Which Way Would Your Employees Go? – Shoplifting

May 21, 2014 by
The best way is to learn the five steps retailers’ use and how to legally approach a shoplifter is to attend a loss prevention workshop. There they can walk you through the steps and answer most of the legal questions you might have when it comes to approaching and apprehending a shoplifter.
While it might seem like common sense as to how to make the approach, it is surprising how many employees make their own deviations and decide what is best at the time. I have seen the following examples happen when employees have accused customers of shoplifting.
You walk up to them, outright accuse them and demand to search their bags to find the (suspected) stolen items.
For others, the answer is to not confront them and to call the police to have them arrested.
The rest of the employees have determined that the best approach is one of denial- “He was a shoplifter? Really? I didn’t notice.”
If you accuse a shoplifter directly, you open yourself up to a variety of scenarios.
The first is an open/ aggressive confrontation can escalate into a potentially dangerous situation. The shoplifter might be armed, or prepared to fight his way out.
If you do not have any proof of the shoplifting act and are relying on your “gut feeling”, you might open yourself and your business up to a wrongful detainment/ accusation lawsuit. It can cost tens of thousands of dollars and potentially negative press. Same thing goes for calling the police without actual proof.
A passive/ non-existent approach can lead to shoplifters coming back because they do not fear getting caught.
For more information on Loss Prevention Seminars, Loss Prevention Training, or Loss Prevention Workshop contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 – Atlanta Georgia

The best way is to learn the five steps retailers’ use and how to legally approach a shoplifter is to attend a loss prevention workshop. There they can walk you through the steps and answer most of the legal questions you might have when it comes to approaching and apprehending a shoplifter.

While it might seem like common sense as to how to make the approach, it is surprising how many employees make their own deviations and decide what is best at the time. I have seen the following examples happen when employees have accused customers of shoplifting.

You walk up to them, outright accuse them and demand to search their bags to find the (suspected) stolen items.

For others, the answer is to not confront them and to call the police to have them arrested. 

The rest of the employees have determined that the best approach is one of denial- “He was a shoplifter? Really? I didn’t notice.”

 If you accuse a shoplifter directly, you open yourself up to a variety of scenarios.

The first is an open/ aggressive confrontation can escalate into a potentially dangerous situation. The shoplifter might be armed, or prepared to fight his way out.

If you do not have any proof of the shoplifting act and are relying on your “gut feeling”, you might open yourself and your business up to a wrongful detainment/ accusation lawsuit. It can cost tens of thousands of dollars and potentially negative press. Same thing goes for calling the police without actual proof.

A passive/ non-existent approach can lead to shoplifters coming back because they do not fear getting caught.

For more information on Loss Prevention Seminars, Loss Prevention Training, or Loss Prevention Workshop contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 – Atlanta Georgia 

Visit the Loss Prevention Systems website for more information on Retail Employee Theft and Retail Shoplifting problems and view the Retail Loss Prevention Seminars, Retail Loss Prevention Training and Retail Loss Prevention Workshop we offer to help with your Employee Theft and Shoplifting problems.

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Why Teens Shoplift

May 19, 2014 by Leave a Comment

theft (13)Shoplifting is so common among teenagers that many people considered it a rite of passage from adolescence to adulthood.  It’s estimated that 80% of teens have shoplifted or been with someone else when they have.  Some experts see it as a normal developmental phase.

While shoplifting can be a sign of a delinquent or “troubled teen”, the majority of teens who do it would not be classified as such.  Contrary to the stereotype most teens who shoplift are not troubled.  The majority of teen shoplifters have poor impulse control and/or decision making skills which are commensurate with their age.

It’s difficult for parents, business owners, security people and teachers to identify teens who are shoplifting because there’s no standard profile; it cuts across age, sex, race and social economic class.  There are many reasons why an adolescent shoplifts, which also makes it difficult to create a representative profile, here are some of them.

