Shoplifting Prevention

THE IMPORTANCE OF CUSTOMER SERVICE

November 11, 2015 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

For me, this is the last week of the 3^rd quarter. It’s already that time of year once again. In just a few short days, the 4^th quarter will ramp-up and shoppers will be in a tizzy as they check their loved ones off that holiday wish list. I just read a national report that predicts consumer spending this season will be at its highest point since 2008. That’s fantastic news to us retailers. We are poised to post some record sales in the next three months, provided that we execute to our fullest potential. What keeps the customer coming into your store? Is it your customer service levels?

I am a champion of customer service. Like many before me, prior to my LP career I was a store manager for a big box retailer. You can set all the POGs, put up all the proper signage and all those other corporate tasks, but you will find yourself on a lonely island if your store is not customer centric. It’s a two way street. Attentive and responsive employees will help drive sales. They will also reduce shrink.

Take for example a customer shopping for a treadmill. Sure, they could come into the store, pick out the item themselves and cart it out. You just made a $500 sale and you really didn’t have to work for it. Did that customer get the foam mat to protect their floor? What about the silicone lubricant for the belt? How about a new pair of running shoes to prevent an injury, or even some fitness supplements to help them with their workout routine? What if by not speaking with someone on your staff, they purchase a treadmill that doesn’t fit their activity level? You may have very well left an additional $50-$100 on the table in add-on sales. Why would you leave all these extra dollars out there?

My company, like so many others, runs a survey. Customers can call in the number on the back of the receipt and share their in store experiences. I often review these for opportunities in the store. One thing I see the most is that customers feel “ignored”. Is it so hard for our employees to simply greet a customer? I see it so often. Employees who are too task oriented, who whizz past our customers without as much as a greeting. Do you see that in your store? Is it acceptable?

Let’s talk shrink. This is an LP centered magazine, right? Do you know that the very best method for reducing shoplifting losses is? If you guessed customer service, give yourself a pat on the back. First and foremost, a thief never wants to be acknowledged. If your employees are engaging and monitoring their areas, a thief will not have the opportunity to steal your merchandise. When my LP team completes a shoplifting report, there is a checkbox at the end of the report. It asks simply if the suspect was ever provided customer service by an employee. When I get those reports that say “no,” I use that shoplifting incident as a tool to coach the managers of the store, and show them a customer service failure. By training your employees to give high levels of customer service, you can and will deter criminal activity.

Customer service isn’t just telling a customer hello. It’s about each and every employee going the extra mile to satisfy your customer. Every single person that comes through your doors has a choice. They are choosing to give you their money. You, as a manager, should be honored by that choice. You should make it a core philosophy in your building that the customer is the most important aspect of your business. Strive to be the store that people will shop at, no matter the distance from their home. Engage your customers, leave no money on the table and be proactive in reducing shoplifting losses. Remember, customer service means money in your pocket and less product walking out the doors.

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: Alpha 2 Alarm, Alpha 3 Alarm, Alpha High Theft Solutions, Alpha Jewel Lok, Alpha Spider Wrap, anti-theft tags, employee background checks, Employee Theft, Georgia shoplifting prevention, Georgia shoplifting systems, mobile POS loss prevention, POS ROI, Prevent Shoplifting, prevent shrinkage, racial profiling, Retail Anti Theft Devices, retail security, retail security and monitoring, security, security devices, shoplifting, Shoplifting Prevention, shoplifting statistics, shoplifting violence, surveillance

What Is The Profile Of A Shoplifter?

November 4, 2015 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

There is no profile of a shoplifter. And although lately some retail stores have been charged with profiling shoppers, the truth is, you cannot know whether a customer entering your store is a shoplifter or not. Security cameras, loss prevention officers and well trained managers can help a business with shoplifting. But making assumptions whether this particular customer is a shoplifter can, in the long run, make your business loose more money by engaging in profiling.

For more about this and other news follow the links below.

Ex-Trooper Who Shot Man Arrested for Shoplifting

Columbia, SC (WLTX) – A former South Carolina Highway Patrol officer who shot a man during a traffic stop last year has been arrested on a shoplifting charge.

