Uncategorized — Page 105

The Great Debate

January 18, 2012 by Staff Editor

Have you ever heard a clothing alarm go off in a store? Did you wonder if the security tags on the clothes are doing more good than harm? Clothing Security is often a popular debate amongst Loss Prevention Personnel and Store Management. Here is one look at how to answer those questions.

Checkpoint tags are designed to enhance clothing security. They are meant as a deterrent to shoplifters. Most of the theft retailers see comes from small timers. They are the ones who see an opportunity and take it. Having clothing security tags eliminates some of that opportunity.

When properly controlled by store associates, clothing security tags pose no additional inconvenience to the customer. An associate easily and quickly removes them at the POS. False alarms are not from faulty tags, but rather from poor customer service by an associate.

The clothing alarm that does go off is also a good chance for the store to show their commitment to eliminating shrink from theft. If an alarm goes off from a clothing security tag, quick response from the associates set the stage. Any potential shoplifters will be watching to see what happens. If the associates respond, it is another strong warning that this store will not be victimized by theft.

Over the years of apprehending shoplifters, I hear two common themes regarding clothing security. The first is “they don’t respond to the alarms”. The second is “ this (item of merchandise) didn’t have a tag, so I took it”.

I hope this answers the questions with a resounding YES that clothing security tags are doing more good than harm.

Visit the Loss Prevention Store to purchase a clothing alarm or clothing security tags.

For more information on Checkpoint tags, clothing security, clothing alarm, or clothing security tags contact us at security tags on clothes or call 1.770.426.0547

By the Numbers

January 18, 2012 by Staff Editor

With the holidays behind us, many companies are starting to tally up their final numbers for the year. Among those numbers are the dollar amounts lost to shrink. According to the statistics released by the Global Shrink Barometer for 2011, total shrink in the United States comes in at a whopping $41.691 BILLION dollars. Thats right, Billion! That’s a lot of money to be lost. They then go on to state that 44.2% comes from employee theft.

How much of those dollars are coming out of your store at the hands of your own employees?

With sobering statistics like this, it’s hard not to want to pull every associate into the office, shine a bright light in their face and make them confess every secret they ever held! That, of course, would be a HR nightmare. How about as an alternative – running Employee background checks?

Pre employment screening, done by reputable background check experts, will eliminate the obvious bad applicants. At the very least, the Background Check Company should run a criminal background check during the course of their pre employment screening.

Background Checks point out the obvious indicators such as previous convictions or bad credit. Background check experts will sort through the information compiled on an applicant. Their knowledge will help give you a better chance at hiring the person with the lowest risk of becoming a dishonest employee. This allows you to focus on their other skills and merits that qualify them for your open positions.

Hiring a Background Check Company seems much more reasonable than being faced with $41.691 Billion dollars in losses due to employee theft.

For more information on background check experts, background checks, criminal background checks, employee background checks or pre employment screening contact us at the background check company or call 1.770.426.0547

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Stop Shoplifting: No “Soft Shoe” Dance!

January 15, 2012 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

One of the toughest cases we had when I worked at a large clothing retailer involved a ring of shoe thieves who not only stole but also conducted fraudulent refunds of the stolen product. The strategy to stop shoplifting depends on the type of retailer and the type of product sold at that store. In this case the retailer was caught flat footed since they did not employ any type of anti shoplifting devices in the shoe department. Basically the only tools we had to work with was a two way mirror over the shoe aisle and walking the floor to observe any potential theft. When the thefts occurred and went unnoticed the thieves struck more often with aggressive boldness. A meeting with the store management team to promote floor awareness brought about several questions as to employing newer technology to stop shoplifting. One suggestion was to use an EAS company called Checkpoint. They used RF technology via rf security labels and rf security tags. The main issue was to figure out whether to use the Checkpoint security tags or the checkpoint labels or both.

An rf label is a sturdy sticker with rf technology that can be attached to flat surfaces and hidden so as to not alert a would be thief. The checkpoint labels could be used on women’s dress shoes since there is really no where to attach checkpoint security tags. A rf label could be placed on the bottom of the shoe or inside the shoe. Using the RF labels in this fashion was the first step in our strategy to stop this ring of thieves. A decision was made to place the checkpoint labels on the bottom of every “right” footed women’s dress shoe. One additional step was taken for the very expensive women’s shoes and that was to place a lanyard though the loop or strap at the end of the shoe and attach checkpoint security tags. This was in addition to the rf labels attached to the bottom of the shoes. This process was tough to start but once in place was not to hard to audit and maintain.