  • Rebellion – This teen is “acting out” at someone and/or something.
  • Thrills/Euphoria – Shoplifting can be a dangerous and exciting activity accompanied by a pleasurable physical reaction, a high caused by an adrenaline surge.
  • Peer Pressure – Social group is essential to some teens and if their friends do it then they do it to fit in.
  • Cry For Help – A small number of teens shoplift to get caught.  Consciously or subconsciously they’re hoping to bring attention to a difficult or abusive situation.
  • Sense of Control – Some feel a great deal of stress and anxiety.  Stealing gives them a feeling of control over their environment, which decreases the stress and anxiety.
  • Attention Seeking – This is a way to draw attention to themselves, to be cool.
  • Targeting Specific Merchandise – These teens steal to keep up with current trends (i.e. electronics, clothes, shoes) they can’t afford.
  • Drugs/Alcohol – They may shoplift when high or drunk. Or they steal to support a habit by selling the merchandise.
  • Kleptomania – A psychological disorder in which the person can’t resist the compulsion to steal.  It’s very rare in teens and must be diagnosed and treated by a professional.

Understanding why a teen steals and addressing it is important, it can be a valuable life lesson for most of them.  However, understanding it doesn’t excuse it.  When they get caught consequences should be meted out immediately.

Teens should have no doubt the store, their parents and the legal system all take the behavior very seriously and that the penalties will increase with each offence.  No matter the “why” there will be no sympathy or tolerance for repeat offenders.  The trail from adolescence to adulthood is paved with consequences.

Nicole Abbott – writer, educator and psycho-therapist

 

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A New Resolution- Loss Prevention Workshop

May 14, 2014 by
Every year millions of well intentioned people make New Years resolutions. Just like every year businesses small and large alike, are making new budgets and goals. Regardless of whether your New Year starts in January, February or October, making a resolution to take a Loss Prevention Workshop is always a good idea.
One of the reasons why resolutions fail within the first three weeks is because the goals are not attainable or are so vague that it is nearly impossible to quantify or track any potential progress that has been made.
When you make a goal to attend Loss Prevention Training, you can set a quantifiable goal. Which class will you take? Who in your business will go? What should you expect to see as a result?
Now you have a specific date with specific attendees in mind. As far as the expected result, you have a few ways to measure that success. You can compare year-to-year shrink results to see if there is a decrease. You can also take the knowledge that was gained at the Loss Prevention Workshop and implement a set number of those ideas.
All of which will help you keep this goal in check long after the first three weeks are up. Just remember to keep it simple and keep it measurable.
For more information on Loss Prevention Seminars, Loss Prevention Training, or Loss Prevention Workshop contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 – Atlanta Georgia
Visit the Loss Prevention Systems website for more information on Retail Employee Theft and Retail Shoplifting problems and view the Retail Loss Prevention Seminars, Retail Loss Prevention Training and Retail Loss Prevention Workshop we offer to help with your Employee Theft and Shoplifting problems.

Every year millions of well intentioned people make New Years resolutions. Just like every year businesses small and large alike, are making new budgets and goals. Regardless of whether your New Year starts in January, February or October, making a resolution to take a Loss Prevention Workshop is always a good idea.

One of the reasons why resolutions fail within the first three weeks is because the goals are not attainable or are so vague that it is nearly impossible to quantify or track any potential progress that has been made.

When you make a goal to attend Loss Prevention Training, you can set a quantifiable goal. Which class will you take? Who in your business will go? What should you expect to see as a result?

Now you have a specific date with specific attendees in mind. As far as the expected result, you have a few ways to measure that success. You can compare year-to-year shrink results to see if there is a decrease. You can also take the knowledge that was gained at the Loss Prevention Workshop and implement a set number of those ideas.

All of which will help you keep this goal in check long after the first three weeks are up. Just remember to keep it simple and keep it measurable.

For more information on Loss Prevention Seminars, Loss Prevention Training, or Loss Prevention Workshop contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 – Atlanta Georgia

Visit the Loss Prevention Systems for more information on Retail Employee Theft and Retail Shoplifting problems and view the Retail Loss Prevention Seminars, Retail Loss Prevention Training and Retail Loss Prevention Workshop we offer to help with your Employee Theft and Shoplifting problems.

 

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Do You Know The Shoplifter’s Face?