Sean Groubert, 32, and his wife, 23-year-old Morgan Groubert were both arrested back on October 18, according to the Richland County Sheriff’s Department.

According to an incident report, the two were at the Walmart at 10060 Two Notch Road. A loss-prevention employee at the store said the two were at the self-checkout register paying $29.84 for items worth $136.04. The employee told deputies the men had changed the price tags on the items.

Both were booked at the Richland County Detention Center. Groubert’s lawyer said his client is accused of stealing food.

At a hearing Monday morning, a judge did not revoke bond for Sean Groubert on the charges he’s facing related to the shooting, but did order him to be on house arrest without electronic monitoring. Sean Groubert asked the judge to keep him out of jail because he said his wife is expecting a child and he’s the only source of income.

At odds over shoplifting policy in Knoxville, Tennessee

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – The Knox County District Attorney is taking an aggressive new approach against shoplifters that could land repeat offenders in prison for years.

District Attorney General Charme Allen has authorized the use of felony burglary charges to prosecute petty thieves who return to the scene of their shoplifting crimes, the Knoxville News Sentinel reports (http://bit.ly/1RspPlA). The policy, enacted a few months ago, is untested in Tennessee’s appellate courts, according to attorneys.

Montana State player pleads guilty to shoplifting

BOZEMAN, MONT.

A Montana State men’s basketball player has pleaded guilty to misdemeanor theft for shoplifting from a Bozeman grocery store.

The Bozeman Daily Chronicle reports (http://bit.ly/1OlokYC ) 22-year-old Shikei “Shy” Blake pleaded guilty to Bozeman Municipal Court on Oct. 21. Sentencing is set for Nov. 18.

A citation indicates the theft happened on Sept. 20 at Town & Country Foods. No additional information was available.

MSU coach Brian Fish declined to comment.

Blake is a junior center from Wilmington, Delaware, and transferred to MSU from Northeastern Junior College in Sterling, Colorado. He arrived on campus in late July.

The Bobcats open their season with an exhibition game Tuesday against Northwest Indian College.

State’s shoplifting laws handcuff retailers

The other day, I walked out of a hardware store without making a purchase because I couldn’t get a clerk to come unlock the anti-theft hook from which the item I wanted was dangling. My petulance came cheap because I knew I could buy the same item at any number of other places, but it made me wonder how often anti-theft devices do double duty as anti-sales devices.

According to the 24th annual National Retail Security Survey, American retailers lost $16.7 billion to shoplifters in 2014. Since the study looked at inventory shrink, it apparently didn’t factor in the cost of anti-shoplifting devices – or lost sales to customers irritated by them.

Nor, apparently, did it include the cost of chunky tags on clothing, swiveling surveillance cameras and the hiring of loss-prevention specialists, those retail employees whose jobs have nothing to do with selling or customer satisfaction.

We’ve grown accustomed to the sight of uniformed guards standing sentry near store exits and patrolling the parking lot the way cowboys once rode the fence line. According to federal statistics, private security guards now outnumber certified law enforcement officers by a 3-2 margin. Security, in America, is increasingly a product to be purchased.

Filed Under: Shoplifting Prevention Tagged With: Alpha 2 Alarm, Alpha 3 Alarm, Alpha High Theft Solutions, Alpha Jewel Lok, Alpha Nano Gate, Alpha Security, Anti-shoplifting training, anti-thefts devices, EAS Devices, employee background checks, Georgia Alarms systems, Georgia shoplifting prevention, Georgia shoplifting systems, Loss Prevention Seminars, Loss Prevention Training, retail security and monitoring, security devices, shoplifting, Shoplifting Prevention, shoplifting statistics, shoplifting violence, surveillance

Shoplifting and Racial Profiling

October 28, 2015 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

Experts agree that shoplifting can be reduced by having a trained team of employees and managers at the store. Shoplifting seminars or shoplifting prevention training can help reduce shoplifting at your store, and let you keep more of the profits. By training your employees you can avoid racial profiling, or at least mitigate it and avoid lawsuits that are costly for you. For more about this topic, follow the links below.