The next area of concern was men’s dress shoes, which again, because of the several different types of shoes required a though process as to whether we had to use the rf security labels or the rf security tags or a combination of both the checkpoint labels and checkpoint security tags. The initial thought was to use the rf security tags on the right foot of every shoe by placing them through the top “eyelet” of shoes that had to be tied. In recent fashion trends more men’s shoes simply slip on requiring no fastening of any kind. This warranted us to place a rf label on the bottom of each right footed shoe, just like the women’s slip on shoes. Unlike may of the expensive women’s shoes these types of men’s slip on shoes did not have a place to put a lanyard or tag so it was decided to place rf security labels inside the men’s right shoe. Keeping all the rf labels and rf security tags on the right shoes made it less complicated for the store staff to attach, audit and remove.

The remaining area of concern was men and women’s sneakers which were much easier to secure by using the checkpoint security tags and when needed lanyards. All were secure through the “eyelet” of the right shoe. RF security labels were also hidden within the right shoe of the most expensive sneakers.

Tagging and floor awareness cut back the ring of thieves almost immediately. The process of the initial tagging and training was an investment of time and money that in the end helped the company cut 70% of the inventory loss in the shoe category. The fraudulent refunds were also shut down since the thieves no longer were able to steal the shoes and then return them fraudulently. Having a tagging strategy and ensuring the entire store staff knew how to tag, how to audit and how to remove the tags put us well on our way to achieve the true goal to stop shoplifting.

Visit the Loss Prevention Store to purchase Checkpoint labels, Checkpoint security tags, and other RF labels that can help you stop shoplifting in your business.

For more information on Checkpoint labels, Checkpoint security tags, RF labels, RF security labels, RF security tags and how to stop shoplifting contact us at RF label or call

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Prevent Shoplifting: How to keep merchandise from getting out he door.

January 15, 2012 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

One of the most challenging goals of any loss prevention program is figuring out how to keep the merchandise in the store. The loss prevention departments in some stores are limited in how much they can see at one time. This creates the need for a subsequent detection and deterrence method. Many loss prevention departments choose to utilize retail anti theft devices.

These devices include; security tags, clothing alarms and security labels. These products provide protection for the merchandise that loss prevention is unable to see. In my many years of working in the loss prevention field I have seen the positive effects of utilizing retail anti theft devices to help prevent shoplifting.

The best way to prevent shoplifting is to focus on eliminating easy targets. These easy targets would be the merchandise in the store that does not have a retail anti theft device either attached to it or integrated into the packaging, if the store has an RF security system. Shoplifters count on being able to be inconspicuous as they steal from you.

Retailers must remove the shoplifter’s ability to blend among their honest customers. It is hard for a shoplifter to be inconspicuous when they are trying to improperly remove a security tag from unpaid for merchandise and when they try and exit the store while a clothing alarm is sounding. Getting all the attention is what shoplifters are trying not to do. The use of anti theft devices forces shoplifters to rethink their plans.

Keeping unpaid for merchandise in the store is the goal of every retailer. This goal is made easier by adding retail anti theft devices to your merchandise protection program. If a retailer is serious about making a profit off the merchandise they sell, they have to prevent shoplifting in their stores. This is an imperative task that all retailers must take on.

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

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Prevent Shoplifting, Retail Anti Theft Devices

The importance of quality employees and how to prevent loss before it happens.

January 15, 2012 by Staff Editor

As economic times have continued to become more difficult, many employers are now using every method available to ensure they are hiring the right people. The hiring process has become more important than ever. Many successful companies are now using background check companies and background check experts. These background checks include criminal background checks, employee background checks. These pre-employment screening tools allow the employer to control who enters into their talent pool.

