WHY TAKE INVENTORY AT THE START OF THE YEAR?
Finally! The holiday madness is over and it’s time to sit back, count our money and relax. There’s nothing else daunting on the horizon. Oh, wait… I forgot about inventory time! Who had the bright idea to take inventory right behind the busiest time of year!? It may be a bit of a challenge, but inventory is important to every business and can play a leading role in helping you to stop shoplifting.
While not an official retail rule, generally speaking, lots of retailers take inventory in January/February each year. There’s a few reasons why this is a good idea, and understanding why this can save you a lot of heart ache. See inventory time as a chance to hit the “reset” button on your stock and a chance to fix any big issues that may have gone un-noticed throughout the year.
Why now?
It may seem like we could give ourselves some time to catch our breath, right? Taking inventory actually makes sense right now. You probably have a little extra help in the store thanks to your holiday temps. Those extra sets of hands can really make a difference when you’re trying to count everything in the store.
Your store is at its lowest stock position.
I was out shopping with my wife and she made a comment about how “empty” the store we were in looked. It was week or two after Christmas and I remarked that they must have had a good season. Why count in the spring, when you can put your hands on less product and still get the job done?
Taxes and valuation
I’m not an accountant and I don’t have an in-depth knowledge of tax codes across the country. With that being said, most localities assess an inventory tax, with every company having to report at certain times of the year the inventory they have in the building, thus creating their tax burden on inventory. Obviously if you take your inventory right after the holiday, you have less on-hand, affecting your tax burden. Inventory, or more specifically, the cost of goods sold, is one indicator of overall business health. Taking inventory allows you to determine this number. This can be used against any business loans. This may not be the case everywhere, so I would always consult with your CPA regarding inventory tax and any financial decisions.
Employee theft (and external theft too!)
Another great advantage of taking inventory this time of year is to identify any patterns of employee theft that may have occurred during your busiest time of the year. Employee theft cases usually peak around November and December. Waiting too long before noticing may hinder your chances of recovering any loss money. Think about it. You take inventory in mid-January. You notice that a shipment of electronics worth $10,000 went missing in December. You find the manifest, run the security cameras and find a warehouse worker bring the shipment to his car. Chances of getting paid back are pretty high. Same situation, but you take inventory in July, for example. Shipping manifests may have gotten purged and your CCTV doesn’t hold recordings for that long. The warehouse worker goes undetected and steals even more from you. Pretty obvious, right? The same holds true for your external theft problems. Taking inventory now let’s you identify your patterns of loss, and ultimately let you better react to those patters, which will help stop shoplifting.
While it may seem daunting to start the inventory process so soon after such a busy time, trust me when I tell you that it’s absolutely for the best. Get it done now, while you’re light on product, heavy on help and before all your spring shipments start hitting the docks. You’ll clean up the holiday inventory, help stop shoplifting by identifying any patterns of theft/fraud, and clean your on hand counts to ensure you’re in the absolute best stock position. Happy counting!
For more information about Employee Theft contact us or call 1.770.426.0547.
Finally! The holiday madness is over and it’s time to sit back, count our money and relax. There’s nothing else daunting on the horizon. Oh, wait… I forgot about inventory time! Who had the bright idea to take inventory right behind the busiest time of year!? It may be a bit of a challenge, but inventory is important to every business and can play a leading role in helping you to stop shoplifting.
While not an official retail rule, generally speaking, lots of retailers take inventory in January/February each year. There’s a few reasons why this is a good idea, and understanding why this can save you a lot of heart ache. See inventory time as a chance to hit the “reset” button on your stock and a chance to fix any big issues that may have gone un-noticed throughout the year.
Why now?
It may seem like we could give ourselves some time to catch our breath, right? Taking inventory actually makes sense right now. You probably have a little extra help in the store thanks to your holiday temps. Those extra sets of hands can really make a difference when you’re trying to count everything in the store.
