STOP SHOPLIFTING WITH A SOLID PLAN AND RETAIL THEFT PREVENTION PROGRAM

Okay, let’s be realistic, ceasing shoplifting altogether is completely impossible. However there is no reason you can’t be on the front line and ready to wage war against these profit robbing bandits! If you truly want to stop shoplifting or at least make an impact in reducing it, you have to arm your store with the appropriate anti-shoplifting tools to combat it. Retail theft prevention is not only your responsibility but significantly impacts your bottom line.

The first and most important element to putting the brakes on shoplifters is putting a solid loss prevention program in place. A good program will consist of a sound policy, knowledge of local petit theft laws, trained personnel, anti-theft device systems and cross training of all store associates to make sure everyone is familiar with the your retail theft prevention policies.

Be sure all associates, members of management and employees understand why it is important to not only stop shoplifting but why your loss prevention program will benefit the consumer and company bottom line too.

All personnel should be knowledgeable about how to identify a potential shoplifter as well as your company policy regarding apprehending or approaching shoplifters. For instance, some companies will only allow trained Loss Prevention Detectives or Asset Protection Specialists to handle shoplifters. Your regular hourly associates need to understand whether or not you have a policy like this in place. Not having everyone onboard with total comprehension of your retail theft prevention program could be a massive legal liability. 

Ultimately though, being proactive with good anti-shoplifting measures is essential to preventing loss. A good loss prevention plan will include the use of anti-theft security devices like EAS (Electronic Article Surveillance) tags and other mechanisms that make it difficult for shoplifting to occur. These products are vastly inexpensive when compared with the amount of loss your likely incurring on a daily basis.

Anti-shoplifting devices also play a key role in deterring ‘would be’ thieves from even bothering with stealing your product. A lesser seasoned or amateur shoplifter often times never bother planning to steal at a store if they know beforehand that the store has EAS tagged products in place. It’s just not worth the time, hassle or risk to deal with them in most cases.
So making sure your loss prevention plan includes the use of these effective measures, to ward off potential thieves and make it difficult for shoplifters who tempt fate anyways. 

Everyone who works for you should be trained on how these devices work as well. They should be aware of not only how they work but what they can and cannot do too. Additional training should be given to show associates how to properly affix, remove and store these anti-shoplifting tags.

A good loss prevention plan should not lack cooperative communication between store management and if available, loss prevention personnel. The more open and communicative you are with your loss prevention team, the better chance you will have to stop shoplifting in your store(s). Management should fully support loss prevention operations, as should loss prevention support store management reciprocally. 

As long as you have a solid plan and written and distributed program, everyone should be on the same page and you will be well on your way to stop shoplifting. Make sure you have the proper tools in place with an informed staff and you will cut your losses significantly. 

Lastly remember that shoplifting is only part of the problem when it comes to reducing shrink in your retail stores. Other areas such as paperwork errors and internal theft weigh into the equation as well. So a portion of your loss prevention program should focus on these things as well, in addition to the aforementioned plans to stop shoplifting. 

For more information on how to bump up your anti-shoplifting awareness, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547.