By employing a background check company or background check expert, the employer can access very important information regarding the candidate’s history. These background checks can reveal other wise private information such as, criminal background checks. This gives the employer visibility to information that can speak to the quality of employee and can reveal any disqualifying information. These background check companies and background check experts can also process employee background checks. These employee background checks provide the prospective employer a look into the candidate’s quality of work and relationship with previous employees. This is a good measure in projecting the behavior of the candidate while under employment. A company that is looking to hire can also take the process one step further by using pre employment screening. Pre employment screening can include all of the above-mentioned criteria, but can also include competency based pre employment screening. This screening can identify candidates that have the technical and behavior based skills to be successful in your business.

Having worked in the retail industry for a number of years, I have not only been the subject of the practice of background checks and pre employment screening. The process is very fluid and not intrusive. It has also provided me the opportunity to work for a few great companies, but more importantly it has guided me in developing myself to be competitive for higher-level positions. These screens have included background checks, criminal background checks and employee background checks.

For more information on background check experts , background checks , criminal background checks , employee background checks or pre employment screening contact us at the background check company or call 1.770.426.0547

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Employee Theft: There Is No Such Thing as a Free Lunch.-Atlanta Georgia

January 15, 2012 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

Businesses are facing the growing problem of employees taking advantage of their employers. In my extensive experience in the retail sector, I have seen some brazen acts of internal theft perpetrated against employers. Internal theft or employee theft occurs when an agent or employee of a company steals from the company. Internal theft was by far one of the most costly forms of theft I have seen in all my years working as a loss prevention manager.

I remember a case of employee theft where I began an employee theft investigation based on a tip I received from another associate. The employee theft investigation focused on cash shortages. I noticed that there was a pattern of small cash shortages occurring every time a specific associate worked. During the employee theft investigation I learned that the associate would always do a no sale and open the drawer just before leaving to go to lunch. I decided to conduct video surveillance of the associate and saw that when she did the no sale, she would remove cash from the drawer.

Once I had concluded the employee theft investigation and brought the associate in for an interview the associate was told that they was seen removing money from the register and not placing it back into the register. The associate admitted that they were taking the money out of the register and they used the money to buy their lunch. The associate said they started doing this shortly after they began working. The associate admitted to employee theft in the amount $300.00 in cash. The associate had only been with the company a couple of months and was well on their way of costing the company thousands in cash losses. It is unlikely that the associate would have not escalated the theft to begin taking merchandise as well.

For more information on employee theft , employee theft investigation or internal contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 – Atlanta Georgia

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Employee theft of Gift Cards – Atlanta Georgia

January 13, 2012 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

There is a new trend of employee theft (also known as internal theft) that I am finding in my stores. This internal theft concerns gift cards. Generally gift cards are hard to steal since most don’t have any value until rung in the POS system. If a cashier tries to ring up a gift card and does not put money in the register then the till will show short and the theft is obvious so this does not happen often. I completed an employee theft investigation a few months ago that has yielded a new twist and turned into several internal theft investigations.

What I found during this employee theft investigation was that the cashier used coupons to “pay” for the gift card. Here is how this theft is occurring. Many stores (especially as we approach the holidays) carry gift cards to a variety of other stores. Most all stores have in house gift cards available for purchase as well. The cashier will ring up the gift card when no one is around and then use coupons that have already been redeemed by other customers to “pay” for that gift card. The register thinks the card was paid for so no shortage occurs in the till. It is not until you reconcile the coupons that you find that you do not physically have as many as the system shows were redeemed. In many stores that take in mass quantity of coupons (such as grocery stores) those coupons get sent to a third party and the store may never see the chargeback that hit their cash line when the coupons are “redeemed” with the vendor.

In order to pick up on this type of employee theft I suggest looking at a few things. First, keep an eye for gift cards and coupons lying around the registers that don’t belong. Also, look at employee purchases with gift cards and then trace the origin of that card to see how it was valuated.

For more information on employee theft investigation, employee theft or internal theft contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 – Atlanta Georgia

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: employee theft, employee theft investigation, internal theft

Tags VS Labels

January 13, 2012 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

I recently purchased a new winter coat at a national chain retailer. While the store was packed with people and very few associates around, I surprisingly found great service at the check out. Hidden in a pocket on the inside of my new coat was a Checkpoint label. The cashier knew too look for it, point it out to me, and then made sure I knew to remove the RF security label before I wore the coat. I never would have known it was there, if it wasn’t for the cashier.

