Stop Shoplifting – 3 WC Blog 720
Sensormatic tags – 4
Lend Me Your Ear I Have Something To Say About Sensormatic Tags
When you stop shoplifting you are taking a bite out of crime to steal a phrase from McGruff. Unfortunately it seems things were the other way around when a shoplifter took a bite of a Loss Prevention Associate’s ear not too long ago. The story was an article in LPM Insider magazine, on October 31, 2018, titled “Accused Shoplifter Bites Off LP Associates Ear”, citing their source as The News Tribune. The story reports that a shoplifting suspect and two friends were being watched by the Associate. The suspect is reported to have taken two polo shirts and entered a fitting room. He was alleged to have folded them up and hidden them under his jacket. The article reports that the Associate stopped the suspect who was accompanied by his friends as they left the store. Apparently the situation became physical and the Associate got the suspect to the ground when the two friends started hitting the Associate. During the altercation the suspect bit the Loss Prevention Associate’s ear lobe taking off a piece in the process. The Associate was able to have the piece of ear stitched back on and the suspect was arrested and put in jail. The story reported that no information was given about the retail store itself or the names of any of the persons involved in the incident. Having been involved in my own fair share of scuffles and being bitten myself (as was one of my own Associates during an apprehension he initiated) I know how quickly a shoplifting incident can escalate. This is why it is so important to use Sensormatic tags on clothing and other merchandise to stop shoplifting from happening in the first place.
While the article does not state it I am going to assume that the retail store where this theft took place was not using anti-theft devices on the merchandise or at least not on all of their merchandise. If this is true then they are way behind the curve. The use of Sensormatic tags and other anti-theft devices is proven to be effective at reducing theft. If you take a look at the 2015 Global Retail Theft Barometer for North American retailers, apparel specialty stores saw an increase in retail shortage from .60% in 2013-14 to 2.28% in 2014-2015 (pg. 52). During this period the spending on Loss Prevention as a percent of total sales decreased from .39% to .24% (pg. 57). This information includes all Loss Prevention spending but I do believe it is safe to say that electronic article surveillance is a big part of this. I also found an interesting statistic on the pricegun.com website from an infographic chart, “Shoplifting is America’s #1 Property Crime”. The chart shows that stores that use visible cameras were shoplifted at 70% of the time while stores that use ink tags drop down to 27% and radio frequency tags are even less at 20%. I urge all retailers not just clothing store owners to look at Sensormatic tags and systems as an investment in reducing losses and saving money rather than an expense center that costs the store money.
Would the use of electronic article surveillance tags prevented the Loss Prevention Associate from being bitten? It is quite possible they would have stopped the incident before it took place (assuming they were not in use at this location). I have found that in many cases a shoplifter steals because they believe the opportunity presents itself and if no security tags are on an item there is no immediate deterrent at work. There is a slight chance that the merchandise had tags and the thief was committed to stealing the items anyways because he had his buddies with him but it is an unlikely scenario. Most crooks, especially opportunists don’t want to chance being caught and they know the tags will cause an alarm system to activate.
Altercations with shoplifters can be dangerous as evidenced in the story about the Associate and his confrontation. Proper training on how to stop shoplifting provided by Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. (LPSI) and the use of Sensormatic tags and pedestals can help to minimize unnecessary risks to store employees. Contact LPSI to learn more about how you can keep your workers safe and take a bite out of crime at the same time.
Get more information on Sensormatic tags, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 today.
When you stop shoplifting you are taking a bite out of crime to steal a phrase from McGruff. Unfortunately it seems things were the other way around when a shoplifter took a bite of a Loss Prevention Associate’s ear not too long ago. The story was an article in LPM Insider magazine, on October 31, 2018, titled “Accused Shoplifter Bites Off LP Associates Ear”, citing their source as The News Tribune. The story reports that a shoplifting suspect and two friends were being watched by the Associate. The suspect is reported to have taken two polo shirts and entered a fitting room. He was alleged to have folded them up and hidden them under his jacket. The article reports that the Associate stopped the suspect who was accompanied by his friends as they left the store. Apparently the situation became physical and the Associate got the suspect to the ground when the two friends started hitting the Associate. During the altercation the suspect bit the Loss Prevention Associate’s ear lobe taking off a piece in the process. The Associate was able to have the piece of ear stitched back on and the suspect was arrested and put in jail. The story reported that no information was given about the retail store itself or the names of any of the persons involved in the incident. Having been involved in my own fair share of scuffles and being bitten myself (as was one of my own Associates during an apprehension he initiated) I know how quickly a shoplifting incident can escalate. This is why it is so important to use Sensormatic tags on clothing and other merchandise to stop shoplifting from happening in the first place.