The black man arrested in Georgetown because he looked like a shoplifter

An hour after Bilaal Briggs clocked in for work at Sports Authority in Arlington on a mid-May morning, a tall African American man walked into Georgetown’s Zara. He grabbed some clothes and, when a manager spotted him, bolted out of the store. The manager called police and dispatched a warning on a private messaging app that hundreds of Georgetown retailers, residents and officers use to discuss people they deem suspicious in the wealthy, largely white community.

“We just got hit,” wrote the manager, Neetu Kaur. The description: “African American male 6’2 tattoos of stars on right side of neck and a tattoo of letters on the left side of his sideburns.”

Two days later, Briggs, who is black, 6-foot-1 and has tattoos of stars on his neck, arrived at Zara to buy a shirt he had placed on hold. The manager spotted Briggs, mistook him for the thief and called police. Within minutes, Briggs was in cuffs, wondering what had happened.

Police to start charging businesses for ‘excessive’ shoplifting calls

LANCASTER, Pa. (WHTM) – Surveillance cameras keep a watch on anyone who walks into Keystone Fireworks in East Lampeter Township.

Business owner Kevin Shaub says that’s one of the reasons they’ve never had a problem with shoplifting.

“Our product, being that it’s generally a fairly large product, doesn’t lend it to be easily shoplifted,” he told ABC 27 News.

Township police told ABC 27 News they’re getting called to more than 300 reports of shoplifting a year and have been burdened by the amount of shoplifting calls from retailers.

That’s the reason behind a new ordinance which calls for business owners who make “excessive” shoplifting calls to pay police.

Businesses who call officers more than 10 times a month will have to pay $250 for each call.

Stores using app to detect shoplifters accused of racial profiling

Some businesses in an upscale Washington, D.C. neighborhood are accused of racial profiling through a mobile app that allows shopkeepers to alert each other — and police — through private messaging about people acting suspiciously in their stores, reports CBS News correspondent Jeff Pegues.

In trendy Georgetown, store owners will tell you shoplifting is part of the cost of doing business.

“The type of people that is more like a shoplifter, they come here all the time, they go to that same item, they get the feel of the store,” said Keisha Green, an employee at the Sports Zone Elite.

In the last 60 days alone, police recorded more than 120 thefts in the heart of Georgetown.

To counter crime, businesses are using an app called GroupMe. It works like a private chat room, in which 380 members — including merchants, employees, community leaders and on-duty police officers — send each other descriptions and pictures of customers acting suspiciously.

But in Georgetown, where nearly 80 percent of residents are white and have a median household income of almost $120,000, the vast majority of the reports are about black customers.

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Protecting Your Employees From Shoplifters

October 20, 2015 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

Protecting your business and employees from shoplifters seem to be getting harder. Knowing when and what to do when a shoplifting incident occurs in your store can help prevent employees and customers from getting hurt. Do your employees know who to call? What to do when a shoplifter is taking goods from your store and walking out? Making sure your employees know what do, and how to respond when an incident occurs can help prevent accidents.

Follow the links below for more information about this topic.

Spike in shoplifting drives property crime wave in Taos

TAOS — Taos Municipal Court may seem quaint, decorated as it is with landscapes painted by the judge himself, but it’s not sleepy. The court’s docket of shoplifting cases nearly doubled during the last fiscal year to just under 90.

Judge Dickie Chávez says approximately 3 out of 4 shoplifting cases in his court concern the purported theft of alcohol.

And it’s not usually teens stocking up for parties.

The spike in shoplifting cases comes despite the Taos Police Department’s tough approach, arresting rather than citing virtually every suspect apprehended regardless of how small the alleged theft. But it also raises questions about whether law enforcement and courts are the right institutions to address a problem officials say is driven by substance abuse.

‘Operation GroupMe’ was meant to fight shoplifting, enables racial profiling instead

Georgetown has had a shoplifting problem lately, so local citizens turned to group-messaging app GroupMe for help. The Georgetown Business Improvement District partnered with local police to launch “Operation GroupMe” early last year to connect small businesses, police officers, and community leaders in a concerted fight against shoplifting. Instead, it’s become an exercise in racial profiling.

