Uncategorized — Page 127

Prevent All Varieties of Theft with Clothing Security

August 30, 2011 by Staff Editor

In my position overseeing the safety and security of a large retail store, I have seen all types of shoplifters over the years. Most of the time, when clothing is stolen, the shoplifter places the clothing into a bag or a purse and then leaves the business. Sometimes, he or she will wear it under their own clothes, concealing it while in a fitting room. Or, sometimes he or she will just put on the clothing, like winter coats and jackets, and wear it out of the store.

Sometimes the shoplifter will remove the tags, which take just a quick second, and discard them before concealing the clothing. Clothing security tags, such as Checkpoint tags, are not as easy to manipulate in order to steal. Security tags on clothes are much different than breaking a plastic price tag. Clothing security tags have to be removed at the time of purchase by one of your employees, using a key at the registers. Removal of security tags on clothes with something other than a key at the registers can be time consuming, can ruin the clothing, and can draw attention to the shoplifter. These are all components that are not favorable to most shoplifters.

If you are reading this, and you are a business owner, you have probably suffered losses due to shoplifting. If you sell clothing, you have definitely seen your share of unaccounted for merchandise and wondered just what happened. Clothing security can be a great deterrent to shoplifters that just do not have the time to fight with the clothing security tags, or do not want to risk being detected. It is much easier to move on to the next business that sells clothing – the one that does not have security tags on clothes. Don’t be that business…the one shoplifters are out looking for that provides an easy steal.

Visit the Loss Prevention Store to purchase a clothing alarm and clothing security tags, Checkpoint tags and other clothing security to put security tags on clothes.

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

Missing money?? Ever consider employee theft to be the reason??

August 30, 2011 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

I hope the answer is “yes”. Statistically, employee theft, also known as internal theft, is the highest causal factor for loss in retail. I know we all like to believe that cash losses are just “mistakes” and that we can do some re-training to fix the problem. You may be right. Some cash loss is due to mistakes being made. Unfortunately, it can often be due to internal theft. So how do you know the difference? Easy, you have to conduct an employee theft investigation every time you have a cash loss to find out what the cause is.

Employee theft investigations can be simple or complex. It really just depends on the situation. For cash, you should start your employee theft investigation by creating an Over/Short tracker. One way to do this is create a spreadsheet with all of the employees who run a register listed on the left hand column going vertically across the page. Then you make a row of dates horizontally across the top. Every time you have a shortage, go ahead and make a mark by each cashier on the till under the date the shortage occurred. If you do have a thief, you will start to see a pattern develop over time as you will only have one common denominator on the tills.

Another way to complete and employee theft investigation on cash is to do a careful review of the journal roll for that register. You are looking for a few things.

1) You are looking for a mistake that may show that it was an error and not theft.

2) You are looking for high employee theft indicators such as: No Sales, Refunds, Voids, etc.

You should then use your camera system to “spot check” a few suspicious transactions to see if that is where the money went missing.

Internal theft investigations on cash often take time and patience, but it’s well worth the investment if it means removing a dishonest employee.

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

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

Efforts to Stop Shoplifting Get a Boost With RF Security Labels

August 27, 2011 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

Shoplifting becomes more than a nuisance when it has a serious impact on the bottom line and calls for serious efforts to stop shoplifting by the shop ownership.

Shoplifting is so expected among retailers that it affects everything in the retail world from store design to merchandising to number of staff and the number of work hours scheduled. Shoplifting is even a budgeted item (inventory reserve) because everyone in the business knows that retail theft is a given.

Retail anti theft devices (example: Checkpoint security tags and Checkpoint security labels) of varying degrees have been found to have a positive impact on the rate of inventory loss for the retailer and proven to be cost effective as a means to stop shoplifting.

Technology has played a great part in the improvement of retail anti theft devices, from closed circuit television to electronic surveillance that detects merchandise protected by Checkpoint tags and Checkpoint security labels as it leaves a store or department without being purchased.

Checkpoint Systems manufactures anti theft solutions for almost any application or budget. Once only affordable by the largest retailers, there are now Checkpoint systems that pay a quick return on investment for any size store or boutique. Checkpoint RF tags and Checkpoint RF security labels are designed to be used on merchandise of unlimited size and shape. Boxes, soft goods, bottles, whatever needs protecting, Checkpoint systems, RF security tags and RF security labels are made to improve the retailer’s profit margin by preventing the potential profit to walk out the door courtesy of the five finger discount.

Some retailers restrict their effort to high theft/high value items by applying Checkpoint labels and RF security tags to such as baby formula or leather goods. The storeowner or manager is the best judge of how to use his assets to stop shoplifting, including RF security tags and RF security labels made by Checkpoint Systems.

