the crowd swipes something at an average of $10/ item, that’s a daily loss of about $800, or almost $300,000 a year. Think you can’t afford a retail anti-theft device?
Let’s just take a few of the more popular “tourist” items I came across pretty regularly, just for the sake of this paragraph. Head over to Battery Park and for blocks and blocks around, you have shops displaying, in a myriad of sizes, scale replicas of Lady Liberty. Oh, how easy it is to steal one of these, especially when there are dozens and dozens and dozens of tourists and only one or two shop-keepers. Guess what though? There’s a retail anti-theft device for that.
Catch a subway down to the Empire State Building and you’ll see the same thing. Street vendors, stores and gift shops for blocks around all want to send you home with a building replica, a t-shirt, keychain or hat. They all have the same thing in common… other than being gimmicky touristy junk. I know they get stolen and these shop owners are doing nothing to prevent shoplifting.
Perhaps you own a store like this. Perhaps you don’t reside in the city that never sleeps, but maybe Atlanta, New Orleans, Chicago, Seattle, or somewhere in between. Maybe you’ve seen your profits disappear over time and can’t quite figure out what to do? Well, first you have to admit you have a problem and resolve to prevent shoplifting in your business. Second, go out and research and buy some retail anti-theft devices. There can be no excuse for any retail store to be without this type of protection. Don’t think that you’re dealing with a “good” crowd, since they’re all tourists. Remember, thieves take a vacation every now and then too.
Alpha Tech is important and we can help you with it. Call 1.770.426.0547 and let’s talk.
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