May 6, 2014 by Leave a Comment

theft (9)The National Association for Shoplifting prevention states that there are approximately 27 million shoplifters (or 1 in 11 people) in our nation today. More than 10 million people have been caught shoplifting in the last five years. Who are those people you may ask?  There is truly not one stereotype that fits the shoplifting type.  A police officer today was found guilty for shoplifting while having his three kids with him during the incident.  Other shoplifters include: teens, mothers, sons, daughters, husbands, wives and even a contender for the California state senate are/or have been found guilty of shoplifting merchandise.

Follow the links below for more information about shoplifting.

Woman, teen arrested in shoplifting spree

FORT WALTON BEACH – A 51-year-old woman, and an 18-year-old boy were arrested for a shoplifting spree at a local department store, lawmen say.

The woman, Eva Anna Layton of Fort Walton Beach, and the boy, Grayson Lance Kasper of Niceville, are accused of going into Kohl’s on Beal Parkway and loading up a shopping cart with 15 swimsuits, three wallets, a bracelet, a necklace, two pairs of sunglasses, and a purse. According to the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office arrest report, Layton went into the men’s fitting room and came out wearing the purse over her shoulder as if it belonged to her. The purse was allegedly filled with purloined merchandise.

She then went to the service counter where she tried to return two swimsuits and two swimsuit covers she had chosen from the floor.

When she was approached by a deputy, Layton allegedly refused to stop trying to return the items and asked the deputy to finish with her once she’d finished with her return. When the employee took Layton’s purse, Layton reportedly said the purse was hers and demanded the employee leave it alone.

Mary Hayashi’s campaign foe puts shoplifting case front and center

Mary Hayashi brought her campaign for an East Bay/South Bay state Senate seat to bemused sports fans the other night in Oakland, San Francisco and the Peninsula, as well as to her district, when she ran a 30-second TV ad in the middle of the Giants-Padres baseball game.

The upbeat spot, which one Democratic consultant not involved in the race estimated cost north of $50,000, focused on the Castro Valley politician’s support from women, students, minorities and the medical profession.

“Join local teachers, doctors, small business owners and nurses like me,” says a young woman in surgical scrubs. “Vote for Mary Hayashi for state Senate.”

Not surprisingly, the feel-good spot doesn’t mention the elephant in the campaign, which is Hayashi’s 2012 conviction for stealing $2,450 worth of clothes from a Neiman Marcus store in San Francisco.

Not to worry. Democratic Assemblyman Bob Wieckowski of Fremont, who’s running against Hayashi for the seat, has that covered.

In a new website titled, “Mug Shot Mary,” Wieckowski gleefully runs through the entire case, reminding voters that Hayashi was in the Assembly when she was arrested and is slated to remain on probation until 2015.

Just in case anyone thought he was being too subtle, Wieckowski adds that three state senators, including San Francisco’s Leland Yee, have been arrested or convicted of crimes in the past three months, and “now, Mary Hayashi wants to join them in the state Senate.”

Hayashi was arrested on suspicion of felony grand theft, but pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor shoplifting charge. She was fined $180, put on three years’ probation and ordered to stay away from the Union Square store.

Highlands husband, wife accused of shoplifting

AVON PARK — At least for one married couple, the appropriate vow may have been till jail do we part.

The couple was arrested after being accused of attempting to shoplift nearly $1,000 of merchandise from the Wal-Mart in Avon Park.

Jennifer L. Barton, 29, and John Barton, 32, 714 Ruth St., were arrested by the Highlands County Sheriff’s Office and charged with retail theft in coordination with others.

A security guard reported he saw the couple load a shopping cart with electronics items, the report said.

As the couple headed toward the front of the store, John Barton told Jennifer Barton to “go,” and she headed out the store without purchasing the items, the report said.