Your store is at its lowest stock position
I was out shopping with my wife and she made a comment about how “empty” the store we were in looked. It was week or two after Christmas and I remarked that they must have had a good season. Why count in the spring, when you can put your hands on less product and still get the job done?
Taxes and valuation
I’m not an accountant and I don’t have an in-depth knowledge of tax codes across the country. With that being said, most localities assess an inventory tax, with every company having to report at certain times of the year the inventory they have in the building, thus creating their tax burden on inventory. Obviously if you take your inventory right after the holiday, you have less on-hand, affecting your tax burden. Inventory, or more specifically, the cost of goods sold, is one indicator of overall business health. Taking inventory allows you to determine this number. This can be used against any business loans. This may not be the case everywhere, so I would always consult with your CPA regarding inventory tax and any financial decisions.
Employee theft (and external theft too!)
Another great advantage of taking inventory this time of year is to identify any patterns of employee theft that may have occurred during your busiest time of the year. Employee theft cases usually peak around November and December. Waiting too long before noticing may hinder your chances of recovering any loss money. Think about it. You take inventory in mid-January. You notice that a shipment of electronics worth $10,000 went missing in December. You find the manifest, run the security cameras and find a warehouse worker bring the shipment to his car. Chances of getting paid back are pretty high. Same situation, but you take inventory in July, for example. Shipping manifests may have gotten purged and your CCTV doesn’t hold recordings for that long. The warehouse worker goes undetected and steals even more from you. Pretty obvious, right? The same holds true for your external theft problems. Taking inventory now let’s you identify your patterns of loss, and ultimately let you better react to those patters, which will help stop shoplifting.
While it may seem daunting to start the inventory process so soon after such a busy time, trust me when I tell you that it’s absolutely for the best. Get it done now, while you’re light on product, heavy on help and before all your spring shipments start hitting the docks. You’ll clean up the holiday inventory, help stop shoplifting by identifying any patterns of theft/fraud, and clean your on hand counts to ensure you’re in the absolute best stock position. Happy counting!
For more information about Employee Theft, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547.
AA blog 11
Checkpoint Labels-5
Stop Shoplifting: 3
How to Prevent Theft While Improving Customer Satisfaction By Using Checkpoint Labels
As a police officer for over 15 years I have dealt with my share of shoplifters, many of which will go to great lengths to steal merchandise. Obviously dressing rooms are used quite frequently to hide and conceal merchandise, while others are blatant enough to just fill a cart and walk out with their new items. I actually responded to a shoplifting, in which an older man opened a container of golf tees, removed about ten of them, and replaced the package leaving the store with just the amount he needed to play a round of golf that day. I have also investigated more savvy criminals, such as the delivery driver who would deliver large quantities of liquor and beer to the store. Inventory numbers were not matching up, so I was called in to investigate a possible theft. It was determined that he was delivering the product into a store room, removing several bottles of liquor from each of the boxes, and returning to his truck with his loot. I managed to catch him in the act of removing property from the store and he was prosecuted and probably lost his job. If someone really wants to take something from your store, they will do it, it is inevitable. Unfortunately we don’t always have loss prevention or police readily available to nab these guys or catch them in the act, which is why it is imperative for retailers to take matters into their own hands to stop shoplifting and reduce their risk. One way a retailer can do that is by using Checkpoint labels to help monitor their product without the use of extensive loss prevention support and manning. This will reduce overhead, increase profit, and ensure you have the inventory available for your customers.
Checkpoint labels provide several protections to both the manufacturer and the retailer, and offer several different methods, in order to track and protect your property. They provide the ability to add labels to merchandise at the manufacturing level, so that they are affixed to the product prior to them arriving at your store. This reduces the time needed to affix tags at the store level, and allows for better accountability from beginning to end. Checkpoint labels come in various styles, colors and designs and allow for a smaller, less obvious tagging solution. New innovations even allow the integration of EAS into brand labeling, which makes it very unobtrusive and undetectable to those who are familiar with tagging products. A small detachable tag can be added to the merchandise, which allows for quick removal at the time of sale. The EAS system can stop shoplifting by notifying a retailer when merchandise is taken out of the store. These soft labels can be easily and quickly deactivated, at the time of checkout, to allow for a smooth transaction and good customer service experience.