Local police in the Washington, D.C., neighborhood recorded more than 120 thefts in just the last 60 days, according to CBS News. The group-messaging chat room, which comprises 380 members, was meant to help shopkeepers, police, and others alert each other about shoplifters or people who seem suspicious.

In the more than 3,000 messages exchanged about suspicious people in the Operation GroupMe group since January, nearly 70 percent were black, according to a review by the Business Improvement District. This is a particularly startling finding, given that nearly 80 percent of Georgetown’s residents are white.

Police: Helena man bites Capital Sports employee in shoplifting attempt

A 38-year-old Helena man faces a felony robbery charge on accusations he bit a store employee’s hand during an attempted shoplifting.

Dwight Edward Pierson is jailed on $20,000 bond.

Police responded to Capital Sports, 1092 Helena Ave., on Friday after receiving a report that a store employee had detained a suspected shoplifter. Officers noted the employee had two open, bleeding wounds on his right index finger, charging documents say.

The employee told police another worker saw a fishing reel sticking out of Pierson’s pocket while in the store. Pierson, who is on probation, ran from the store, court documents say. An employee grabbed Pierson by his hood and pinned him to the ground.

Don’t Confuse Training with Meetings

October 13, 2015 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

Initial and continued on-the-job training is one of the most effective ways to curb shrinkage and loss. When done correctly it can reduce employee theft, lower shoplifting loss, cut down on administrative mistakes and catch vendor fraud. Unfortunately, it’s become one of the most dreaded parts of a job.

It’s dreaded, by both managers and employees, for a good reason. On-the-job training has become confused with and replaced by the employee meeting, which is usually boring, poorly run and downbeat. But, they aren’t the same thing.

Over the years experts have promoted replacing the “old way” of individualized on-the-job training (and management) with the “new and time saving” plan of having employee meetings instead. The idea of managing and training people by group, rather than individually, is becoming the norm.

Supervisors are trying to change and manage behavior through group meetings, instead of properly training (at first and on a continuing basis) employees individually. But, that way of managing only goes so far with good or average employees, and it especially doesn’t work with problem ones.

It’s not uncommon for a new policy to be created as a response to one or two people’s problem behavior. The policy is then presented in an employee meeting as a store wide issue, rather than the individual one it actually is. Often, new policies don’t need to be written – the old ones just need to be enforced.

They need to be enforced at the individual on-the-job training or coaching level. Employee meetings are, at best, ineffective places to address one person’s behavior; at worst, they undermine management’s credibility and authority.

For example, this was overheard in a retail store – “Don’t forget the employee meeting at 3. You know, where we all get yelled at for something Brittney and Josh are doing, but the team leaders are too scared to say anything to them.” (These weren’t their real names.)

It’s a given that proper training is the best defense against mistakes, loss and shrinkage. Employee meetings are good places to give information and do general training. But, the best and most effective training is still individual coaching based on the employee’s strengths and weaknesses.

Nicole Abbott is a writer and psycho-therapist with over 20 years of experience in the fields of mental health and addiction. She’s an educator, consultant, lecturer, trainer and facilitator, who has conducted over 200 workshops, trainings, presentations, college classes and seminars.

Filed Under: Shoplifting Prevention Tagged With: Alpha 2 Alarm, Alpha 3 Alarm, Alpha High Theft Solutions, Alpha Jewel Lok, Alpha Nano Gate, Alpha Security, Alpha Spider Wrap, anti-theft tags, anti-thefts devices, EAS Devices, Employee Theft, Georgia Alarms systems, Georgia shoplifting prevention, Georgia shoplifting systems, Loss Prevention Training, Periodic inventory, Prevent Shoplifting, prevent shrinkage, racial profiling, Retail Anti Theft Devices, retail security, retail security and monitoring, security devices, shoplifting, Shoplifting Prevention, shoplifting statistics, shoplifting violence, surveillance

The Cost Of Shoplifting In Your Store

October 9, 2015 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

Training your security personnel how to handle shoplifters, and the security and safety measures they need to take before stopping anyone believed to be shoplifting cannot be stressed enough. Lawsuits are predominant in our culture, and safeguarding yourself and your business from possible lawsuits and loss of money is imperative if you want to make a profit. Well trained security personnel can be an asset to your store, the money you spend training them and educating them is well worth it. Follow the links to read more about this and other topics.