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A Difficult Subject- Employee Theft

May 6, 2014 by
As a business owner or manager you have probably seen your share of employee theft over the years. It is a difficult problem in many ways. Not only do you suffer the financial losses caused by employee theft, but you can also suffer the emotional loss caused by this employee’s betrayal.
Over time, you might be more desensitized by these emotional losses and can begin to develop a general distrust for most employees. This makes it hard to be a good leader and a good listener. If you are not approachable, your current employees may not feel comfortable coming to you with information about an employee theft situation.
Let’s face it; your employees are probably going to be more aware of this theft before you are.
It might be time to participate in some loss prevention seminars. They will help you come to terms with your store’s past theft issues. They will also be able to help broach the subject with your current employees. Loss prevention workshops are designed to open up the lines of communication.
You might not be jaded from past experiences and still not be viewed as approachable. Sometimes, employees who are privy to theft happening in the store simply do not know what to do with the information. By providing a new outlet for communication, you have a better chance of eliminating or responding quickly to these instances of theft.
For more information on Loss Prevention Seminars, Loss Prevention Training, or Loss Prevention Workshop contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 – Atlanta Georgia
Visit the Loss Prevention Systems website for more information on Retail Employee Theft and Retail Shoplifting problems and view the Retail Loss Prevention Seminars, Retail Loss Prevention Training and Retail Loss Prevention Workshop we offer to help with your Employee Theft and Shoplifting problems.

As a business owner or manager you have probably seen your share of employee theft over the years. It is a difficult problem in many ways. Not only do you suffer the financial losses caused by employee theft, but you can also suffer the emotional loss caused by this employee’s betrayal.

Over time, you might be more desensitized by these emotional losses and can begin to develop a general distrust for most employees. This makes it hard to be a good leader and a good listener. If you are not approachable, your current employees may not feel comfortable coming to you with information about an employee theft situation.

Let’s face it; your employees are probably going to be more aware of this theft before you are.

It might be time to participate in some loss prevention seminars. They will help you come to terms with your store’s past theft issues. They will also be able to help broach the subject with your current employees. Loss prevention workshops are designed to open up the lines of communication.

You might not be jaded from past experiences and still not be viewed as approachable. Sometimes, employees who are privy to theft happening in the store simply do not know what to do with the information. By providing a new outlet for communication, you have a better chance of eliminating or responding quickly to these instances of theft.

For more information on Loss Prevention Seminars, Loss Prevention Training, or Loss Prevention Workshop contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 – Atlanta Georgia

Visit the Loss Prevention Systems for more information on Retail Employee Theft and Retail Shoplifting problems and view the Retail Loss Prevention Seminars, Retail Loss Prevention Training and Retail Loss Prevention Workshop we offer to help with your Employee Theft and Shoplifting problems.

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Shoplifting News

April 29, 2014 by Leave a Comment

theft (11)Some of the news about shoplifting that may give you an insight into the way some shoplifters view the act of stealing merchandise from your stores.  How can you prevent shrinkage at your business? Is the cost associated with a loss prevention system worth it?  Read the articles below to find more about how installing a loss prevention system in your store is the right move to increase your profitability.

Family Dollar rolls out Checkpoint Systems EAS across its chain

Family Dollar is rolling out Checkpoint Systems’ EAS loss prevention technology across its 8,000 stores in the US. It is claimed to be is one of the fastest roll-outs in the industry, with 3,500 installations already completed and 120 more occurring each week.

Both companies have also begun the planning process to implement source tagging as well as a hard tag @source program. By working with Family Dollar’s consumer packaged goods and apparel suppliers, this new program will ensure merchandise arrives at Family Dollar stores EAS tagged and shelf-ready, enhancing their customer’s shopping experience. With both tagging programs, Family Dollar aims to further reduce shrink and increase Team Members productivity by focusing their time on customer-facing activities.

After extensive field-testing, Family Dollar chose Checkpoint’s EVOLVE P10 ECO electronic article surveillance (EAS) solutions because it positively impacted their store profitability by reducing shrink, lowering energy costs and had a significant increase on merchandise availability of key high-velocity items.

Julie Giblin, Family Dollar’s VP of Loss Prevention, said: “This rollout has already positively impacted our profitability. We could not be more pleased with the results and the partnership with Checkpoint, especially with the implementation speed.”

Shoplifting suspect had a cart full of baby formula

ROCHESTER — Police on Thursday arrested a man they say tried to steal more than $1,000 worth of baby formula from Walmart in Rochester.
Dillon Johnson, 19, of 640 Poverty Pond Road, Hill, N.H., is being held in jail after being charged with felony willful concealment, after trying to run out of Walmart Thursday with a shopping cart full of baby formula, said Police Capt. Paul Toussaint.