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 – Atlanta Georgia

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

Unlock my product and still prevent shoplifting. Say whaaat???

August 27, 2011 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

If you have spent any time in business you know the key to success is to anticipate your customer’s needs and have a solution waiting. On the converse, in order to maintain business you have to prevent shoplifting among the many areas that can drain your profits. One key to prevent shoplifting is to utilize retail anti theft devices.

There are a variety of retail anti theft devices that can be used. An increasingly popular solution is Safer cases produced by Alpha. I have started using these cases in my stores and have seen a huge impact. The Safer cases are clear hard plastic cases that you actually lock the product up in. Now I already hear the complaints, but I urge you to hear me out. I am not talking about locking up merchandise in case lines. We all know that customers are less likely to buy something that they have to wait for an associate to get for them. These cases are individual boxes. They stock on the shelf and the customer can still get the product themselves and take it to the register. The cashier then simply removes the product from the case (in seconds) and rings the product up.

A real benefit to this is you can actually remove those high dollar items from the locked cabinets and put them in Safer cases. This will still secure the product and prevent shoplifting while also growing sales as it makes the product much easier for your customer to access.

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

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

CLOTHING SECURITY Necessity not Nuisance

August 27, 2011 by Staff Editor

We’ve all seen them; we’ve all heard their piercing sound, those annoying little devices known as security tags. Security tags on clothes can be especially inconvenient in the fitting room. But if we remove the inconvenient annoyance factor and actually look at the bottom line, make money and prevent loss; these tags will soon become the norm. Security tags or Checkpoint tags were created to prevent loss and help protect a company’s assets.

High dollar items are always the first to be protected. This makes sense considering the dollar amount for this particular inventory. Checkpoint tags are good for items of high dollar. What about items of lesser value? Why not protect all assets of high or low value with checkpoint tags?

What about clothing security tags? Clothing security is not always priority but once considered over a period of time how much loss in clothing adds up; one might see the need for security tags on clothes. Clothing security is important considering consumers will always need clothes. Next to food, clothes are a necessity which means companies will always make money and always lose money from this particular kind of merchandise. The bonus to clothing security tags or security tags on clothes is tagging can be very discreet and less annoying if thought through and placed properly on or within the item.

Keeping clothing security tags and other security tags on and within items keeps an honest man honest and sends a shoplifter somewhere else. If you take away the opportunity and use all preventive measures to protect all assets, profit made will most certainly outweigh loss.

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

For more information on Checkpoint tags, clothing alarm, clothing security, clothing security tags or security tags on clothes contact us or call 1.770.426.4567

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

Noticing high voids from your cashiers? Did you think of employee theft as the reason??

August 26, 2011 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

I can already hear the question. If I had a cashier stealing wouldn’t I be looking for missing cash and not high voids? The answer is “not necessarily”. Internal theft, which is the retail term for employee theft, has a long history of void abuse. It is important to conduct an employee theft investigation if you start seeing high voids.

Here is how this employee theft scam works. The customer comes to the register with product. The cashier rings up the product totaling $46. The customer, if paying with cash, will likely give the cashier $50. The cashier has a few options at this point. Some register programs have the ability to do a “void during”, which is to say they can void the whole transaction during the middle of sale. If so, the cashier can void the sale at that point. They will then do a “No Sale” to open the drawer and “finish” the transaction. The customer sees the drawer open and the cashier give them back their $4 in change so they don’t know anything happened. They take the merchandise and leave. Now the drawer has $46 more than what the register thinks it should have since with the void the transaction “never took place”. As for the internal theft piece, now the cashier can take the money and the drawer will still balance. If your register system can do a “void after”, which is to say after the transaction has been tendered, then the cashier can do the same thing. Ring the sale and process the customer and once the customer leaves they can void the sale and take the cash. Most all companies will have a variation of this type of employee theft at some point. That is why it is good to keep an eye on voids and complete an employee theft investigation any time you notice a spike in void transactions.

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

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

Reasonable Measures Taken Using RF Labels

August 25, 2011 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

Reasonable measures to stop shoplifting are those that will give a retailer a return on his investment and stop his profits from walking out the door, like using RF security labels and RF security tags on merchandise that is vulnerable to customer theft.

Every retailer experiences inventory shrink; it is a retail business fact of life. The trick is to balance economic preventive measures with acceptable merchandising methods.

In some high crime areas, customers expect and understand merchandise that is under lock and key or behind glass. In others, such means to protect merchandise would be over the top and turn shoppers off, as they expect to be able to handle and inspect the goods, as they are able to do with merchandise protected by Checkpoint labels and Checkpoint security tags.

One of the less obtrusive retail electronic devices designed to stop shoplifting is the Checkpoint Security System. The system stands quietly at the entrance until it is needed. When it detects active RF security tags or RF security labels on clothing or other merchandise that leaving the store unpaid, it alerts store personnel with an audible alarm.