While the article does not state it I am going to assume that the retail store where this theft took place was not using anti-theft devices on the merchandise or at least not on all of their merchandise. If this is true then they are way behind the curve. The use of Sensormatic tags and other anti-theft devices is proven to be effective at reducing theft. If you take a look at the 2015 Global Retail Theft Barometer for North American retailers, apparel specialty stores saw an increase in retail shortage from .60% in 2013-14 to 2.28% in 2014-2015 (pg. 52). During this period the spending on Loss Prevention as a percent of total sales decreased from .39% to .24% (pg. 57). This information includes all Loss Prevention spending but I do believe it is safe to say that electronic article surveillance is a big part of this. I also found an interesting statistic on the pricegun.com website from an infographic chart, “Shoplifting is America’s #1 Property Crime”. The chart shows that stores that use visible cameras were shoplifted at 70% of the time while stores that use ink tags drop down to 27% and radio frequency tags are even less at 20%. I urge all retailers not just clothing store owners to look at Sensormatic tags and systems as an investment in reducing losses and saving money rather than an expense center that costs the store money.
Would the use of electronic article surveillance tags prevented the Loss Prevention Associate from being bitten? It is quite possible they would have stopped the incident before it took place (assuming they were not in use at this location). I have found that in many cases a shoplifter steals because they believe the opportunity presents itself and if no security tags are on an item there is no immediate deterrent at work. There is a slight chance that the merchandise had tags and the thief was committed to stealing the items anyways because he had his buddies with him but it is an unlikely scenario. Most crooks, especially opportunists don’t want to chance being caught and they know the tags will cause an alarm system to activate.
Altercations with shoplifters can be dangerous as evidenced in the story about the Associate and his confrontation. Proper training on how to stop shoplifting provided by Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. (LPSI) and the use of Sensormatic tags and pedestals can help to minimize unnecessary risks to store employees. Contact LPSI to learn more about how you can keep your workers safe and take a bite out of crime at the same time.
Get more information on Sensormatic tags, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 today.
RECOGNIZING EMPLOYEE THEFT FROM MANAGERS
While a lot of time has been spent on recognizing Employee Theft, as a business owner, you have to know that your managers are just as capable of stealing from you than your hourly teams. Moreover, managers have a unique ability to steal even more and go undetected even longer because they know the controls that are in place and they know how to beat them. As the owner of the business, you need to trust, but verify, all activity from your managers.
Over my career in Loss Prevention, I have had a dozen or so store managers that were arrested for theft. You can have every program working 100% to Stop Shoplifting, but one dishonest manager can completely derail an entire year’s worth of financial success. While the number of manager theft cases that I’ve had are relatively small over a 12 year period, they’ve all accounted for the absolute highest and most prolific thefts of any case I’ve worked. Those 12 cases have a higher combined case value that all of my cases over the last 5 years combined. Millions of dollars. So how do you determine if a manager is stealing from you?
Entering and Exiting the Store at Odd Hours
Hopefully, you have an alarm system for your store. If not, please stop reading now and have one installed yesterday. This is something that is an absolute necessity. Preventing a burglary is just as important to your store as it is to Stop Shoplifting. The great thing about modern business alarm systems, is that you can generally receive reporting on when the system was armed/disarmed. You should often review this data, as it will show you when a manager entered the store, and when they left, as well as everything in between. If your store is open from 8am-8pm, there’s no reason for a manager to come back in the store at 1am, right?
Bank Deposit Issues
If you are trusting a manager to deposit the day’s earnings each night, be wary of banking errors. If your store counted $2,000 on Friday and your statement shows that $1950 was deposited, you likely have an issue of Employee Theft by one of your managers. While banking errors are more common that we’d care to admit, consistent issues by one manager in particular should be a strong clue that forces you to look further.