He said Johnson’s charge is a felony because of the value of merchandise he attempted to steal from the store.

Baby formula, said Toussaint, is a frequent item shoplifters steal. He said that sometimes baby formula is used for cutting drugs. In most of the Rochester incidents, suspects steal baby formula because it’s so expensive, Toussaint said, with thieves reselling the stolen formula at lower prices.

Police got involved in the incident after a member of Walmart’s loss prevention department reported the theft, according to a police affidavit. The sworn affidavit states that Walmart employees tried to stop Johnson as he was running out of the store with the cart full of baby formula. Police reviewed the surveillance tape at the store before arresting Johnson.

‘Bling Ring’ Tumblr Shoplifting Community Gets Rocked By Outsiders

They go by names like Lift Witch, Klepto Princess and Lifting for Survival. They offer up weirdly worded disclaimers about how what they’re doing is “fake” or that their stories are “fiction” or “roleplay.” They repost and celebrate each other’s victories. They are the young women who spend their time on Tumblr talking about things that they’ve stolen.

On Wednesday, Tumblr user We Unhallowed posted a list of the sites she called “Tumblr’s Bling Ring,” throwing a delicate community of shoplifters into disarray. Earlier that day she’d written, “Have stumbled upon a circle of teenage shoplifters on Tumblr. It’s hilarious. They post pictures of everything they steal and call them ‘hauls.'”

Since posting her list, a few Tumblrs on it have been disabled, but not before their comments were endlessly reblogged by fellow members of the community. Like New Lifterr, who wrote, “i just realized that the post called us tumblrs bling ring and i’m even more flattered. i’m famous. for free.”

Filed Under: Shoplifting Prevention Tagged With: , , , , ,

Reducing Opportunities For Inventory Loss- Loss Prevention Workshop

April 28, 2014 by
The need for loss prevention in your store or business has one main goal- to prevent opportunities. If you are not completely fluent in how to do this, you might want to explore a loss prevention workshop that can help you expand upon your loss prevention training.
In a nutshell, loss prevention is about reducing the opportunity for merchandise or cash losses in your business. It is about developing standard business practices and procedures that limit the scope by which you might suffer monetary or inventory loss. These losses create a financial burden that it is had to recover from.
Loss prevention seminars will give you some ideas and paths that you can go down to develop and implement these processes. There really is no need to try and reinvent the wheel. There are many practices that have already been developed that have been proven to eliminate or deter both employee theft and shoplifting.
You probably have policies and procedures in place for other functional areas of your store- things like sales, customer service, or human resources. So why would you not have these same policies for loss prevention in place. It is just as easy to give your employees loss prevention training as it is to train them on how to run a register or sell to a customer.
For more information on Loss Prevention Seminars, Loss Prevention Training, or Loss Prevention Workshop contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 – Atlanta Georgia
Visit the Loss Prevention Systems website for more information on Retail Employee Theft and Retail Shoplifting problems and view the Retail Loss Prevention Seminars, Retail Loss Prevention Training and Retail Loss Prevention Workshop we offer to help with your Employee Theft and Shoplifting problems.

The need for loss prevention in your store or business has one main goal- to prevent opportunities. If you are not completely fluent in how to do this, you might want to explore a loss prevention workshop that can help you expand upon your loss prevention training.

In a nutshell, loss prevention is about reducing the opportunity for merchandise or cash losses in your business. It is about developing standard business practices and procedures that limit the scope by which you might suffer monetary or inventory loss. These losses create a financial burden that it is had to recover from.

Loss prevention seminars will give you some ideas and paths that you can go down to develop and implement these processes. There really is no need to try and reinvent the wheel. There are many practices that have already been developed that have been proven to eliminate or deter both employee theft and shoplifting.

You probably have policies and procedures in place for other functional areas of your store- things like sales, customer service, or human resources. So why would you not have these same policies for loss prevention in place. It is just as easy to give your employees loss prevention training as it is to train them on how to run a register or sell to a customer.

For more information on Loss Prevention Seminars, Loss Prevention Training, or Loss Prevention Workshop contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 – Atlanta Georgia

Visit the Loss Prevention Systems for more information on Retail Employee Theft and Retail Shoplifting problems and view the Retail Loss Prevention Seminars, Retail Loss Prevention Training and Retail Loss Prevention Workshop we offer to help with your Employee Theft and Shoplifting problems.