I don’t know about you, but as a female, one of my biggest pet peeves are those large hard tags that are added to the clothes. Sometimes associates don’t place those tags in a manner that allows for a good fit when trying on the item. I have even had to ask them to remove it, just so I could get the pants on, because of where they attached it. This can be very frustrating for the honest consumer who wants to buy your products. This can result in a negative experience, which causes them to shop with your competitor. These new Checkpoint labels provide alternative options for manufacturers and retailers alike. Soft labels are small and provide a comfortable experience for your customer, while still providing the level of protection you need to stop shoplifting. This provides a quality shopping experience, while protecting your assets at a reasonable cost.
Checkpoint labels are important and we can help you with it. Call 1.770.426.0547 and let’s talk.
As a police officer for over 15 years I have dealt with my share of shoplifters, many of which will go to great lengths to steal merchandise. Obviously dressing rooms are used quite frequently to hide and conceal merchandise, while others are blatant enough to just fill a cart and walk out with their new items. I actually responded to a shoplifting, in which an older man opened a container of golf tees, removed about ten of them, and replaced the package leaving the store with just the amount he needed to play a round of golf that day. I have also investigated more savvy criminals, such as the delivery driver who would deliver large quantities of liquor and beer to the store. Inventory numbers were not matching up, so I was called in to investigate a possible theft. It was determined that he was delivering the product into a store room, removing several bottles of liquor from each of the boxes, and returning to his truck with his loot. I managed to catch him in the act of removing property from the store and he was prosecuted and probably lost his job. If someone really wants to take something from your store, they will do it, it is inevitable. Unfortunately we don’t always have loss prevention or police readily available to nab these guys or catch them in the act, which is why it is imperative for retailers to take matters into their own hands to stop shoplifting and reduce their risk. One way a retailer can do that is by using Checkpoint labels to help monitor their product without the use of extensive loss prevention support and manning. This will reduce overhead, increase profit, and ensure you have the inventory available for your customers.
Checkpoint labels provide several protections to both the manufacturer and the retailer, and offer several different methods, in order to track and protect your property. They provide the ability to add labels to merchandise at the manufacturing level, so that they are affixed to the product prior to them arriving at your store. This reduces the time needed to affix tags at the store level, and allows for better accountability from beginning to end. Checkpoint labels come in various styles, colors and designs and allow for a smaller, less obvious tagging solution. New innovations even allow the integration of EAS into brand labeling, which makes it very unobtrusive and undetectable to those who are familiar with tagging products. A small detachable tag can be added to the merchandise, which allows for quick removal at the time of sale. The EAS system can stop shoplifting by notifying a retailer when merchandise is taken out of the store. These soft labels can be easily and quickly deactivated, at the time of checkout, to allow for a smooth transaction and good customer service experience.
I don’t know about you, but as a female, one of my biggest pet peeves are those large hard tags that are added to the clothes. Sometimes associates don’t place those tags in a manner that allows for a good fit when trying on the item. I have even had to ask them to remove it, just so I could get the pants on, because of where they attached it. This can be very frustrating for the honest consumer who wants to buy your products. This can result in a negative experience, which causes them to shop with your competitor. These new Checkpoint labels provide alternative options for manufacturers and retailers alike. Soft labels are small and provide a comfortable experience for your customer, while still providing the level of protection you need to stop shoplifting. This provides a quality shopping experience, while protecting your assets at a reasonable cost.
Checkpoint labels are important and we can help you with it. Call 1.770.426.0547 and let’s talk.
