The gold standard in the loss prevention world is the National Retail Security Survey (NRSS) by Dr. Richard C. Hollinger PhD at the University of Florida Department of Sociology, Criminology and Law. This study has been conducted for the last 20 plus years.

The 2011 sources of shrinkage break down as follows (note that the preliminary percentages do not total 100 percent):

• Employee Theft – 43.9%
• Shop Lifting – 35.7%
• Administrative Error – 12%
• Vendor Fraud – 5%
• Unknown – 5.5 %

Clearly our biggest exposure continues to be employee theft. Almost half of a retailer’s losses are caused by employees that steal from you.

When you combine employee theft and shoplifting, almost 80% of our losses are due to both internal and external theft.

As a retailer you cannot be passive about your anti-theft program, policies and procedures. You must be pro-active. Yes, cameras, Checkpoint systems and burglar alarm systems are critical. They are your base infrastructure. However, simply installing equipment, then patting yourself on the back because you feel the issues are solved, is a false sense of security.

Theft has to be addressed daily. It needs to be on your mind and your staff’s mind all the time. How do you react to a Checkpoint system alarm? Does your staff simply waive the customer on? How is your merchandise arranged? Are your high theft items in locations that can be monitored easily? Are you and your staff trained in loss prevention techniques?

You want to get some of that 80 percent back to your bottom line? Contact us today or call 1-770-426-0547!