retail traffic counting – 4 WC Blog 718
Customer Counting Device – 4
Score Big When You Use A Customer Counting Device – Part 1
As retailers we count money as the measure of our success but I believe often we overlook the importance of retail traffic counting as a measure of success (or missed opportunity). I will use one of my favorite analogies to demonstrate what I mean. I attended a Coastal Carolina Football game some time ago and the announcer heralded the attendance numbers for this game based on “ticket sales”. He didn’t say ticket sales but that was what he meant. I can make this conclusion because looking around the stadium there was absolutely no way the attendance matched the numbers he was giving us. Had his numbers been actual people in the stadium the stands would have been packed and would have added energy to the home team. Unfortunately things just did not match up which I believe does not help the morale of the team. That is simply my assumption but a safe one I think since we lost the game. Now I would like you to think about this in terms of your own store. Do you focus on your “sales” dollars but fail to see how many people are walking through your doors? Do you use a customer counting device in your business? The CEO of Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. Bill Bregar has been in the business of improving sales and decreasing shortage for stores for over 30 years. As a business owner himself and a former Director of Loss Prevention for several major retailers he has learned to look at numbers from a different perspective than many of us would. He recognized that sales represent only a portion of the overall retail picture. Shortage and customer traffic are two major factors that cannot be overlooked but often are due to a lack of information.
In order to follow through on his business commitment to helping retail businesses improve sales and profits Bill wanted to help store owners see that sales numbers are not providing a complete picture of store activity. He found that Sensormatic has a customer counting device that accurately tracks the number of people entering a store. The data gathered by the systems helps store managers see a bigger picture than just point of sale information. For example, let’s say you had a great sales day for your business with $10,000 in sales and 500 transactions. For this example we will assume that no customer returns took place on this day. This means on average each customer spent $20.00 in your store if you use your transaction total as your measure for success. Now the way Bill sees it you didn’t have 500 people in your store that day despite what your transaction tally says. You focus on retail traffic counting using a Sensormatic
Customer counting device and find out you had 800 people walk through your doors. Sure, some of those were children with an adult but some of those were people who walked in and walked out without making a purchase! Good Grief, what happened that those potential customers left empty handed? Was there a missed opportunity for another $6,000 in sales or even $3,000 assuming some of those were children or couples? Do you see that you have only been looking at a small piece of a bigger picture? Bill does and wants to help you change how you look at your business. That begins with the installation of a retail traffic counting system.
Retail owners that have a Sensormatic anti-theft system in place may already be half way there since a customer counting device can be added to many existing Sensormatic towers. If you don’t have a Sensormatic system don’t fret, Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. can help you with that as well as the door counter. In part 2 we will discuss why the anti-theft system is important to your store for more than just adding a people counter. As I said earlier, Bill wants to help stores improve profits through shortage reduction and increasing sales which go hand in hand. But if you want to find out more you will have to tune in for part 2 of this series to learn how you can score a touchdown in increased sales with a retail traffic counting system.
Need information on a customer counting device? Give us a call at 1.770.426.0547 now.
As retailers we count money as the measure of our success but I believe often we overlook the importance of retail traffic counting as a measure of success (or missed opportunity). I will use one of my favorite analogies to demonstrate what I mean. I attended a Coastal Carolina Football game some time ago and the announcer heralded the attendance numbers for this game based on “ticket sales”. He didn’t say ticket sales but that was what he meant. I can make this conclusion because looking around the stadium there was absolutely no way the attendance matched the numbers he was giving us. Had his numbers been actual people in the stadium the stands would have been packed and would have added energy to the home team. Unfortunately things just did not match up which I believe does not help the morale of the team. That is simply my assumption but a safe one I think since we lost the game. Now I would like you to think about this in terms of your own store. Do you focus on your “sales” dollars but fail to see how many people are walking through your doors? Do you use a customer counting device in your business? The CEO of Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. Bill Bregar has been in the business of improving sales and decreasing shortage for stores for over 30 years. As a business owner himself and a former Director of Loss Prevention for several major retailers he has learned to look at numbers from a different perspective than many of us would. He recognized that sales represent only a portion of the overall retail picture. Shortage and customer traffic are two major factors that cannot be overlooked but often are due to a lack of information.