Shoplifter who suffered skull fractures, brain damage wins $750,000 in lawsuit against store

He was convicted of stealing two pairs of miniature scissors from Shopko.

But his punishment came long before his court case ended.

In November 2008, Richard “Dave” Moore suffered several skull fractures and a brain injury when he was thrown to the ground by a Shopko loss-prevention officer outside the retailer’s store at 90th and Fort Streets.

Friday afternoon, a jury of 12 Douglas County residents ordered Shopko to pay $750,000 to Moore in a civil lawsuit Moore brought alleging that Shopko employees used excessive force.

Moore, 59, was overwhelmed by the verdict, said his attorney, Richard Schicker of Omaha.

“He started to cry,” Schicker said. “He said, ‘Thank you so much — you saved my life. I would have never made it if we didn’t win this case.’”

An attorney for Shopko couldn’t be reached for comment. It is unclear whether the retailer will appeal.

Over the past week, jurors heard testimony of an ordeal that began Nov. 23, 2008.

Store’s Facebook video post of accused bikini shoplifter goes viral

AN ACCUSED shoplifter has been shamed on social media over the brazen theft of bikinis caught on camera at a surf wear store in Fannie Bay.

Fed-up owner of Beach Bums, Mary Meyer, posted CCTV footage of the alleged thief pocketing more than $200 worth of bikinis on the store’s Facebook page.

The post has gone viral, with more than 45,000 views and 1800 shares along with messages of support from business owners since Sunday.

The minute-long clip captured the thief — wearing a black singlet-type top and sunglasses on her head — putting bikinis in her bag as other shoppers browsed beside her for a pair of swimmers.

Ms Meyer said she checked the CCTV after discovering empty hangers on the rack.

She posted the clip with the intention of publicly shaming the alleged thief.

“I put it up to shame her because it shouldn’t be happening. I was very surprised (by the reaction), I just didn’t think it would go like it did. I guess people don’t like it either,” she said.

Lead in $2.5 million shoplifting heist sentenced to prison, Walnut Creek man among those involved in the ring

The lead defendant in a shoplifting ring that stole more than $2.5 million in retail goods and resold them on eBay was sentenced Tuesday to seven years in prison, announced United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner in press release.

A restitution hearing is set for Dec. 1.

Jason Samuel Schroeder, 36, of Sacramento, is the sixth defendant sentenced to prison in this case. Kirk Arthell Sanderson, 37, of Walnut Creek, was previously sentenced to four years in prison; John Judah Young, 34, of Sacramento, was sentence to two and one half years in prison; and David Reed, 29, of Vacaville, was sentenced to one year in prison. Two others, Andrea Lynn Turner, 34, of Roseville, and Joshua Roy Payne, 30, of Vacaville, also were sentenced to two months in prison. Jason Nathaniel Reed, 36, of Portland, Ore., is scheduled for sentencing later this year.

Filed Under: Shoplifting Prevention Tagged With: Alpha 2 Alarm, Alpha 3 Alarm, Alpha High Theft Solutions, Alpha Nano Gate, Alpha Spider Wrap, anti-theft tags, anti-thefts devices, EAS Devices, Georgia shoplifting prevention, Georgia shoplifting systems, Prevent Shoplifting, prevent shrinkage, Retail Anti Theft Devices, retail security, retail security and monitoring, security devices, shoplifting, Shoplifting Prevention, shoplifting statistics, surveillance

THE SHOPLIFTING NETWORK

October 8, 2015 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

We live in a world where technology helps us with everything. From the mundane, to sending a rocket to the edge of our solar system to beam back pictures of Pluto. Without the rampant growth of technology and the way we communicate today, none of this would be possible. In the Loss Prevention World, our technology helps us to detect anomalies that could be indicators of fraud. We have the latest high definition camera systems (that we can also access on our smart phones) to view those anomalies with the push of a button. I often think about our industry 20 -30 years ago and wonder how we ever got by. Could you imagine prosecuting an internal fraud case with absolutely no video? I’m sure there’s a lot of you out there that remember those days.