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Do Your Employees Know Your Business Shoplifting Policy?

April 28, 2014 by Leave a Comment

law-3If the management and/or supervisors do not have a clear sense what the shoplifting policy for the store is, the chances are your other employees will not have any idea what to do in a case of a shoplifting  case at the store.  Making your workforce knowledgeable about the company’s policy about shoplifting can in the future prevent situations that can be detrimental for your business and your staff.

Read more about the shoplifting rulings in Arizona, and other measures in other Townships.

An Arlington Kroger Manager Was Fired For Body-Slamming a Shoplifter

Kroger, according to the wisdom of online shoplifting forums, doesn’t have a firm “no-chase” policy, at least not one that’s routinely heeded. Leave the store without paying, and you may well have a store manager on your tail.

Claude Medlock did. The 51-year-old — a seasoned veteran of taking other people’s stuff, with a long rap sheet of robbery and theft convictions — was confronted in the parking lot of an Arlington Kroger by a store manager.

It did not end well for Medlock. The manager slammed the alleged shoplifter into a car, disarmed him of a knife, then body-slammed him on the pavement. All captured on video.

It didn’t end well for the manager, either. Kroger fired him, telling Fox 4 that his actions were “not a reflection of our company’s fraud prevention, protocol, procedures or training.”

Ruling: Right to jury trial in shoplifting cases

PHOENIX — Citing 17th Century English law, the state Court of Appeals concluded Thursday that those charged with shoplifting are entitled to demand a trial by jury.

In a unanimous decision, the judges said the Arizona Constitution makes it clear that if a jury trial was mandated for a crime during territorial days, then that right remains more than a century later. They said the fact that the crime is only a misdemeanor, punishable by six months in jail, does not override that constitutional right.

Thursday’s ruling is most immediately a defeat for the city of Peoria which had argued against having to go through the time and expense of a jury trial for Edward Bosworth. But the decision has implications for other city and county prosecutors who have until now convinced municipal judges and justices of the peace that they alone can decide a shoplifter’s guilt.

Both the state and federal constitutions entitle people charged with crimes to a trial by jury. But courts generally have held that right does not extend to offenses which can result in jail time of less than six months. And that means all misdemeanors.

In Arizona, however, there’s another factor at work. The state constitution, adopted when Arizona became a state, spells out that “the right of trial by jury shall remain inviolate.”

Appellate Judge Lawrence Winthrop, writing Thursday’s ruling, said that means if someone was entitled to a jury trial prior to 1912 for a comparable common law offense, then that right continues to exist.

When shoplifting cases are selling like hotcakes

Deptford Township has the right idea with a new ordinance that fines retail businesses if they call police on shoplifters and fail to follow through.

Police in the township handle about 2,000 shoplifting calls annually, which is understandable for the home of Deptford Mall and a multitude of mega-power centers.

But here’s the rub, and the main rationale for imposing limits: Only about 400, or one fifth, of the five-finger-discount calls result in prosecution in any given year.

Police should not waste time responding to businesses that won’t sign complaints. Worse, say officials, police can wait in court to testify against suspects — but the store owners don’t show up.

When the ordinance takes effect, a store will get only two cases per month that don’t result in prosecution. If there are more such calls, the store will be fined $250 for each one.

Mayor Paul Medany says that “big-box” retailers — those most likely to have sophisticated store security — take the most advantage of the willingness of the police to come running.

“I feel very strongly, personally, that the big-box retailers have to provide security, cameras and loss prevention officers,” Medany said. “You’ve got to protect your store better.”

Filed Under: Shoplifting Prevention Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Reducing Opportunities for Inventory Loss – Loss Prevention Workshop

April 22, 2014 by Leave a Comment

The need for loss prevention in your store or business has one main goal – to prevent opportunities. If you are not completely adept in how to do this, you might want to explore a loss prevention workshop that can help you expand your loss prevention training.