In order to follow through on his business commitment to helping retail businesses improve sales and profits Bill wanted to help store owners see that sales numbers are not providing a complete picture of store activity. He found that Sensormatic has a customer counting device that accurately tracks the number of people entering a store. The data gathered by the systems helps store managers see a bigger picture than just point of sale information. For example, let’s say you had a great sales day for your business with $10,000 in sales and 500 transactions. For this example we will assume that no customer returns took place on this day. This means on average each customer spent $20.00 in your store if you use your transaction total as your measure for success. Now the way Bill sees it you didn’t have 500 people in your store that day despite what your transaction tally says. You focus on retail traffic counting using a Sensormatic
Customer counting device and find out you had 800 people walk through your doors. Sure, some of those were children with an adult but some of those were people who walked in and walked out without making a purchase! Good Grief, what happened that those potential customers left empty handed? Was there a missed opportunity for another $6,000 in sales or even $3,000 assuming some of those were children or couples? Do you see that you have only been looking at a small piece of a bigger picture? Bill does and wants to help you change how you look at your business. That begins with the installation of a retail traffic counting system.
Retail owners that have a Sensormatic anti-theft system in place may already be half way there since a customer counting device can be added to many existing Sensormatic towers. If you don’t have a Sensormatic system don’t fret, Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. can help you with that as well as the door counter. In part 2 we will discuss why the anti-theft system is important to your store for more than just adding a people counter. As I said earlier, Bill wants to help stores improve profits through shortage reduction and increasing sales which go hand in hand. But if you want to find out more you will have to tune in for part 2 of this series to learn how you can score a touchdown in increased sales with a retail traffic counting system.
Need information on a customer counting device? Give us a call at 1.770.426.0547 now.
POLICIES THAT HELP STOP EMPLOYEE THEFT AND SHOPLIFTING
If you want to Stop Shoplifting and other forms of theft, it’s important that you have policies in place to give your managers a starting point. Polices are also a great legal tool that can help you remain consistent when you discipline and terminate employees for not upholding company standards and expectations. While there are several areas of policy, let’s focus on the ones that can help you to reduce losses in your store.
Exit Inspection and Bag Check
I’ve worked in several big box retailers over the years and they all had a similar policy regarding bags and their employees. If you brought a bag or something similar (including purses), you were subject to an inspection when you left the store at the end of your shift. A simple look inside was common, but it went a long way to prevent Employee Theft.
Personal Items Must be Secured in a Locker
This is another one of those “no brainers.” If you bring a bag, lunch kit, or purse to work, make sure it’s secured in a locker, and not on your sales floor. Not only can an empty bag be a source of Employee Theft, but customers can also have access to your employee’s personal effects, so a policy such as this could really benefit their personal safety as well as helping you to prevent shrink.
Receipts Must Accompany all Employee Purchases
Discouraging Employee Theft can be as simple as a policy that requires your team to always place their receipt on their purchase, while still in the store (think snacks and drinks). There can never be a question as to whether an item was purchased or not if the receipt is clearly visible on the item.
Back Door Security
You can Stop Shoplifting and dishonest employees by having a stringent back door policy. Never allow employees unsupervised access to outer doors. A policy that states a manager must be present anytime the door is open can and will discourage product from walking out the back door.
Number of Employees in the Building
In order to keep your team members safe in case of an accident, as well as to Stop Shoplifting from your employees, have a policy that specifies the minimum number of employees that must be present at all times in order to enter the store. Generally, 3 is a good number and is common at most big-box stores that I’ve worked for. Having at least three people in the store at once, especially during the morning prior to store opening and in the evenings after store closing, can discourage an easy theft by employees.
For more information about employee theft contact us or call 1.770.426.0547.
If you want to Stop Shoplifting and other forms of theft, it’s important that you have policies in place to give your managers a starting point. Polices are also a great legal tool that can help you remain consistent when you discipline and terminate employees for not upholding company standards and expectations. While there are several areas of policy, let’s focus on the ones that can help you to reduce losses in your store.