One thing we, as a society, probably take for granted the most is ease of communication. With the touch of a button you can communicate with anyone, from anywhere, so long as there is an internet connection. So what has that done for the LP industry? It’s allowed us to connect and share ideas with our peers across the country and across the globe. We can share information with our law enforcement partners anywhere, at any time. If there’s a big ORC group, we can identify them, track them, share information with others and ultimately have them arrested. The greatest advancement in the LP world, in my opinion, is how well we network with one another.

Networking is key to our survival. I want to know what’s happening somewhere else before it begins to affect my stores. Likewise, I want to share new ideas and tools to help my peers, even if we work for competing retailers. No matter who we work for, our main goal is the same; reduce losses caused by theft, fraud and other forms.

What if I told you criminals operate in the same manner?

This is a screen shot from a popular blog website. If you know where to look, you can find a treasure trove of shoplifting “how to” guides. What we see above is someone who wants to boost some alcohol. Simply ask the “community” and someone (usually multiple someones) will be more than happy to provide you with tips, tricks and even specific methods to steal from whatever store your heart may desire.

Not only are these individuals concerned about what’s the best way to shoplift, some (if not most) are concerned with potential consequences of actually getting caught. There exists here, a somewhat underground community of shoplifters who are more than eager to share their knowledge to others who may be new to the game. Much like a tenured LP manager taking a green agent under their wings.

I must admit that is very easy to distinguish the “rookies”. This community is very well versed on all the latest EAS devices that we use to (try) stop them. I’ve even seen links posted to different websites where one can purchase magnetic detachers and
other tools that would make the most seasoned LP professional cringe at the thought.

Of course, it doesn’t just stop at shoplifting. Take this one for example. This member is boasting about a new computer and monitor he “walked out” with. This was your classic “sweetheart deal” with a dishonest associate. Note how they state the dishonest employee was able to fake a transaction because “everyone trusts him and no one pays attention.”

Does that sound like your store?

I could sit back here and post screenshot after screenshot. The one common theme amongst all these posters is that stealing from big box retailers is a victimless crime. They see what they do as something that is not “a big deal” as they perceive that our insurance will cover our losses. What they fail to see is the actual damage they are doing to our stores. Lost product = lost payroll = lost wages. They, like every shoplifter and dishonest employee, are taking money right out of the pockets of our employees (including us!).

I hope by reading through this today, you will have a little better understanding of how the 21^st century shoplifter operates. No longer is shoplifting a shameful thing. Tto people like this, it is something to be celebrated. By “saving” money, they may very well put each and every one of us out of business.

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: Alpha 2 Alarm, Alpha 3 Alarm, Alpha High Theft Solutions, Alpha Nano Gate, Alpha Security, Alpha Spider Wrap, anti-theft tags, anti-thefts devices, EAS Devices, Employee Theft, Georgia Alarms systems, Georgia shoplifting prevention, Georgia shoplifting systems, loss prevention, prevent shrinkage, racial profiling, Retail Anti Theft Devices, retail security, retail security and monitoring, security, security devices, shoplifting, Shoplifting Prevention, shoplifting statistics, shoplifting violence, surveillance

ANNUAL INVENTORY BEST-PRACTICES

October 7, 2015 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

For a large portion of retailers, this time of year means one thing, inventory. I personally hate this time of year. I’m getting a little older and I just can’t hang with overnight shifts. It doesn’t make it any better that my bosses what us (RLPMs) to attend as many inventories as our schedules allow… I’ve done three this month so far and my sleep schedule still isn’t back to normal. With all that inventory on my brain, I thought I’d share some best practices for my peers out there.

First, let me say that my company doesn’t contract any third party to conduct our physical count. We do it ourselves. While there are some great companies out there who service some of the world’s leading retailers, we’ve found that our inventory management is much better when left to the people who it matters most to.

Second, we take the majority of our store inventories overnight during September-October as opposed to the end of the 4^th quarter in the January time frame. We do this because for several reasons. One, our stores are slower in regard to foot traffic right now. Second, we are light on inventory as we gear up for the holiday. Lastly, we want to catch all those “out of stocks” that we have through the store prior to the big rush. This allows to be in a far better stock position going into the holiday shopping season. You can’t sell pegboard, right?