Lost Keys
You’ll find it hard to Stop Shoplifting if you have sets of your keys “lost” in the world. Granted, it’s human to lose a set of keys at least once in your life. I’ve lost a set of store keys once. It was a learning experience and It’s never happened since. If you have a manager that continues to “lose keys”, then there’s probably something happening that shouldn’t be. Always change your locks when keys go missing. It’s also a great idea to have policies that spell out disciplinary action for managers that do lose their keys.
Frequent Large Discounts
Your managers are empowered to run your business. That often means approving discounts for a variety of reasons. Managers can easily slip from “taking care of a customer” to Employee Theft. Managers that give out discounts freely to everyone they know are quite popular with customers, but they are a detriment to your bottom line.
Unexplained Cashier Shortages
What if, all of a sudden, cashiers started coming up a few dollars short every day? Not just one or two, but every single one of them. Cashiers that have been solid for years are suddenly missing $2-$3 dollars every shift. This was actually one of my biggest cases where a manager was stealing cash. Every time this particular manager finalized a cashier, she would swipe a few bucks and run the cashier short. This went on for years before she was caught and costed the store several hundred thousand dollars over time.
Preventing employee theft is important and we can help you with it. Call 1.770.426.0547 and let’s talk.
While a lot of time has been spent on recognizing Employee Theft, as a business owner, you have to know that your managers are just as capable of stealing from you than your hourly teams. Moreover, managers have a unique ability to steal even more and go undetected even longer because they know the controls that are in place and they know how to beat them. As the owner of the business, you need to trust, but verify, all activity from your managers.
Over my career in Loss Prevention, I have had a dozen or so store managers that were arrested for theft. You can have every program working 100% to Stop Shoplifting, but one dishonest manager can completely derail an entire year’s worth of financial success. While the number of manager theft cases that I’ve had are relatively small over a 12 year period, they’ve all accounted for the absolute highest and most prolific thefts of any case I’ve worked. Those 12 cases have a higher combined case value that all of my cases over the last 5 years combined. Millions of dollars. So how do you determine if a manager is stealing from you?
Entering and Exiting the Store at Odd Hours
Hopefully, you have an alarm system for your store. If not, please stop reading now and have one installed yesterday. This is something that is an absolute necessity. Preventing a burglary is just as important to your store as it is to Stop Shoplifting. The great thing about modern business alarm systems, is that you can generally receive reporting on when the system was armed/disarmed. You should often review this data, as it will show you when a manager entered the store, and when they left, as well as everything in between. If your store is open from 8am-8pm, there’s no reason for a manager to come back in the store at 1am, right?
Bank Deposit Issues
If you are trusting a manager to deposit the day’s earnings each night, be wary of banking errors. If your store counted $2,000 on Friday and your statement shows that $1950 was deposited, you likely have an issue of Employee Theft by one of your managers. While banking errors are more common that we’d care to admit, consistent issues by one manager in particular should be a strong clue that forces you to look further.
Lost Keys
You’ll find it hard to Stop Shoplifting if you have sets of your keys “lost” in the world. Granted, it’s human to lose a set of keys at least once in your life. I’ve lost a set of store keys once. It was a learning experience and It’s never happened since. If you have a manager that continues to “lose keys”, then there’s probably something happening that shouldn’t be. Always change your locks when keys go missing. It’s also a great idea to have policies that spell out disciplinary action for managers that do lose their keys.
Frequent Large Discounts
Your managers are empowered to run your business. That often means approving discounts for a variety of reasons. Managers can easily slip from “taking care of a customer” to Employee Theft. Managers that give out discounts freely to everyone they know are quite popular with customers, but they are a detriment to your bottom line.
Unexplained Cashier Shortages
What if, all of a sudden, cashiers started coming up a few dollars short every day? Not just one or two, but every single one of them. Cashiers that have been solid for years are suddenly missing $2-$3 dollars every shift. This was actually one of my biggest cases where a manager was stealing cash. Every time this particular manager finalized a cashier, she would swipe a few bucks and run the cashier short. This went on for years before she was caught and costed the store several hundred thousand dollars over time.
Preventing employee theft is important and we can help you with it. Call 1.770.426.0547 and let’s talk.
Stop Shoplifting-4
Anti-Shoplifting-3 WC Blog 704
Can A Dumb Crook Be Stopped With Anti-Shoplifting Devices?