Exit Inspection and Bag Check
I’ve worked in several big box retailers over the years and they all had a similar policy regarding bags and their employees. If you brought a bag or something similar (including purses), you were subject to an inspection when you left the store at the end of your shift. A simple look inside was common, but it went a long way to prevent Employee Theft.
Personal Items Must be Secured in a Locker
This is another one of those “no brainers.” If you bring a bag, lunch kit, or purse to work, make sure it’s secured in a locker, and not on your sales floor. Not only can an empty bag be a source of Employee Theft, but customers can also have access to your employee’s personal effects, so a policy such as this could really benefit their personal safety as well as helping you to prevent shrink.
Receipts Must Accompany all Employee Purchases
Discouraging Employee Theft can be as simple as a policy that requires your team to always place their receipt on their purchase, while still in the store (think snacks and drinks). There can never be a question as to whether an item was purchased or not if the receipt is clearly visible on the item.
Back Door Security
You can Stop Shoplifting and dishonest employees by having a stringent back door policy. Never allow employees unsupervised access to outer doors. A policy that states a manager must be present anytime the door is open can and will discourage product from walking out the back door.
Number of Employees in the Building
In order to keep your team members safe in case of an accident, as well as to Stop Shoplifting from your employees, have a policy that specifies the minimum number of employees that must be present at all times in order to enter the store. Generally, 3 is a good number and is common at most big-box stores that I’ve worked for. Having at least three people in the store at once, especially during the morning prior to store opening and in the evenings after store closing, can discourage an easy theft by employees.
For more information about employee theft, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547.
Stop Shoplifting In A Gift Shop, Is A Sensormatic System Necessary?
Why should you spend money on a Sensormatic system if you “only” have a gift shop? Because shoplifters steal, and they steal from anyone. They do not care what kind of retailer you are. The same loss ratio applies to gift stores as it does to, well, any retailer. The formula is simple. Let’s say you lose a $20 item at retail. And let’s suppose that your margin is 2%. You divide $20 by 2 percent and you have the real cost of that loss of $20 (20/.02 = $1000). Yes, to make up and breakeven, not make any profit, you have to sell an additional $1000 in merchandise. That is on top of your normal sales. No one can do that for very long and stay in business.
Typical Sensormatic systems have a Return On Investment (ROI) of about 5.5 months depending how well you follow the Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. program. You can never stop shoplifting altogether however, our program is more than just installing a Sensormatic system. We train you on how to stop shoplifting before they steal and we will do this on a regular basis for you as often as you and your staff reasonably need it.
So if we can train you to deter a significant amount of shoplifting why do you need the Sensormatic system? You and your staff cannot be everywhere all the time. Shoplifters look for opportunities or they will create them where you and your folks are distracted. Busy days with lots of customers on the sales floor at the same time does not leave a lot of time for the identification of a shoplifter or the type of customer service that is required to send them off to someone else.
That is where Sensormatic systems comes into play. In many cases shoplifters will see the active Sensormatic system and they will be deterred. But many are not. Properly secured merchandise will stop the shoplifter in their tracks. Your gift shop will benefit from the same commercial grade systems that the major retailers use.
“But, Sensormatic systems are expensive?” NO, they are not, in fact they are very affordable. Depending on you store’s layout, current level of loss and needs, you could see a ROI payback in a matter of months. This puts you back in control against the shoplifter. Not only will you have a state of the art system but the proper training to attack and keep the shoplifting losses to an acceptable level.
How fast can this all happen? In many cases we can have your system shipped and installed in a matter of a few weeks. Even during a holiday season. Our Sensormatic systems are installed by factory tech’s that do this every day. Sensormatic is a world leader with 80% of the top 200 retailers depending on Sensormatic with the exact same equipment Loss Prevention Systems offers you to stop shoplifting.
Loss Prevention Systems also has the expertise to make sure you get the right genuine Sensormatic hard tags and/or labels to address your particular needs. This is not one size fits all. Your store has a diverse offering of merchandise that requires different solutions. We will help you with that in smaller quantities of the labels and tags you need so that you do not have a back room full.