Checkpoint Systems-3 WC Blog 264
Checkpoint Security System-5
Checkpoint Tags-5
Stop Shoplifting-3
Checkpoint Security Systems Are Key To Your Inventory Control: Part 2
In Part 1 of this series on Inventory Control, I discussed my definition of what Inventory Control is and how it can be confused with the different strategies used by stores to keep control over inventory. I examined how the use of Checkpoint Tags are a strategy to exert control as soon as merchandise is received by a store and can stop shoplifting and deter internal and vendor theft. In Part 2 I will be going over other parts of a Checkpoint Security System that play a role in retail theft prevention and inventory control.
A Checkpoint Security System includes the Checkpoint Tags and labels as I mentioned, but aside from deterrence without the other components of the system, Checkpoint Tags are not extremely helpful. A primary component of Checkpoint Systems is the electronic article surveillance (EAS) antennas. Antennas are usually placed near the main entry and exit points of a store in order to detect merchandise that is protected with Checkpoint Tags that have not been deactivated or removed at a point of sale. The tags and labels are structured so that they transmit a specific radio frequency. When the antennas detect this radio frequency an alarm built into the antennas activates and warns staff that merchandise not yet paid for is leaving the store. This means an item has a Checkpoint Tag that has not been detuned at the register or a hard tag that has not been removed by a cashier. When employees are alerted by the alarm they respond to the doors to conduct a receipt check and determine the cause for the activation. Usually the alarm will result in recovered merchandise as a result of the check, such as a customer carrying out merchandise they “forgot” they had with them. An alarm may stop shoplifting when a criminal panics and drops the goods they were attempting to steal, a result I frequently witnessed as a Loss Prevention Manager.
When a Checkpoint Security System is installed, there are a variety of EAS antennas that a store owner can choose from to stop shoplifting, internal theft and vendor theft. Checkpoint systems include antennas that can be installed in the floor during store construction, antennas that can help showcase merchandise with advertising panels (the Evolve iRange P30) and smaller antennas that take up minimal space at doorways, like the Classic N10 antenna. No matter which type of antenna is chosen, the inventory control strategy is making sure merchandise is accounted for through the point of sales or proper execution of vendor return processes or vendor credit/destroy processes.
If a store owner wants to be serious about inventory control and theft prevention, it would be wise to consider putting Checkpoint Security System antennas in other areas and not limited to just the front doors. EAS antennas can be placed at employee entrances and vendor/receiving doors. Antennas located at front doors stop shoplifting and may deter some employee theft and vendor theft, but if there are alternate exits employees and vendors may take advantage of those doors to avoid the detection of Checkpoint tags and labels. In rare instances I have observed Checkpoint Systems antennas located at a hallway entrance leading to store restrooms. I applaud this step. I can recall several employee theft investigations I conducted that involved the employee taking concealed merchandise into a restroom and later I would find the empty packaging. Again, I stress that inventory control is control over the movement of product in the building. Well placed antennas can control the areas people are able to carry merchandise into.
Make inventory control a reality by implementing effective merchandise protection strategies that limit the ability of customer, employees or vendors to steal. Control what happens within your building by installing a Checkpoint Security System.
Get more information on Checkpoint Security Systems, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 today.
In Part 1 of this series on Inventory Control, I discussed my definition of what Inventory Control is and how it can be confused with the different strategies used by stores to keep control over inventory. I examined how the use of Checkpoint Tags are a strategy to exert control as soon as merchandise is received by a store and can stop shoplifting and deter internal and vendor theft. In Part 2 I will be going over other parts of a Checkpoint Security System that play a role in retail theft prevention and inventory control.