When you stop shoplifting and catch thieves you hear a lot of bizarre excuses for why a suspect tried to commit the crime. I think I just came across the strangest or oddest excuse I have heard yet. In a news report on whdh.com, September 12, 2018, by Frank O’Laughlin, “Police: Walmart shoplifters tried to steal clothes for upcoming court appearance”, a couple is reported to have been caught stealing clothing. The excuse they gave was that they needed the clothes for a court hearing she would be attending. Hmmm, I have a feeling she will be wearing basic orange when she makes that appearance. Sometimes you have to wonder what people are thinking. These two would-be shoplifters weren’t too bright but they aren’t the only ones to do something stupid. Take a look at these dumb shoplifters:
• Posted in mirror.com.uk, 1 Oct 15, by Martin Frick, “Stupid shoplifter caught after complaining to police about victim’s ‘wanted poster’ featuring the thief’s face”. The gist of this story is that the shoplifter complained to police that the owner of the store put his picture on a poster from a still camera image and even blacked used Photoshop to place lines over his face. The picture made it to Facebook. The shoplifter complained to police because he stated his boss fired him from his job after seeing the post.
• From wthr.com, “WATCH: Clueless shoplifting suspects run from police and right into jail”, by WTHR.com Staff, Feb 27, 2018. “Police in Peoria, Arizona were on their way to a call of a suspicious circumstance.” Police saw the suspect’s car at a gas station and the couple saw the police and ran. “Surveillance cameras caught them running along the building before jumping a fence to break into the jail!” Oh, I forgot to mention the report stated the couple had run right to the doors which were directly under a big sign that indicated what the building was.
I have no idea if the stores were using anti-shoplifting systems but I am not convinced that even if they had it would have been enough to stop shoplifting by these kooky crooks.
Now I want to be honest with you most shoplifters aren’t this dumb. I have been involved in efforts to stop shoplifting for many years. I have dealt with the professional shoplifters, the impulse shoplifters and yes, even the dumb shoplifters. I will tell you that most are not as stupid as the aforementioned. The criminal act is dumb and the excuses they come up with may be ridiculous once caught but as a whole these are not dumb people. In fact many are downright clever and the various methods they devise to steal are incredible. Thieves also go to great lengths to avoid being caught and that includes avoiding theft of merchandise they know is tagged or labeled with anti-shoplifting devices. Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. (LPSI) not only has the Sensormatic security systems and tags to protect against theft they offer other tools that can reduce your store shortage as a result of theft. Newsletters, blogs, videos, social media, theft investigators, risk assessment and training opportunities are all services offered by LPSI. They can even give you suggestions to deter those dumb criminals who may make the occasional stop at your store. With over 30 years of experience in retail theft prevention they are the company I would trust if I were a store owner seeking to improve my profit line.
Before concluding I will share two of my own personal dumb shoplifter stories only because I had several and I can’t choose my favorite. My first dumb shoplifter was an intoxicated golfer stealing underwear. Not necessarily dumb in itself except he had $300 cash in his wallet with which he could have purchased the underwear. The second has to take the cake for all dumb shoplifters. He was a man dressed as a woman stealing purses from our store. Nothing too unusual about that, the crook even ran from me and got away, except I grabbed his jacket and personal handbag. Once again, not too far outside the realm of what happens with a lot of shoplifters. What was dumb was this crook had his prison ID card in his purse…he was on probation! A warrant was signed and he was eventually picked up.
Anti-shoplifting devices such as Sensormatic labels are an effective means of preventing theft. There are rare instances you my get a visit from a dumb shoplifter who won’t think about what they are potentially getting themselves into if they choose to try to steal. Get great advice from a visit to LPSI website to learn how to stop shoplifting before these clods create a bit of chaos in your business.
Get more information on how to stop shoplifting, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 today.
When you stop shoplifting and catch thieves you hear a lot of bizarre excuses for why a suspect tried to commit the crime. I think I just came across the strangest or oddest excuse I have heard yet. In a news report on whdh.com, September 12, 2018, by Frank O’Laughlin, “Police: Walmart shoplifters tried to steal clothes for upcoming court appearance”, a couple is reported to have been caught stealing clothing. The excuse they gave was that they needed the clothes for a court hearing she would be attending. Hmmm, I have a feeling she will be wearing basic orange when she makes that appearance. Sometimes you have to wonder what people are thinking. These two would-be shoplifters weren’t too bright but they aren’t the only ones to do something stupid. Take a look at these dumb shoplifters:
• Posted in mirror.com.uk, 1 Oct 15, by Martin Frick, “Stupid shoplifter caught after complaining to police about victim’s ‘wanted poster’ featuring the thief’s face”. The gist of this story is that the shoplifter complained to police that the owner of the store put his picture on a poster from a still camera image and even blacked used Photoshop to place lines over his face. The picture made it to Facebook. The shoplifter complained to police because he stated his boss fired him from his job after seeing the post.
