Uncategorized — Page 139

What Makes Up A Clothing Alarm System?

May 26, 2011 by Staff Editor

A clothing alarm system consists of several components. This equipment all comes together to form a barrier to shoplifters. Good customers are not bothered and generally don’t notice that you have a clothing alarm system. Good customers are not thinking about shoplifting therefore they do not concern themselves with these issues.

The first part of the system is the antennas at the customer doors. Some companies also place antennas at the entrances to the restrooms. This denies shoplifters the privacy to try to remove the security tags on clothes. The antennas are placed in line with the doorframe on both sides of the door. Clothing alarm systems can generally be configured to work with any doorway. When a shoplifter attempts to steal your merchandise the clothing security tags cause the antennas to alarm.

The clothing security tags are placed on your merchandise by your staff. Security tags on clothes make that item unremovable from the store until your staff removes it at checkout. Clothing security tags come in more variations than you can imagine. However, there is a huge difference in quality. Lesser quality security tags on clothes have poor construction; edges that are not smooth and can snag the very fabric they are protecting. Many are very bulky and have poor performance. We see many types of clothing security tags that can simply be pried apart with a pocketknife or paper clip. This is why it is important to invest in the quality of the clothing security you choose. Security tags on clothes are held in place with a pin. Pins come in various lengths depending on you needs. Some bulky clothing requires a longer pin.

Last but not least in the clothing security world is the detacher. Detachers are generally a key by your cash/wrap so the shoplifter cannot steal them. When a cashier wants to remove clothing security tags they simply hold the tag up to the detacher and the pin is released. Clothing security is a simple yet effective way to shut down the shoplifters in your store.

Visit our Retail Loss Prevention Store for more clothing security devices.

For more information on clothing security and a clothing alarm contact us or call us at 1.770.426.0547

Preventing thefts with clothing security

May 24, 2011 by Staff Editor

Recently I read about a theft in my city from several businesses in a mall. There is one common factor among the victim stores – they did not have security tags on clothes. The suspect, female, was caught and arrested after an alert store employee noticed the woman leaving with merchandise and coming back in the store for more. When police searched the woman’s car, however, they found it full of merchandise that the suspect had stolen and taken to her car before returning for more. She had, essentially, successfully stolen those items and would have been able to get away with the crime if she had not been greedy and gone back for more.

Much of the merchandise stolen was from clothing stores. There was no clothing alarm or clothing security to alert store employees that the thefts were occurring. Because of the these stores lack of clothing security they suffered thousands of dollars of loss that was fortunately recovered – this time. And if the crime hadn’t been discovered while in progress…those thousands would be lost.

Had these stores been utilizing clothing security tag, they may not have even been targeted by this individual. Additionally, had this thief entered the stores with the intent to steal, she may have changed her mind when she realized that there were plenty of clothing security precautions in place including security tags on clothes. Once she was able to get in and out of these businesses successfully one time without drawing attention, it was fair game. When a clothing alarm and clothing security tags are used this is no easy task.

This tale of theft has a happy ending since the bad gal went to jail. But for every shoplifter apprehended there are many more that are successfully stealing from businesses. By protecting the clothing that you sell using clothing security tags, you’re making a minimal investment that can have magnificent rewards.

To purchase a clothing alarm or clothing security tags visit our website!

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

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Prevent shoplifting in your business: Watching profit loss.

May 23, 2011 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

I have employees that watch and catch shoplifters; their job is solely to prevent shoplifting. One day they spotted an individual who concealed an electronic item between two pairs of pants, then entered the fitting room of the business. The fitting room attendant did not handle or touch the clothing against protocol and did not notice the electronic item. The item was then stolen while the shoplifter was inside of the fitting room.

This is a common occurrence among our employees – a simple act such as handling the items going into the fitting room could have be enough to help prevent shoplifting. Training our employees to be aware of the techniques shoplifters use can really help prevent shoplifting in your business.

Having strong loss prevention programs in place is beneficial in protecting the assets of a business. Having the expertise of a loss prevention consultant can make this daunting task a reality for businesses that may not know where to start in creating a program.

Once there are guidelines in place, employees can be trained to effectively prevent shoplifting through their everyday work. Some basic guidelines are to teach employees to pay attention to the shoppers in their area, and to provide good customer service. A potential shoplifter does not want attention, so if attention is provided to every customer in your business, the shoplifter knows he or she has been noticed. This is exactly what a shoplifter does not want.