The Checkpoint security tags and RF labels come in a variety of shapes and sizes for almost any application or type of merchandise. Your and your employees’ eyes can’t be on every shopper all the time, but a Checkpoint Security System is always on.

The return on investment of a Checkpoint Security System using RF labels or RF tags is remarkably fast. Not only will it alert staff to unsold merchandise going out the door, but also the prevention factor alone is a value in itself.

The greater the risk of being caught, the greater the chance that a shoplifter will avoid a protected store and go to an easier target.

Checkpoint Systems with RF security labels and RF security tags can greatly enhance your efforts to control or stop shoplifting at your business.

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.

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

Is It Possible to Prevent Shoplifting In Your Stores?

August 25, 2011 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

Yes. It is very possible to prevent shoplifting in your stores. Shoplifting is a nuisance and if left unchecked, can ruin a business. So what can be done to prevent shoplifting in your stores?

Retailers have been battling shoplifting for many, many years. Of these years of battle, retailers can agree that shoplifting may never go away completely, but there certainly are ways to prevent shoplifting from occurring and greatly reduce the amount of loss incurred. An effective method of control or preventing loss is by using retail anti theft devices. You have the merchandise in your stores, you have the employees to work and make sales, now you need to retail anti theft devices to help prevent shoplifting, boost your profits and promote your business growth.

In a discount clothing chain I once worked for, the stores were reluctant to incorporate retail anti theft devices initially, because they did not want to spend the money on the investment. What this told me was they were not sold on the effectiveness of the retail anti theft devices available on the market. My job was clear, I had to show results. I talked an owner into testing some of these retail anti theft devices on merchandise considered high theft, or high shrink and we would monitor the sales and shrink over the next 30 days. It was pretty simple. In fact, the security devices we used, impacted theft so distinctly within the first week, the owner was encouraged to roll out a store wide program.

It certainly is possible to prevent shoplifting in your stores. It takes dedication, the right tools and a plan to execute. In the long run, if you stick to your plan you will certainly see an impact on shrink and theft in your stores.

Visit the Retail Loss Prevention Store.

For more information on retail anti theft devices contact us at prevent shoplifting or call 1.770.426.0547

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

Clothing security made fashionable. What???

August 25, 2011 by Staff Editor

Yep. I said it. Clothing security can be fashionable. We all know that in this day and age you have to put security tags on clothes in order to protect your inventory. One of the major downsides though is how it looks. We work in sales and sales are all about looks. That is why Checkpoint tags come in so many different sizes and shapes.

You can always get the trusty hard clothing security tags. But that does not look that great and can make trying clothes on hard, depending on the product. There are now a variety of sizes in hard clothing security tags that make them less noticeable and do not impede the “trying on” process. In addition, Checkpoint tags now can be sewn inside the product. Many retailers are using this for their high end product. The Checkpoint tags are “soft tags” and they are inside a small piece of cloth and sewn beside the size tag or cleaning instructions. The customer’s don’t even notice they are there. The clothes look great on the mannequins or rack, but your EAS will still alert you if someone is trying to steal the product.

Whatever clothing security solution you use is up to you, but know that putting security tags on clothes no longer has to be a trade-off for sales.

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

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

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

Employee theft of refunds. Sound familiar?

August 23, 2011 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

For those of you who don’t know, I have a little secret to tell. {Whispering} “Shhhh … EMPLOYEE’S STEAL!!!” Ok, so I admit that may be a little dramatic, but I hope the point is made. I hear many employers say they don’t have employee theft and that is just not the case. Year after year and study after study shows that employee theft, also known as internal theft, is linked to nearly half of all retail losses. There are many different ways that internal theft can occur, but I want to focus this article on refund theft and how to conduct an employee theft investigation on refunds.

The first step to conducting an employee theft investigation of refunds is to actually look at your refunds. Hopefully, you have POS software that will pull refund reports. If not, you can do things the old fashion way and scroll through your journal tape and find all of your refunds from the previous day. This must be a daily activity. Next, you will want to look for refunds of the same item. Often internal theft of refunds occurs by the cashier returning an item legitimately for a customer and then when no one is around they do another “refund” and keep the cash or gift card for themselves.

Another good idea is to look at numbers and dollar amounts of refunds and look at the employees as a whole for that day. If 3 employees did refunds you would expect their numbers to be similar. Look for the associate who is well above the pack in either number or dollar amount of refunds. Why the difference? Pull video and look at a few transactions to verify that a customer is present and product is present.

Employee theft investigations are essential in protecting your profits and your business. Unfortunately, employee theft is a real thing so it is worth the time to “dig in” and see what is going on.

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