• From wthr.com, “WATCH: Clueless shoplifting suspects run from police and right into jail”, by WTHR.com Staff, Feb 27, 2018. “Police in Peoria, Arizona were on their way to a call of a suspicious circumstance.” Police saw the suspect’s car at a gas station and the couple saw the police and ran. “Surveillance cameras caught them running along the building before jumping a fence to break into the jail!” Oh, I forgot to mention the report stated the couple had run right to the doors which were directly under a big sign that indicated what the building was.
I have no idea if the stores were using anti-shoplifting systems but I am not convinced that even if they had it would have been enough to stop shoplifting by these kooky crooks.
Now I want to be honest with you most shoplifters aren’t this dumb. I have been involved in efforts to stop shoplifting for many years. I have dealt with the professional shoplifters, the impulse shoplifters and yes, even the dumb shoplifters. I will tell you that most are not as stupid as the aforementioned. The criminal act is dumb and the excuses they come up with may be ridiculous once caught but as a whole these are not dumb people. In fact many are downright clever and the various methods they devise to steal are incredible. Thieves also go to great lengths to avoid being caught and that includes avoiding theft of merchandise they know is tagged or labeled with anti-shoplifting devices. Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. (LPSI) not only has the Sensormatic security systems and tags to protect against theft they offer other tools that can reduce your store shortage as a result of theft. Newsletters, blogs, videos, social media, theft investigators, risk assessment and training opportunities are all services offered by LPSI. They can even give you suggestions to deter those dumb criminals who may make the occasional stop at your store. With over 30 years of experience in retail theft prevention they are the company I would trust if I were a store owner seeking to improve my profit line.
Before concluding I will share two of my own personal dumb shoplifter stories only because I had several and I can’t choose my favorite. My first dumb shoplifter was an intoxicated golfer stealing underwear. Not necessarily dumb in itself except he had $300 cash in his wallet with which he could have purchased the underwear. The second has to take the cake for all dumb shoplifters. He was a man dressed as a woman stealing purses from our store. Nothing too unusual about that, the crook even ran from me and got away, except I grabbed his jacket and personal handbag. Once again, not too far outside the realm of what happens with a lot of shoplifters. What was dumb was this crook had his prison ID card in his purse…he was on probation! A warrant was signed and he was eventually picked up.
Anti-shoplifting devices such as Sensormatic labels are an effective means of preventing theft. There are rare instances you my get a visit from a dumb shoplifter who won’t think about what they are potentially getting themselves into if they choose to try to steal. Get great advice from a visit to LPSI website to learn how to stop shoplifting before these clods create a bit of chaos in your business.
Get more information on how to stop shoplifting, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 today.
Sensormatic Security Tags-4 WC Blog 703
Stop Shoplifting -3
Risky Business: Trying To Stop Shoplifting Can Be Dangerous!
Recently I read an article about a shooting during an attempt to stop shoplifting and afterwards wanted to ask why the Loss Prevention Associates continued with the apprehension. The story was posted in Loss Prevention Media Insider on Oct. 29, 2018, from the source ABC7 EYEWITNESS NEWS. According to the post a man and woman entered the grocery store with a 6-month old in a baby carrier. They reportedly put merchandise in the carrier and tried to exit. It was noted that L.P. personnel attempted to stop the suspects and the man pulled a gun and fired at them. I want to pause right here. I have been in Loss Prevention in stores for over 17 years. I have been threatened with a knife more than once. I have had one shoplifter lift his shirt and show me the butt of a gun in his waistband. He threatened to shoot if I tried to stop him. In those situations where I was threatened and a weapon was presented I backed off. I take no issue with stopping and apprehending shoplifters. In fact I think it is foolish to not prosecute them but that is another story. I also believe store owners minimize the risk of such incidents from ever happening when they use Sensormatic security tags on merchandise. I will finish my thoughts on this incident in a minute or two. But it is important to talk about the value of retail anti-theft devices in deterring the criminal activity in the first place.