Loss Prevention Systems will even include a copy of the book “Protect Your Store!” the shoplifting prevention guide for medium to small retailers by Bill Bregar, our founder and CEO. We want you to succeed and be profitable. Because if you stop shoplifting you are winning, then we win too.
For more information about Sensormatic systems and to stop shoplifting Contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 and fix your shoplifting problem once and for all!
Why should you spend money on a Sensormatic system if you “only” have a gift shop? Because shoplifters steal, and they steal from anyone. They do not care what kind of retailer you are. The same loss ratio applies to gift stores as it does to, well, any retailer. The formula is simple. Let’s say you lose a $20 item at retail. And let’s suppose that your margin is 2%. You divide $20 by 2 percent and you have the real cost of that loss of $20 (20/.02 = $1000). Yes, to make up and breakeven, not make any profit, you have to sell an additional $1000 in merchandise. That is on top of your normal sales. No one can do that for very long and stay in business.
Typical Sensormatic systems have a Return On Investment (ROI) of about 5.5 months depending how well you follow the Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. program. You can never stop shoplifting altogether however, our program is more than just installing a Sensormatic system. We train you on how to stop shoplifting before they steal and we will do this on a regular basis for you as often as you and your staff reasonably need it.
So if we can train you to deter a significant amount of shoplifting why do you need the Sensormatic system? You and your staff cannot be everywhere all the time. Shoplifters look for opportunities or they will create them where you and your folks are distracted. Busy days with lots of customers on the sales floor at the same time does not leave a lot of time for the identification of a shoplifter or the type of customer service that is required to send them off to someone else.
That is where Sensormatic systems comes into play. In many cases shoplifters will see the active Sensormatic system and they will be deterred. But many are not. Properly secured merchandise will stop the shoplifter in their tracks. Your gift shop will benefit from the same commercial grade systems that the major retailers use.
“But, Sensormatic systems are expensive?” NO, they are not, in fact they are very affordable. Depending on you store’s layout, current level of loss and needs, you could see a ROI payback in a matter of months. This puts you back in control against the shoplifter. Not only will you have a state of the art system but the proper training to attack and keep the shoplifting losses to an acceptable level.
How fast can this all happen? In many cases we can have your system shipped and installed in a matter of a few weeks. Even during a holiday season. Our Sensormatic systems are installed by factory tech’s that do this every day. Sensormatic is a world leader with 80% of the top 200 retailers depending on Sensormatic with the exact same equipment Loss Prevention Systems offers you to stop shoplifting.
Loss Prevention Systems also has the expertise to make sure you get the right genuine Sensormatic hard tags and/or labels to address your particular needs. This is not one size fits all. Your store has a diverse offering of merchandise that requires different solutions. We will help you with that in smaller quantities of the labels and tags you need so that you do not have a back room full.
Loss Prevention Systems will even include a copy of the book “Protect Your Store!” the shoplifting prevention guide for medium to small retailers by Bill Bregar, our founder and CEO. We want you to succeed and be profitable. Because if you stop shoplifting you are winning, then we win too.
For more information about Sensormatic systems and to stop shoplifting, Contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 and fix your shoplifting problem once and for all!
Electronic Article Surveillance – 4 WC Blog 707
Sensormatic Labels – 3
Be A Good Sport Find Out How Electronic Article Surveillance Can Protect Your Store
I would not normally relate a football game to electronic article surveillance but I saw something at a game that got me thinking about just this topic. When I get the opportunity, I enjoy attending football, baseball and occasionally a basketball game at my Alma Mater. In the last two years, our school has transitioned to FBS level football and they have begun requiring attendees to carry clear totes or purses. Absolutely no backpacks or standard totes or purses are allowed. All of this is for security purposes and while my wife is no fan of this she has grudgingly followed this policy in order to get into the venues. I personally think the policy is more to do with keeping illicit candy, food and drinks from getting into the stadium rather than security but that is a matter of opinion (who wants to pay $8 for a lemonade and pack of M&M’s?). That aside, giving the benefit of the doubt I will allow that the rules are intended to make the building/stadium safer for fans. So you can imagine my anger when I saw a couple of men arrive in the 3rd quarter of the game and one of them had a backpack on! It made me wonder where the lapse in security for the stadium took place. Did security officials at the gates stop checking for bags after the initial rush of fans? I can only wonder. It was this that caused me to think about retail security and Sensormatic labels. What steps do you and your managers take to protect your business from theft, fraud and criminal activity and do you let your guard down during operating hours?