Additional loss prevention ideas are to have controls in place in areas like your fitting room. Fitting room attendants should handle the clothing that goes into the fitting room to make sure that merchandise is not concealed within it. The attendant should also count and limit the number of garments going in, and then make sure that is the number that comes back out.

When you help prevent shoplifting in your business, you decrease your shrink and increase your profits – common business sense.

To purchase Retail anti theft devices Check out our website.

For more information on how you can prevent shoplifting contact us or call 1.770.426.0547.

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Don’t want your employees chasing shoplifters? Prevent Shoplifting!

May 23, 2011 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

Have you ever seen the movie Empire Records? There’s a really funny scene in this movie where a shoplifter is seen by some of the employees. The kid tries to run out of the store and a “Benny Hill” type of chase scene ensues. The employees eventually get the shoplifter and though the scene is hilarious, it’s not exactly practical. You don’t want your employees risking their safety by trying to chase down shoplifters.

If the store had been utilizing different skills to prevent shoplifting this might not have been necessary.

If you run a small boutique or record store in this case you may not have a giant corporation backing you up with internal theft investigators, and fancy anti theft programs but I’ve got good news for you. You don’t need these things to prevent shoplifting in your store.

In my many years of working retail, ranging from giant companies to small boutiques, one thing has always remained the same. Good customer service will prevent shoplifting every time! You can train your employees to pay attention to provide excellent customer service and protect your merchandise at the same time.

A greeter at your front doors lets your customers know that you are happy to see them while letting possible shoplifters know they have been seen eye to eye by at least one employee.

A sales clerk on the floor can easily walk around the store and help your customers get thing from high shelves and make suggestions to up-sale your customers while keeping an eye on the corners and aisles where you are experiencing loss.

A fitting room attendant can help your customers get the right sizes and offer opinions while counting items going into and leaving the fitting room.

These are simple loss prevention techniques that you can utilize to prevent shoplifting in your store so your employees don’t feel the need to chase down shoplifters!

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For more information on how you can prevent shoplifting contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 – Atlanta Georgia

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Having problems with Employees helping themselves to your products?

May 22, 2011 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

Some retail studies show that one third of all theft that a business may experience is employee theft. When a business owner looks to hire an employee, he hopes that the employee will be trustworthy and able to perform their job in a manner that helps in the function and profitability of the business. No business owner hopes to have employees contribute to their shrink numbers.

Internal theft is able to be prevented or reduced in a variety of ways. Managers and owners should maintain a good relationship with employees. Those that are disgruntled are less likely to care about stealing from their employer than those that are happy with their jobs. Businesses with low turnover rates have been shown to have lower rates of employee theft in some cases.

Policies and procedures need to be in place for a business’s vital areas, and these need to be followed by everyone. Business owners and managers need to realize that all employees could potentially choose to create a loss for their business, regardless of the fact that they have previously been a trusted employee. Circumstances may change in an employee’s life to where he or she may be able to justify a theft from his employer. Policies have to be enforced for every employee in order to prevent the opportunity to steal.

Another best practice is to have a background check conducted on all prospective employees. This will weed out the candidates that may have been caught and prosecuted at other businesses because of internal thef.

When an employee theft investigation needs to be conducted, businesses are wise to consult a corporate fraud investigator in order to complete an accurate and thorough investigation. When something raises a red flag that makes a business owner think employee theft is going on, there is probably much more that went unnoticed before that red flag was raised.

For information on how we can help you with an employee theft investigation or to find an corporate fraud investigator in Atlanta GA Check out our Website.

For more information on employee theft , internal theft , employee theft investigation or corporate fraud investigator contact us call 1.770.426.256.

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Counter the Loss of Inventory with Clothing Security

May 22, 2011 by Staff Editor

The business I work for recently went through its yearly inventory, as this is quite an endeavor for such a large retail store, the results of which make our efforts to prevent shoplifting apparent. Needless to say, the clothing alarm and security tags on clothes were greatly appreciated.

Do you stress about your business’s inventory? Inventory can show your actual loss on paper, down to the dollar, of what merchandise you sell that is unaccounted for. There are multiple variables that affect these results, but shoplifting is definitely one component.