I am a firm advocate of the use of Sensormatic security tags not only for the reduction of losses as stores use them to stop shoplifting. I am of the belief that retail anti-theft devices decrease the risk of violent criminal activity. I look at it from the perspective of someone who has had physical altercations with many shoplifters who were trying to steal merchandise that they did not think was tagged. After finally subduing a suspect and getting them to a point where they would talk to me rationally I would hear such things as, “I didn’t think there was security in the store” or “I didn’t think the cameras were real”. I also heard the excuse, “I didn’t see any security tags on it.” Excuses are just that, excuses but the fact remains if this is the way shoplifters think then it is important to ensure they know a store is using (hopefully) a variety of theft prevention measures. When criminals know that a store is equipped with security measures they tend to look for easier targets. This includes the dangerous segment of shoplifters who may be armed. While they may be more aggressive if confronted they aren’t actively looking for the police to be called due to their activity and try to avoid detection. A perfect example is the couple in the story above as they used an infant carrier to try to conceal their theft activity. Sensormatic security tags and other deterrent tools can help redirect these people to other stores, especially if signage indicates that the store uses theft prevention devices.
Getting back to the story I want to be clear I do not have all of the details and I did try to find several sources of information. I don’t know if the shoplifter was stopped and pulled out the gun immediately firing a shot or if he brandished the weapon and the L.P. staff chose to try to disarm him and a shot discharged. I do know that a baby and bystanders were at risk and certainly the L.P. Associates were endangered. If the assailant pulled his gun and immediately shot at the Associates I can understand if the first response they had was to try to disarm him to protect themselves from harm. When stopping a shoplifter training generally dictates keeping an arms-length distance from the suspect. It gives space to protect against a punch but remain close enough to prevent the suspect from running. If this was the scenario, the Associates would not have had enough distance to disengage if the suspect was shooting. They may have taken the only action available. If the suspect only showed the weapon and they chose to wrestle it away I would condemn that action. If a store chooses to stop shoplifting by apprehending and prosecuting shoplifters rule one must be safety and that includes disengaging when it becomes dangerous and call authorities.
Store owners you may decide you want to stop shoplifters. Before you make this decision get the proper training. Contact Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. and find out about the training programs they offer. They also consult on the benefits of using Sensormatic security tags to deter shoplifting and violent activity. Remember: Safety First, in all you do!
Need information on Sensormatic security tags? Give us a call at 1.770.426.0547 now.
Recently I read an article about a shooting during an attempt to stop shoplifting and afterwards wanted to ask why the Loss Prevention Associates continued with the apprehension. The story was posted in Loss Prevention Media Insider on Oct. 29, 2018, from the source ABC7 EYEWITNESS NEWS. According to the post a man and woman entered the grocery store with a 6-month old in a baby carrier. They reportedly put merchandise in the carrier and tried to exit. It was noted that L.P. personnel attempted to stop the suspects and the man pulled a gun and fired at them. I want to pause right here. I have been in Loss Prevention in stores for over 17 years. I have been threatened with a knife more than once. I have had one shoplifter lift his shirt and show me the butt of a gun in his waistband. He threatened to shoot if I tried to stop him. In those situations where I was threatened and a weapon was presented I backed off. I take no issue with stopping and apprehending shoplifters. In fact I think it is foolish to not prosecute them but that is another story. I also believe store owners minimize the risk of such incidents from ever happening when they use Sensormatic security tags on merchandise. I will finish my thoughts on this incident in a minute or two. But it is important to talk about the value of retail anti-theft devices in deterring the criminal activity in the first place.
I am a firm advocate of the use of Sensormatic security tags not only for the reduction of losses as stores use them to stop shoplifting. I am of the belief that retail anti-theft devices decrease the risk of violent criminal activity. I look at it from the perspective of someone who has had physical altercations with many shoplifters who were trying to steal merchandise that they did not think was tagged. After finally subduing a suspect and getting them to a point where they would talk to me rationally I would hear such things as, “I didn’t think there was security in the store” or “I didn’t think the cameras were real”. I also heard the excuse, “I didn’t see any security tags on it.” Excuses are just that, excuses but the fact remains if this is the way shoplifters think then it is important to ensure they know a store is using (hopefully) a variety of theft prevention measures. When criminals know that a store is equipped with security measures they tend to look for easier targets. This includes the dangerous segment of shoplifters who may be armed. While they may be more aggressive if confronted they aren’t actively looking for the police to be called due to their activity and try to avoid detection. A perfect example is the couple in the story above as they used an infant carrier to try to conceal their theft activity. Sensormatic security tags and other deterrent tools can help redirect these people to other stores, especially if signage indicates that the store uses theft prevention devices.