A Checkpoint Security System includes the Checkpoint Tags and labels as I mentioned, but aside from deterrence without the other components of the system, Checkpoint Tags are not extremely helpful. A primary component of Checkpoint Systems is the electronic article surveillance (EAS) antennas. Antennas are usually placed near the main entry and exit points of a store in order to detect merchandise that is protected with Checkpoint Tags that have not been deactivated or removed at a point of sale. The tags and labels are structured so that they transmit a specific radio frequency. When the antennas detect this radio frequency an alarm built into the antennas activates and warns staff that merchandise not yet paid for is leaving the store. This means an item has a Checkpoint Tag that has not been detuned at the register or a hard tag that has not been removed by a cashier. When employees are alerted by the alarm they respond to the doors to conduct a receipt check and determine the cause for the activation. Usually the alarm will result in recovered merchandise as a result of the check, such as a customer carrying out merchandise they “forgot” they had with them. An alarm may stop shoplifting when a criminal panics and drops the goods they were attempting to steal, a result I frequently witnessed as a Loss Prevention Manager.
When a Checkpoint Security System is installed, there are a variety of EAS antennas that a store owner can choose from to stop shoplifting, internal theft and vendor theft. Checkpoint systems include antennas that can be installed in the floor during store construction, antennas that can help showcase merchandise with advertising panels (the Evolve iRange P30) and smaller antennas that take up minimal space at doorways, like the Classic N10 antenna. No matter which type of antenna is chosen, the inventory control strategy is making sure merchandise is accounted for through the point of sales or proper execution of vendor return processes or vendor credit/destroy processes.
If a store owner wants to be serious about inventory control and theft prevention, it would be wise to consider putting Checkpoint Security System antennas in other areas and not limited to just the front doors. EAS antennas can be placed at employee entrances and vendor/receiving doors. Antennas located at front doors stop shoplifting and may deter some employee theft and vendor theft, but if there are alternate exits employees and vendors may take advantage of those doors to avoid the detection of Checkpoint tags and labels. In rare instances I have observed Checkpoint Systems antennas located at a hallway entrance leading to store restrooms. I applaud this step. I can recall several employee theft investigations I conducted that involved the employee taking concealed merchandise into a restroom and later I would find the empty packaging. Again, I stress that inventory control is control over the movement of product in the building. Well placed antennas can control the areas people are able to carry merchandise into.
Make inventory control a reality by implementing effective merchandise protection strategies that limit the ability of customer, employees or vendors to steal. Control what happens within your building by installing a Checkpoint Security System.
Get more information on Checkpoint Security Systems, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 today.
Checkpoint Security Tags- 4 WC Blog 225
Checkpoint Tags-4
Electronic Article Surveillance-5
Checkpoint hard tags-3
Stop shoplifting-3
Tips To Identify Potential Shoplifters And How The Use Of Checkpoint Tags And Customer Service Can Prevent Theft Part 2
In part 1 of this series I discussed the false notion some Loss Prevention people hold that somehow they can just look at a person and tell if they are a shoplifter. I contend that in the majority of the cases they may point to in order to prove their point; there were probably indicators in behavior or attire that actually initiated the case. In part 1 I reviewed a few of the signs of a shoplifter though it was neither all-encompassing nor universal since each shoplifter has their own quirks. I also pointed out that stores can deter a majority of shoplifters simply by using Checkpoint security tags and electronic article surveillance antennas to protect merchandise. In this part I am going to cover how store personnel who are not trained in Loss Prevention can respond to those signals as well as electronic article surveillance alarms, to stop shoplifting and keep merchandise in the store.
For the readers who may have missed part 1, here is a quick review of what Checkpoint security tags and electronic article surveillance antennas are and how they work together to stop shoplifting. Checkpoint tags come in two versions, a soft tag and Checkpoint hard tags. a soft tag which can be peeled from a roll and applied to a number of surfaces, including cardboard, plastic and shrink wrap. Checkpoint hard tags are two piece designs that are pinned through materials and secured together. These tags are versatile and can be attached to a wide range of products, including but not limited to clothing, shoes, purses, bedding, towels, and even pinned through clam shell packaging. Checkpoint tags are designed with radio frequency technology that is able to be picked up by Checkpoint antennas. The antennas are set up at entrances and exits in order to detect protected merchandise a thief may try to walk out of a store with. The point I made in my previous article was that the use of the antennas and Checkpoint security tags in a retail store are often enough to discourage most shoplifters from entering in the first place.