In a nutshell, loss prevention is about reducing the opportunity for merchandise or cash losses in your business. It is about developing standard business practices and procedures that limit the scope by which you might suffer monetary or inventory loss. These losses create a financial burden that is hard to recover from.

Loss prevention seminars will give you some ideas for processes that you can develop and implement. There really is no need to try and re-invent the wheel. There are many practices that have already been developed that have been proven to eliminate or deter both employee theft and shoplifting.

You probably have policies and procedures in place for other functional areas of your store like sales, customer service, or human resources. So why would you not have these same policies for loss prevention in place. It is just as easy to give your employees loss prevention training as it is to train them on how to run a register or sell to a customer.

For more information on Loss Prevention Seminars, Loss Prevention Training, or Loss Prevention Workshop contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 – Atlanta Georgia

Visit the Loss Prevention Systems website for more information on Retail Employee Theft and Retail Shoplifting problems and view the Retail Loss Prevention Seminars, Retail Loss Prevention Training and Retail Loss Prevention Workshop we offer to help with your Employee Theft and Shoplifting problems.

 

Filed Under: Seminar Tagged With: , , , , ,

How To Protect Your Store From Shoplifters

April 18, 2014 by Leave a Comment

theft (8)In the United States alone the retail industry loses approximately $35 million each day due to shoplifting for a whopping $13 billion a year.  While you may be wondering if the shoplifting is done by customers only, the answer is a resounding No! A lot of the shoplifting is done by employees in the company and the rest by the customers.  How can you prevent yourself from the shoplifting that is happening in your store or small business? Read more about this topic by following the links below.

Top tips for preventing shoplifting

According to a new report, shoplifters now steal goods worth £400,000 from British retailers every single day. The cost of shoplifting is going up, and retailers need to consider ways to protect themselves.

Shoplifting losses are never welcome, but with many retailers concerned about the potential for reduced consumer spending this year, protecting yourself against theft has rarely been so important.

Preventing shoplifting is something of a Sisyphean task. But, while you may never be able to eliminate the risk altogether, there are some simple steps you can take to help protect yourself from thieves.

1. Install visible security

Many shoplifters are simply opportunists. If your shop looks like easy pickings, your chances of falling victim to thieves are increased. On the other hand, if your premises are visibly secure, many potential shoplifters simply will not bother coming in.

Make sure that your security systems are within plain sight, but not obtrusive. You may also consider displaying polite but firm notices explaining that shoplifters will be prosecuted.

2. Minimise access

Customers should not have unnecessary access to products, particularly if those products are of high value. Consider placing big-ticket items in cases or behind counters. Alternatively, if you want potential customers to be able to touch and try them, make sure that they are properly secured.

You should also make sure that toilets and similar areas do not have outside access. This will help to prevent shoplifters picking up an item, taking it to the toilet, and leaving through a window.

COMBATING THE SHOPLIFTER

What can you and your employees do to discourage shoplifters from frequenting your store? Training in alertness and effective detection techniques will improve your chances of recognizing the shoplifter.

Crime prevention experts generally agree that the best deterrent to shoplifting is an alert, well-trained staff which pays careful attention to the needs of the customers.

Here are a few more things you and your staff can do:

• Serve all customers as quickly and efficiently as possible. Customers who are approached immediately will appreciate the service. Shoplifters will realize that this is not the time or the place to attempt a theft.

• Acknowledge the presence of additional customers with the phrase,“ I’ll be with you in a moment” when you are busy with a previous customer.

• Don’t ever turn your back on a customer. This is an open invitation to the shoplifter to proceed with his business. If you have to use the phone, turn so you can see your sales area.

How to Protect Your Store from Shoplifters

  1. Make sure your store is equipped with security cameras. Even if they are fake, any shoplifter may think these are real and be discouraged. Try to think like a shoplifter. Make sure items that would be more likely targets of shoplifters are protected by video surveillance.
  2. Get some Sensormatic detectors installed at all entrances and exits if you can afford it. These detect unpaid tags.
  3. Encourage the store employees to practice great customer service in order to deter shoplifters. A person who overtly attempts to evade store associates could be a potential shoplifter. Set some people at main entrances to monitor the Sensormatic detectors.
Filed Under: Shoplifting Prevention Tagged With: , , , , , ,
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