Getting back to the story I want to be clear I do not have all of the details and I did try to find several sources of information. I don’t know if the shoplifter was stopped and pulled out the gun immediately firing a shot or if he brandished the weapon and the L.P. staff chose to try to disarm him and a shot discharged. I do know that a baby and bystanders were at risk and certainly the L.P. Associates were endangered. If the assailant pulled his gun and immediately shot at the Associates I can understand if the first response they had was to try to disarm him to protect themselves from harm. When stopping a shoplifter training generally dictates keeping an arms-length distance from the suspect. It gives space to protect against a punch but remain close enough to prevent the suspect from running. If this was the scenario, the Associates would not have had enough distance to disengage if the suspect was shooting. They may have taken the only action available. If the suspect only showed the weapon and they chose to wrestle it away I would condemn that action. If a store chooses to stop shoplifting by apprehending and prosecuting shoplifters rule one must be safety and that includes disengaging when it becomes dangerous and call authorities.
Store owners you may decide you want to stop shoplifters. Before you make this decision get the proper training. Contact Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. and find out about the training programs they offer. They also consult on the benefits of using Sensormatic security tags to deter shoplifting and violent activity. Remember: Safety First, in all you do!
Need information on Sensormatic security tags? Give us a call at 1.770.426.0547 now.
Electronic Article Surveillance – 3 WC Blog 701
Stop Shoplifting -3
“Safer” Ways To Stop Shoplifting
As someone who has been involved in retail loss prevention as an associate and a manager I have been using electronic article surveillance products for better than 28 years. I have used different styles of tags and labels over the course of my career. One problem I have found with tagging of merchandise is some pegged items can present challenges. Lower price point products may be easy to protect with a soft label. Slap it on, don’t cover any critical information such as a warning label and you are good to go. For other things you want more protection but wraps don’t work well to stop shoplifting. There may be a long cardboard peg hook tab that only folds over and prevents a wrap from being properly tightened down. When this happens the wrap can be slipped off of the merchandise and makes it an easier target for thieves. So are there any solutions? You could lock up those expensive items in a locking display case that’s a pretty safe alternative. That strategy does have problems and the biggest is inconvenience. It is inconvenient to your customers, to your staff and can result in lost sales. There is a better alternative and that is the use of Sensormatic Flexible Safers to protect these items.
Safers sound secure and they should since they are designed by one of the leaders in retail anti-theft technology. Made of layers of strong, lightweight plastics laminated together and possessing electronic article surveillance technology these anti-theft devices provide powerful deterrence to criminal activity. If the item you want to protect is small they give size to it. Crooks like to take things that are small and have some value. They look for items that can be resold, traded for drugs or fraudulently returned and make some money for their effort. As an example, a thief isn’t going to steal a $2 box of Crayola colored pencils from your store if they can steal a $20 box of Prisma colored pencils. Both are peg hook items and I have even tried to place a security wrap on a metal box of Prisma pencils. It is not easy and to be honest the Safer would be a more secure alternative since the wrap has to be worked around the peg hook tab. The safer allows the item to be placed inside the device and the safer is secured. Patrons can pick up the merchandise, look at the item, read about the product but if they try to walk out with it the Safer sets off the Sensormatic electronic alarm system near the front doors. The safer and the towers are often enough to stop shoplifting but when that occasional kleptomaniac decides to try to sneak something out anyways the alarm system sounds. Employees respond to alarms at the doors and recover merchandise and prevent the loss to the store.
The question then is if the shoplifter is deterred by the Safer won’t they try to steal those $2 Crayola pencils as an alternative? That is a very real possibility if you don’t take the time to protect all of your merchandise. If I was giving advice to a store owner I would suggest that the cheaper merchandise be tagged with a Sensormatic electronic article surveillance label. Use Flexible Safers and hard tags on your higher price point items. I don’t have the ability to address every type of retailer and their needs in this article. There are so many different types of retailers out there that each should have specialized assistance to get sound advice for their particular store. Based on my experience as a Loss Prevention Manager I would recommend Loss prevention Systems, Inc. as a resource with the trained staff that can answer questions for your store.