In my years of supporting the inventory process, I’ve seen what works, what doesn’t and what is just a waste of time. Here are just a few of my inventory best practices:

Count overnight – No customers. That’ all that needs to be said ☺

Apparel – Key here is making sure that all garments have a barcode. Missing tags can really hold up a count for hours. Starting about 1 week out from inventory, begin assigning key associates to go rack, to rack, to rack looking for missing tags and replacing as they find them. We use a sticker on each rack with the associates initial once it has been cleaned up. This gives us accuracy and some level of accountability.

Footwear – if you sell footwear, you have mismates. Now is the time to purge them.

Hiding spots – As a manager, you are fully aware of all the hiding spots in your store. Find them, as well as all the merchandise hidden within. Think warehouse racks, offices, storage cabinets, and basedecks.

Basedecks – I’m going to give them their own bullet point here. A basedeck is the bottom shelf on a gondola. They can be lifted up and merchandise can be hidden under them. I make it a point to lift up every single basedeck in the store prior to inventory. I always find thousands of dollars of merchandise.

Gift cards — if these are replenished like any other product, make it easy on yourself and pre-count them. You don’t want to be stuck scanning/counting 10,000 gift cards on inventory night.

Warehouses/storage containers – Pre-count these the day before your inventory. This will again save plenty of time during the night.

Top-stock/Risers – either pre-count your back-stock ahead of time, or assign one or two people to count this during inventory night. I’ve always had success with a “top-stock team”.

Single Scan areas Vs. Multi Scan areas – To this day, I have managers make some pretty bad decisions on area tickets. Yes, Single scan takes a bit longer (since you have to scan each item), but your accuracy will be far greater. Obviously, your single scans will be in your soft lines (shoes, clothes) but they can have a benefit in hardline areas as well. Areas such as ammunition, fishing poles, sleeping bags and tents, and any other area where an associate may get confused (or lazy) with multiple colors and sizes.

Have a team in place as well as a plan – What area will be the most difficult? Once you figure that out, start there. The rest of the night will be a cake walk.

Warehouse shipments — make sure to suspend any warehouse shipments a day before your count. Additionally, if you do get a truck before your inventory, make certain it is not received in until after your count. If not, you could potentially see a significant loss on paper due to all that missed product sitting in the loading dock.

Use DNI markers on all that product you pre-counted. This will ensure that your counters won’t count the same product twice.

While this list is far from being all inclusive, it does give you a baseline for what you should be looking for. Often times, we get caught up in making sure our shrink isn’t too high, we forget that accuracy is as just important. For example: if you have 200 lawn chairs, but there are 5 different colors, (red, blue, yellow, green and black). Each of these chairs has its own sku, but they are all $5. If an employee scans and counts all 200 under only one sku, you will have no shrink, but your inventory counts will still be off. Your books will show 200 red chair and zero of the 4 other colors. Most likely, you’re now going to be overstocked on the additional colors. Proper inventory management starts with an accurate inventory count.

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: Alpha 2 Alarm, Alpha 3 Alarm, Alpha High Theft Solutions, Alpha Jewel Lok, Alpha Nano Gate, Anti-shoplifting training, Georgia shoplifting systems, Loss Prevention Workshop, Prevent Shoplifting, prevent shrinkage, racial profiling, Retail Anti Theft Devices, retail security, retail security and monitoring, security, security devices, shoplifting, Shoplifting Prevention, shoplifting statistics, shoplifting violence, surveillance

Shoplifting Problems Today

October 5, 2015 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

Shoplifting is a problem that affects retailers worldwide. In the United States shoplifting is a problem that affects the retail industry tremendously. Millions of dollars are lost daily due to this problem, and although legislation about this problem continues to change to punish the perpetrator accordingly, the problem is far from disappearing. The rules and regulations about shoplifting that are to be observed by the management and employees of your store should be reviewed regularly to ensure they reflect the times and views of the owners of the retail store.

For more about this and other news follow the links below.

Indianapolis shoplifting suspect dies in police custody after breathing problems

Indianapolis police said they were investigating the death of a shoplifting suspect who complained of breathing problems.