After I got home, I started thinking about what a great deterrent to stop shoplifting the RF label was. When word gets out to the thieves in the community that there are hidden RF security tags and RF labels on the merchandise, well! If I were a shoplifter, I wouldn’t even dare try to steal from that store.

The RF label was so discreet, I had no idea it was there. It didn’t even occur to me that I wasn’t fighting some bulky Checkpoint security tag. I tried the coat on and didn’t worry about a hard tag in my sleeve or fighting with one on the zipper. While there are times that RF security tags are a better solution for merchandise, this time the use of an RF Label made it so easy for me to shop! I am glad this retailer knew the appropriate uses for their anti shoplifting devices.

Visit the Loss Prevention Store to purchase Checkpoint labels, Checkpoint security tags, and other RF labels that can help you stop shoplifting in your business.

For more information on Checkpoint labels, Checkpoint security tags, RF labels, RF security labels, RF security tags and how to stop shoplifting contact us at RF label or call 1.770.426.0547

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Checkpoint labels, Checkpoint security tags, RF label, RF labels, RF security labels, RF security tags, stop shoplifting

Anti Theft Devices: A safer way to protect your profits and your people.

January 13, 2012 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

After 10 years of working in the loss prevention field, I have seen it all. I have seen shoplifters enter the store with nothing and leave out with multiple bags full of merchandise. This meant that they not only left out the store with stolen merchandise, but they also stole the shopping bags they put the merchandise into. Time and time again, one thing continues to be true. I learned that shoplifters always went for the easy stuff.

The merchandise that was not protected by a retail anti theft devices was considered the easy stuff. In my stores I saw that the majority of shoplifters I would detain shoplifted this merchandise more often than any other merchandise in the store. Often times the merchandise that was taken was not the merchandise the shoplifter planned on shoplifting, as they would admit during the interview and processing of the shoplifter that had been detained. They admitted that they would see the security tag and simply find something else to steal. They also stated that the retail anti theft devices were impossible to remove without damaging the merchandise or injuring themselves.

This leads me to believe that I could prevent shoplifting in other areas of the store, by increasing the use of security tags on other merchandise. I wanted to try and prevent shoplifting in the store and prevent some of the dangerous confrontations I had been having. Shoplifters are not as cooperative as one might think and often they do not give up without some resistance. So, in an effort to prevent shoplifting and injury to myself, I began placing retail anti theft devices on more and more merchandise in the store. The plan worked. I saw a decrease in the number of shoplifters I was catching and I saw a tremendous decrease in inventory shortages.

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

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Prevent Shoplifting, Retail Anti Theft Devices

Shark Tags are a great clothing security option.

January 13, 2012 by Staff Editor

There are many different types of clothing security tags on the market today. One new option in clothing security is called a Shark Tag and is produced by Alpha Security. Many stores now face a problem commonly known as “wardrobing”. This is the practice of purchasing clothes for a single event with the intention of returning the item after it has served its purpose. This is hard to combat as it requires arguing with the customer over whether the product has been worn or not (even though usually it reeks of perfume and body odor). The items generally cannot be resold because they smell or have been damaged and this leaves the store with a loss. Enter the Shark Tag. These clothing security tags clamp onto the product (without leaving holes) and has to be removed by the customer before they can wear it. If the customer tries to return the product without the Shark Tag then you can easily refuse the refund without much fuss. With prom season in the foreseeable future this ought to get the attention of many retailers.

Another option for putting security tags on clothes is to go with classic Checkpoint tags. These clothing security devices work with a clothing alarm to alert you to possible theft. In many cases it is wise to use your Checkpoint tags with your Shark Tags so you battle both fronts. The clothing alarm will alert you to possible theft, while the Shark Tags protect you from refund fraud. Both of these methods of applying security tags to clothes are great options to help you improve your bottom line by reducing shrink.

Visit the Loss Prevention Store to purchase a clothing alarm or clothing security tags.

For more information on clothing alarm, Checkpoint tags, clothing security, or clothing security tags contact us at security tags on clothes or call 1.770.426.0547

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Checkpoint tags, clothing alarm, Clothing Security, clothing security tags, security tags on clothes