Even when Checkpoint tags and electronic article surveillance antennas are used, there are a few shoplifters who will try to steal anyways. I addressed the signs employees can look for in part 1, but it is just as important to know how to interact with a suspicious person and stop shoplifting discreetly.
Do:
• Offer assistance and if the person appears to be trying to remove a Checkpoint tag, offer to assist with the specific item they are holding. For example, “Can I answer any questions you may have about that shirt?” Mentioning the item can make a shoplifter nervous.
• Greet the customer and offer help. If they refuse your offer and are giving signs they are trying to steal, stand in the area and straighten merchandise. Shoplifters don’t want people hanging around them.
• If the customer has placed something in a purse or bag and you are certain of what it was, ask if you can help them with the item they had been holding. You may say something like, “That was a nice pair of shoes you were looking at, were you still interested in them?”
• Offer what I call aggressive customer service. Make small talk, ask who the person is buying for, or what is the event they are going to wear the item too. I have had people try to complain that I was pestering them, but they sound silly when they say they are being offered too much help. Kill them with kindness!
Don’t:
• Accuse someone of trying to steal. Depending on the jurisdiction, concealment may not be enough to say someone is shoplifting and that leads to other issues.
• When responding to an Electronic Article Surveillance Alarm, suggest that there may be something the person may have “forgotten” to pay for. By giving the person an out, they may be more likely to give the item back. You get the merchandise back and have established that your employees DO respond to alarms.
• Don’t try to physically detain someone. The culprit may have a weapon, or they may be violent. You can file a police report after they leave the store.
• Don’t chase. You endanger yourself and potentially other customers.
Using Checkpoint hard tags and soft tags will save you money by deterring or preventing most shoplifting. For the rare occasion when you have a determined thief, provide them with the best shopping experience they have ever had and customer service them to death.
Get more information on Checkpoint Tags. Contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 now.
In part 1 of this series I discussed the false notion some Loss Prevention people hold that somehow they can just look at a person and tell if they are a shoplifter. I contend that in the majority of the cases they may point to in order to prove their point; there were probably indicators in behavior or attire that actually initiated the case. In part 1 I reviewed a few of the signs of a shoplifter though it was neither all-encompassing nor universal since each shoplifter has their own quirks. I also pointed out that stores can deter a majority of shoplifters simply by using Checkpoint security tags and electronic article surveillance antennas to protect merchandise. In this part I am going to cover how store personnel who are not trained in Loss Prevention can respond to those signals as well as electronic article surveillance alarms, to stop shoplifting and keep merchandise in the store.
For the readers who may have missed part 1, here is a quick review of what Checkpoint security tags and electronic article surveillance antennas are and how they work together to stop shoplifting. Checkpoint tags come in two versions, a soft tag and Checkpoint hard tags. A soft tag which can be peeled from a roll and applied to a number of surfaces, including cardboard, plastic and shrink wrap. Checkpoint hard tags are two piece designs that are pinned through materials and secured together. These tags are versatile and can be attached to a wide range of products, including but not limited to clothing, shoes, purses, bedding, towels, and even pinned through clam shell packaging. Checkpoint tags are designed with radio frequency technology that is able to be picked up by Checkpoint antennas. The antennas are set up at entrances and exits in order to detect protected merchandise a thief may try to walk out of a store with. The point I made in my previous article was that the use of the antennas and Checkpoint security tags in a retail store are often enough to discourage most shoplifters from entering in the first place.
Even when Checkpoint tags and electronic article surveillance antennas are used, there are a few shoplifters who will try to steal anyways. I addressed the signs employees can look for in part 1, but it is just as important to know how to interact with a suspicious person and stop shoplifting discreetly.
