ALPHA KEEPERS STOP ORGANIZED RETAIL CRIME RING FROM STEALING HIGH VALUE MERCHANDISE!
Alpha Keepers: 4 ML Blog 11
Prevent Shoplifting: 3
As a Loss Prevention expert, I am in charge of protecting the assets in my stores. When it comes to merchandise protection, I am always attempting to find the best protection devices! Each year expert thieves find new ways to shoplifter our high value products, so we must remain on high alert in the fight against preventable loss. Hard tags and spider wraps are not enough in many theft scenarios. Alpha keepers are the highest form of technology out there for retailers to prevent shoplifting. I had to learn the hard way, by taking a big loss from boosters in order to get better merchandise protection devices.
I frequently watch my CCTV cameras to analyze high theft trends and the known shoplifter patterns. I was watching cameras one evening, and noticed an organized retail crime group of 4 subjects on our CCTV. They were quickly scoping the store for associates, making sure no one was following them. I recognized this group because they hit my location two other times. The group targeted our high dollar items previously, before we had Alpha Keepers in use. When they hit us before, they were able to get away with $5,785.00 worth of merchandise, from two visits. Two of the subjects selected merchandise from different areas of the store and stage the merchandise, while the other two subjects keep watch for store personnel. Having seen this group previously, I knew their ultimate target would likely be expensive fragrances. Their prior sections were all small value items, but thieves gravitate toward fragrance due to its easy resale. Upon making it to the perfume area for their grand finale, they noted all items encased with Alpha Keepers. I could see on camera they were not used to dealing with these type of devices. They searched for any bottle without an Alpha Keeper, but could not find it. They tried to remove a bottle from its keeper, but could not pry it apart. Their ultimate plans failed and they left all their merchandise. My store lost nothing in this incident, but could have lost $2,012 & not to mention the return trips that would have followed. After this incident, I have not seen them back in my location. The deterrence piece worked, as it should have. The following month, I had 8 more similar cases like this one. Shoplifters coming in, but noticing the merchandise protection so they leave. This showed my store team the importance of ensuring we are utilizing the Alpha Keepers to prevent shoplifting. It illustrated the need to continue their use as part of our shrink action plan.
It’s moments like this that make us realize the importance of keeping our merchandise protection standards updated at the highest level possible and evaluating any new techniques or devices on the market the moment they are available for store use. One thing we really liked is that they are available in different sizes; the various sizes lend themselves to products of all sorts in many different departments. We were able to order specific sizes to protect fragrance, electronics, razor products, and other high dollar areas in the store. The customer can also see the product information through the keepers, so it does not inhibit sales. When we analyzed our weekly theft trends in these areas, we noticed a massive decline in these departments. Due to the success rate, we decided to invest in these devices at every location in my district. Improve your bottom line by taking your merchandise protection to the next level. Give boosters the boot as I did, and prevent shoplifting in your business.
Need information on the Alpha Keepers? Give us a call at 1.770.426.0547 now.
As a Loss Prevention expert, I am in charge of protecting the assets in my stores. When it comes to merchandise protection, I am always attempting to find the best protection devices! Each year expert thieves find new ways to shoplifter our high value products, so we must remain on high alert in the fight against preventable loss. Hard tags and spider wraps are not enough in many theft scenarios. Alpha keepers are the highest form of technology out there for retailers to prevent shoplifting. I had to learn the hard way, by taking a big loss from boosters in order to get better merchandise protection devices.
I frequently watch my CCTV cameras to analyze high theft trends and the known shoplifter patterns. I was watching cameras one evening, and noticed an organized retail crime group of 4 subjects on our CCTV. They were quickly scoping the store for associates, making sure no one was following them. I recognized this group because they hit my location two other times. The group targeted our high dollar items previously, before we had Alpha Keepers in use. When they hit us before, they were able to get away with $5,785.00 worth of merchandise, from two visits. Two of the subjects selected merchandise from different areas of the store and stage the merchandise, while the other two subjects keep watch for store personnel. Having seen this group previously, I knew their ultimate target would likely be expensive fragrances. Their prior sections were all small value items, but thieves gravitate toward fragrance due to its easy resale. Upon making it to the perfume area for their grand finale, they noted all items encased with Alpha Keepers. I could see on camera they were not used to dealing with these type of devices. They searched for any bottle without an Alpha Keeper, but could not find it. They tried to remove a bottle from its keeper, but could not pry it apart. Their ultimate plan failed and they left all their merchandise. My store lost nothing in this incident, but could have lost $2,012 & not to mention the return trips that would have followed. After this incident, I have not seen them back in my location. The deterrence piece worked, as it should have. The following month, I had 8 more similar cases like this one. Shoplifters coming in, but noticing the merchandise protection so they leave. This showed my store team the importance of ensuring we are utilizing the Alpha Keepers to prevent shoplifting. It illustrated the need to continue their use as part of our shrink action plan.
It’s moments like this that make us realize the importance of keeping our merchandise protection standards updated at the highest level possible and evaluating any new techniques or devices on the market the moment they are available for store use. One thing we really liked is that they are available in different sizes; the various sizes lend themselves to products of all sorts in many different departments. We were able to order specific sizes to protect fragrance, electronics, razor products, and other high dollar areas in the store. The customer can also see the product information through the keepers, so it does not inhibit sales. When we analyzed our weekly theft trends in these areas, we noticed a massive decline in these departments. Due to the success rate, we decided to invest in these devices at every location in my district. Improve your bottom line by taking your merchandise protection to the next level. Give boosters the boot as I did, and prevent shoplifting in your business.
Need information on the Alpha Keepers? Give us a call at 1.770.426.0547 now.