The man died in the back of an ambulance on Saturday afternoon after being arrested by the Indianapolis metropolitan police department (IMPD) and Cumberland police department, the IMPD said in a news release.

The man told officers he was having trouble breathing and an ambulance was summoned. The medical crew assessed the man and determined he could be transported to the city’s arrestee processing center, but while in the back of a jail wagon the man again complained of breathing problems.

A second ambulance was called, but the man’s condition quickly deteriorated and he died despite attempts to save his life, police said.

Walmart employees in hot water over video of suspected shoplifter

ARLINGTON, Texas — Walmart employees who confronted a suspected shoplifter in a Dallas suburb may now be in trouble themselves, reports CBS DFW.

A cashier recorded the incident in North Arlington, which was posted on a Facebook page for Walmart employees. It appears to show a woman shoplifting and employees taunting her and grabbing her bag on her way out of the store.

The video then shows an unidentified woman walking up to the suspected shoplifter outside the store and and starting to fight with her.

One of the employees involved has resigned and an investigation is underway, CBS DFW reports.

Retailers call for legislation amid rise in shoplifting in Dublin

Retailers are lobbying the Government to introduce tougher penalties for repeat shoplifters as gardaí reported a 40 per cent increase in the activity in inner city Dublin.

A Dublin central Joint Policing Committee was told this week that overall property crime, such as burglaries, car thefts and shoplifting, was up by 8 per cent in the division.

Chief Supt Pat Leahy told the meeting that burglaries and car thefts were down this year but a sharp increase in recorded shoplifting had brought up the total.

He said the apparent increase in shoplifting coincided with a change in the way the crime was recorded.

“Every single incident of shoplifting now is recorded as a crime. Whether it is a lipstick or it is a €400 jacket, it goes in as a crime,” he said.

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The Habitual Shoplifter

September 25, 2015 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

According to the National Association for Shoplifting Prevention (NASP) there is no profile of a typical shoplifter.

And while three quarters of the shoplifters are adults, the rest are under age persons. Men and women shoplift equally, and more than three quarters of the shoplifting done in the United States is considered opportunistic. Habitual shoplifters, which according to the NASP steal an average of 1.6 times per week, employee theft and organized shoplifting rings are a major concern for the retail industry, and the cause of billions of dollars of loses.

For more about this and other topics follow the links below.

Habitual Shoplifters are an International Concern

Shoplifting and other forms of retail theft cost retailers tens of billions of dollars each year. As a result retail leadership has learned to recognize the value of a well-trained management staff and a professional loss prevention department. We have learned to drive operational efficiency, and ensure that controls are in place and adhered to throughout the organization. We have learned the value of deterrence, limiting the desires and the opportunities for theft and other losses by integrating loss prevention concepts with retail practices. We have embraced a belief in training and awareness as being at the heart of a successful loss prevention program.

Despite our best efforts, there will always be those that will test our resolve. For those retail loss prevention professionals that must deal with shoplifters every day, we are trained to recognize that a shoplifter can look like anyone—shoplifters are not bound by gender, race, creed, or social standing. Professionals are trained to identify patterns of behavior and must follow strict protocols before shoplifting suspects can even be approached. There are well-defined principles that guide our decisions, and clear steps that must be followed before an apprehension is made.

But there are times when specific individuals will draw our immediate attention. Based on well-established patterns of previous behavior, the habitual thief—those that are known to have stolen from us on multiple occasions in the past—deserve our efforts and focus. While not a definitive indicator of future intentions, their presence in the store warrants priority consideration.

Teton Village Sports shoplifters arrested

TETON COUNTY, Wyoming –

Two suspects in a recent shoplifting were arrested after they returned to the same store wearing the clothing the store managers say they stole.

On Saturday at 10:24 AM the Teton County Sheriff’s Office received a call from an employee of Teton Village Sports reporting that the suspects from a shoplifting incident earlier that week were back in the store. They were reported to be even wearing the same clothes they had been wearing when captured on surveillance video earlier.

Teton County Sheriff’s Office deputies, who were patrolling the area, arrived within seconds and positively identified the suspects as those wanted for the original crime. The deputies say that the suspects were in the process of victimizing the store for the second time.

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