Do:
• Offer assistance and if the person appears to be trying to remove a Checkpoint tag, offer to assist with the specific item they are holding. For example, “Can I answer any questions you may have about that shirt?” Mentioning the item can make a shoplifter nervous.
• Greet the customer and offer help. If they refuse your offer and are giving signs they are trying to steal, stand in the area and straighten merchandise. Shoplifters don’t want people hanging around them.
• If the customer has placed something in a purse or bag and you are certain of what it was, ask if you can help them with the item they had been holding. You may say something like, “That was a nice pair of shoes you were looking at, were you still interested in them?”
• Offer what I call aggressive customer service. Make small talk, ask who the person is buying for, or what is the event they are going to wear the item too. I have had people try to complain that I was pestering them, but they sound silly when they say they are being offered too much help. Kill them with kindness!
Don’t:
• Accuse someone of trying to steal. Depending on the jurisdiction, concealment may not be enough to say someone is shoplifting and that leads to other issues.
• When responding to an Electronic Article Surveillance Alarm, suggest that there may be something the person may have “forgotten” to pay for. By giving the person an out, they may be more likely to give the item back. You get the merchandise back and have established that your employees DO respond to alarms.
• Don’t try to physically detain someone. The culprit may have a weapon, or they may be violent. You can file a police report after they leave the store.
• Don’t chase. You endanger yourself and potentially other customers.
Using Checkpoint hard tags and soft tags will save you money by deterring or preventing most shoplifting. For the rare occasion when you have a determined thief, provide them with the best shopping experience they have ever had and customer service them to death.
Get more information on Checkpoint Tags, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 now.
Look, I’m not a salesman by any stretch of the imagination. I tried that once in my college years and my boss told me I couldn’t sell water to a camel in the desert. I suppose that’s why I majored in criminal justice… With that being said, you’ve got to see the benefit of a Checkpoint Security System. If you own, run or manager a retail store, you’re being impacted by theft. Don’t believe me? Go make a quick pass down a back aisle, or somewhere secluded in the store. I bet you find empty packages; and that’s just what you can physically see!
Retailers, for years have tried to stop shoplifting. That’s why Loss Prevention was created. If you let your losses go completely un-checked, then you wouldn’t be in business for very long. The fatal flaw in most retailer’s way of thinking is that there is some single solution, pie in the sky, magic wand waving, hocus pocus method that once in place, you’ll never have to worry about loss again. I hate to break it to you, but that’s simply not true. In fact, I wish I could invent that tool… I wouldn’t have to do this for a living J
What you need is a multi-faceted approach to stop shoplifting. The first step, is installing a Checkpoint security system. I know you’ve seen them in other retailers, they’re most identifiable by those white, or grey towers at the entrance and exit doors. You’ve probably even thought that they were just too expensive for your store, or maybe, just maybe, you thought you didn’t have a shoplifting problem. Once you install a Checkpoint security system, the possibilities are practically endless on what you can do to prevent shoplifting.
Having a problem with people stealing meat in your community grocery store? Well, you can’t identify when your beef re-animates unless you have a Checkpoint security system set up. Same holds true for all you small boutiques out there. What’s your current plan to identify a shoplifter when they exit your store with clothing they “forgot” to pay for? What about you, the local hardware store owner? Your mortgage and kid’s college is riding on a profitable year. How do you identify a shoplifter as they leave your store with a new power drill down their pants?
Bottom line here is your bottom line. If you’re OK with some shoplifting losses, here and there, then this isn’t meant for you. If you’ve grown tired of people coming into your store, stealing your merchandise and taking food off your table, then listen up. Thieves do not stop. They do not take holidays and they will also be a problem for anyone in the retail business. They are, in fact a lot like water; they take the path of least resistance. So if you don’t have a Checkpoint security system installed, then you are where the water flows through. Get smart about protecting your business. Install a tower and use some labels. A little (and I mean TINY) investment in this solution will pay for itself within months and the criminals will have to find a softer target!
For more information about, Checkpoint security systems, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547.