For businesses that sell clothing, inventory can be a wake-up call for one to really see what is walking out of the doors at the hands of shoplifters. Clothing security tags are one tool that can be utilized to help reduce the shrink you are seeing when you look at your inventory results.

Clothing is high theft and easy to conceal. Clothing security, such as security tags on clothes, help by being a visual deterrent to the would-be shoplifter. Additionally, a clothing alarm will sound if the merchandise starts to go out of your doors, alerting your staff.

The numbers are right in front of you after you take an inventory of the clothing you sell. Are those shrink numbers larger than you feel they need to be? Are you a little frightened that so much of your merchandise is unaccounted for? Clothing security tags can show real results when it comes to decreasing shrink and improving your in-stock.

You cannot earn a profit without having merchandise to sell. Clothing security can help keep your merchandise around for your honest customers to purchase. Clothing security tags can also tell those thinking about shoplifting to move on to a store with unprotected merchandise.

Head off those shrink dollars with a minimal investment in clothing security tags.

Visit the Retail Loss Prevention Store

For more information about clothing alarm or clothing security or clothing security tags or contact us at security tags on clothes or call 1.770.426.0547.

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Prevent shoplifting with a smile

May 21, 2011 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

I know how it sounds; it can’t be that easy to prevent shoplifting in your business, right? Believe it or not, it really can be. We all like to think that the people that still from us are these evil, hardened, mean spirited criminals. But, in reality, most people that shoplift are everyday people that find a way to justify their actions for one reason or another.

Studies have shown that this “justification” is partly achieved by people feeling secluded or detached from the store. They think of these businesses as these large, cold companies and not as a warm and welcoming store. Shoplifters like to be able to disappear into the background and become a random face, not someone who has been individually identified. If you, as a company, pride yourself on customer service and making all customers feel welcome, you will make a giant first step towards being able to prevent shoplifting.

From the moment someone walks through the door it is important to greet them, make eye contact and most of all smile. When this occurs there are a few things that go through a potential shoplifter’s mind.

First, they now know they have been seen. They are no longer just a random face passing through the store. Shoplifters want to stay anonymous. By making eye contact not only are they not anonymous but facial recognition has been made.

Second, if they feel a connection to the store or enjoy there shopping experience it makes “justifying” a petty theft, that much more difficult. Most amateur thieves aren’t people who would still from friends, heck; they aren’t even people who would steal from acquaintances.

Simply having good customer service, being welcoming, making eye contact and yes smiling can help you and your company prevent shoplifting.

For more information on how to prevent shoplifting, stay up to date with our latest blogs or feel free to contact us.

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Don’t Shoot the Messenger

May 19, 2011 by Staff Editor

Once you have decided to purchase a clothing security system for your store, there are a few things that you should know about the functionality of your system. The clothing alarm system creates a RF (radio frequency) field around your entryway to detect the clothing security tags that you have placed on the merchandise. The security tags on clothes are tuned to 8.2 MHz, which although it is a unique frequency, does not mean that they are the only items in your store that can be giving off an 8.2 MHz signal.

When your clothing security system was installed by a Checkpoint certified technician, they took the time to look for and correct any “interference” that might have been present at the time. As time goes on, some clothing alarm systems could experience false alarms or what we like to call “phantoms”. There are many reasons that this could occur but it is doubtful that it is something broken with the system itself. If your system is alarming, it is detecting 8.2 MHz. The most common causes for false alarms are due to changes in the environment, whether clothing security tags are placed too close to the antenna or a door that has settled or warped due to age and use. This is why it is important to have a preventative maintenance plan for your clothing security system. As the merchandise and the building itself changes, so will your clothing alarm system.

You will want to ensure that your staff is trained on how to attach and properly detach the security tags on clothes. Insufficiently trained staff can cause both yourself and your customer a lot of headaches. It is very important to keep your clothing security system functioning properly because if there is a problem where false alarms start happening employees will all too often start to ignore any alarms. Clothing alarm systems are most effective when they are incorporated with knowledgeable employees and a quick response.

To purchase clothing security tags visit our website.

For more information on clothing alarm, clothing security tags, clothing security or security tags on clothes contact us online or call 1-770-426-0547

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

Is There a Best Way to Prevent Shoplifting?

May 18, 2011 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

Actually, there is no one best way to prevent shoplifting. Wherever merchandise is displayed there will be shoplifters, like flies around honey.