So back to my original point, some items are just plain ol’ ornery when it comes to protecting them, especially pegged goods. You don’t want to lock them up because your team is going to constantly make trips to the stockroom or the customers will just get irritated when they can’t get help to get the merchandise and they will leave. The price of the item may be a cause for concern to you that a security label is not sufficient to dissuade a crook. The Flexible Safer is the solution for you. You keep your merchandise available to your honest customers while at the same time you stop shoplifting. It’s a win-win solution for everyone but the bad guy.
Don’t allow shoplifters to frustrate the way you display merchandise. Also don’t let their actions create hassles for your employees or your customers. Use Flexible Safers and put out all the pegged items you want to drive sales.
Electronic Article Surveillance is important and we can help you with it. Call 1.770.426.0547 and let’s talk.
As someone who has been involved in retail loss prevention as an associate and a manager I have been using electronic article surveillance products for better than 28 years. I have used different styles of tags and labels over the course of my career. One problem I have found with tagging of merchandise is some pegged items can present challenges. Lower price point products may be easy to protect with a soft label. Slap it on, don’t cover any critical information such as a warning label and you are good to go. For other things you want more protection but wraps don’t work well to stop shoplifting. There may be a long cardboard peg hook tab that only folds over and prevents a wrap from being properly tightened down. When this happens the wrap can be slipped off of the merchandise and makes it an easier target for thieves. So are there any solutions? You could lock up those expensive items in a locking display case that’s a pretty safe alternative. That strategy does have problems and the biggest is inconvenience. It is inconvenient to your customers, to your staff and can result in lost sales. There is a better alternative and that is the use of Sensormatic Flexible Safers to protect these items.
Safers sound secure and they should since they are designed by one of the leaders in retail anti-theft technology. Made of layers of strong, lightweight plastics laminated together and possessing electronic article surveillance technology these anti-theft devices provide powerful deterrence to criminal activity. If the item you want to protect is small they give size to it. Crooks like to take things that are small and have some value. They look for items that can be resold, traded for drugs or fraudulently returned and make some money for their effort. As an example, a thief isn’t going to steal a $2 box of Crayola colored pencils from your store if they can steal a $20 box of Prisma colored pencils. Both are peg hook items and I have even tried to place a security wrap on a metal box of Prisma pencils. It is not easy and to be honest the Safer would be a more secure alternative since the wrap has to be worked around the peg hook tab. The safer allows the item to be placed inside the device and the safer is secured. Patrons can pick up the merchandise, look at the item, read about the product but if they try to walk out with it the Safer sets off the Sensormatic electronic alarm system near the front doors. The safer and the towers are often enough to stop shoplifting but when that occasional kleptomaniac decides to try to sneak something out anyways the alarm system sounds. Employees respond to alarms at the doors and recover merchandise and prevent the loss to the store.
The question then is if the shoplifter is deterred by the Safer won’t they try to steal those $2 Crayola pencils as an alternative? That is a very real possibility if you don’t take the time to protect all of your merchandise. If I was giving advice to a store owner I would suggest that the cheaper merchandise be tagged with a Sensormatic electronic article surveillance label. Use Flexible Safers and hard tags on your higher price point items. I don’t have the ability to address every type of retailer and their needs in this article. There are so many different types of retailers out there that each should have specialized assistance to get sound advice for their particular store. Based on my experience as a Loss Prevention Manager I would recommend Loss prevention Systems, Inc. as a resource with the trained staff that can answer questions for your store.
So back to my original point, some items are just plain ol’ ornery when it comes to protecting them, especially pegged goods. You don’t want to lock them up because your team is going to constantly make trips to the stockroom or the customers will just get irritated when they can’t get help to get the merchandise and they will leave. The price of the item may be a cause for concern to you that a security label is not sufficient to dissuade a crook. The Flexible Safer is the solution for you. You keep your merchandise available to your honest customers while at the same time you stop shoplifting. It’s a win-win solution for everyone but the bad guy.
Don’t allow shoplifters to frustrate the way you display merchandise. Also don’t let their actions create hassles for your employees or your customers. Use Flexible Safers and put out all the pegged items you want to drive sales.
Electronic Article Surveillance is important and we can help you with it. Call 1.770.426.0547 and let’s talk.