The best approach is to use a combination of shoplifting prevention methods that are customized for your customer base, location, and merchandise mix. Although shoplifters will steal most anything, there are particular groups and types of merchandise that need extra attention. These are the items that are “high theft/high value”.

Some of the more common strategies used by retailers to prevent shoplifting are:

· CCTV is good deterrent, but much more useful if there is staff available to watch the real time; otherwise they can only prove an event occurred. Added value is to disprove slip and fall claims.

· Trained plainclothes store detectives are a great for large businesses with the budget to support them. Word gets out fast that a store is arresting and prosecuting shoplifters.

· Uniformed Police or Security Guards are also a budget buster, but necessary in some areas where shoplifting is rampant and violence is a threat. These are more of a robbery deterrent than a way to prevent shoplifting.

· Placing merchandise in lockable display cabinets is secure, but will it reduce sales, or take too much of the staff’s time to unlock and relock? And will they remember to do it?

· Posted signs that indicate shoplifters will be prosecuted may prevent some impulse thieves, but it may be a turn-off to legitimate shoppers.

· Arranging merchandise to keep high theft items near an occupied wrap stand, raise the cashier area for better viewing, and eliminate hidden areas are low cost avenues to prevent shoplifting.

· Training staff in shoplifting awareness policies and procedures will show them how to act or react when they see or suspect a shoplifter in the store. This is another low cost/high value activity.

· Increase staffing when shoplifters are likely to hit. Opening, closing, and after school are prime times for some stores.

· Every customer should be greeted soon after entering the store, so they are aware that someone knows they are there. This is also a great customer service strategy.

· Retail anti theft devices (EAS) such as Checkpoint Security Systems. Checkpoint Security Systems electronic theft detection systems are designed to detect merchandise that has active Checkpoint Security Tags attached and emit an alarm as the shoplifter leaves the store. Checkpoint security tags can only be removed by the cashier at the point of sale.

The retailer who wants to prevent shoplifting at his place of business should consider combining several of the methods that apply to his situation.

To see the latest in Checkpoint Security Systems and Checkpoint Security tags, visit our Online Loss Prevention Store.

Call 770-426-0547 to speak with an expert about Checkpoint Security Systems, Checkpoint Security tags, and other ways to prevent shoplifting, or click here for more information.

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Employee Theft – Good Employee Goes Bad?

May 17, 2011 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

Considering employee theft, no company willingly hires a thief. Most companies actually run some sort of criminal history or background check before they hire someone, just to be sure that they aren’t hiring a thief. So why does an allegedly honest employee suddenly turn to a life of crime and take money from his employer’s pocket.

May people may think that calling employee theft a “life of crime” is an overreach, but not the thousands of employers whose businesses are harmed by these thieves.

How do employers allow internal theft to happen? Is there any way to stop it?

Several of elements have to exist for theft by employees to continue:

The employee has some perceived need for the cash or merchandise; the employee either can’t or doesn’t want to pay for the merchandise; the thief has the opportunity to convert the property to his own use; the thief has little fear of being caught, or of the consequences if he is caught.

After conducting hundreds of employee theft investigations, the common denominator for individuals who continue stealing from their employers has been a lack of oversight by supervision, or the lack of internal controls within the company.

Generally, a trusted employee is allowed to go about his business without being audited or routinely checked up on by supervision. Employee thieves almost always start by stealing small amounts and grow bolder as time goes on and they remain undetected. Frequency of thefts and amounts taken increase until the habit is out of hand even in the mind of the employee.

The solution to internal theft lies in the culture of the company itself. Policies and procedures are designed and implemented which require certain job functions to be directly supervised or periodically audited to preclude continued employee theft. The fact that this happens should be communicated to all employees as they are hired and reinforced regularly. This should include every job function fro trash disposal (what else go out with the trash?) to the accounting department (does the same person do receipts, deposits, and disbursements?)

Maybe it’s time to take an objective look at your company’s policies and procedures and whether or not they’re being enforced consistently.

Loss prevention consultants have experience in analyzing and correcting any deficiency that allows employee theft to exist and thrive. An expert in loss prevention investigation can quickly and economically focus on those areas of the business that actually encourage internal theft through lack of attention.

To speak with a loss prevention investigator about employee theft, internal theft, or an employee theft investigation, call 1-770-426-0547 or click here for more information.

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