On the surface it might seem like protecting a football stadium and fans would be different than protecting a store but in reality there are a number of similarities. When entering the football stadium the security guards and police are preventing “contraband” from getting into the facility. In a retail store you want to keep unpaid merchandise from getting out of the building. In the football stadium officials want to keep bad guys and criminals out and the same should be true for retail store owners. In a sports venue it may be a security team monitoring the gates and entrances. In a retail store it may be Loss Prevention or managers monitoring the doors and sales floor. In the stadium, staff scan tickets to let people in. In the retail store an electronic article surveillance tower is scanning for active Sensormatic labels or security tags. It isn’t a perfect analogy but I think you get the picture.
What took place that the guys with the backpack somehow made it into the stadium? Did security become tired or careless? Did they decide after a certain time that checking fans was less important than it was when the gates opened? Now let me ask you this; do your employees get lax about responding to electronic article surveillance alarms during the shift? Do cashiers get in a hurry to finish a shift and take short cuts while scanning merchandise that can lead to failing to deactivate Sensormatic labels? Lapses in these areas for a store are not much different than a lapse in the procedures at a sporting event.
We can also look at safety issues surrounding a store when people stop paying attention. If no one is watching and greeting customers as they come through the doors a certain amount of deterrence is lost. Criminals seek out stores where they can enter unnoticed and this isn’t restricted to shoplifters. We are talking about purse snatchers, robbers, sexual predators, etc. all persons you don’t want in your building. Lest you think I’m over-blowing this I worked as a Loss Prevention Manager for thirteen years and I dealt with ALL of these criminal types. I learned that recognition is something they will all avoid and if your employees are not saying hello as customers enter the wrong element will start to frequent your store. No, you can’t require everyone to carry a clear purse or bag to enter your store but you can have other controls in place. Those controls should include people who greet each customer (regardless of what time of the day it is) and an electronic article surveillance system that will sound the alarm when merchandise such as clothing is protected with Sensormatic tags and labels.
Don’t let down your guard. Protect your store and merchandise at all times. If you need more information on how to do it Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. has the answers. Don’t fumble this play, call them today.
Sensormatic labels are important and we can help you with it. Call 1.770.426.0547 and let’s talk.
I would not normally relate a football game to electronic article surveillance but I saw something at a game that got me thinking about just this topic. When I get the opportunity, I enjoy attending football, baseball and occasionally a basketball game at my Alma Mater. In the last two years, our school has transitioned to FBS level football and they have begun requiring attendees to carry clear totes or purses. Absolutely no backpacks or standard totes or purses are allowed. All of this is for security purposes and while my wife is no fan of this she has grudgingly followed this policy in order to get into the venues. I personally think the policy is more to do with keeping illicit candy, food and drinks from getting into the stadium rather than security but that is a matter of opinion (who wants to pay $8 for a lemonade and pack of M&M’s?). That aside, giving the benefit of the doubt I will allow that the rules are intended to make the building/stadium safer for fans. So you can imagine my anger when I saw a couple of men arrive in the 3rd quarter of the game and one of them had a backpack on! It made me wonder where the lapse in security for the stadium took place. Did security officials at the gates stop checking for bags after the initial rush of fans? I can only wonder. It was this that caused me to think about retail security and Sensormatic labels. What steps do you and your managers take to protect your business from theft, fraud and criminal activity and do you let your guard down during operating hours?
On the surface it might seem like protecting a football stadium and fans would be different than protecting a store but in reality there are a number of similarities. When entering the football stadium the security guards and police are preventing “contraband” from getting into the facility. In a retail store you want to keep unpaid merchandise from getting out of the building. In the football stadium officials want to keep bad guys and criminals out and the same should be true for retail store owners. In a sports venue it may be a security team monitoring the gates and entrances. In a retail store it may be Loss Prevention or managers monitoring the doors and sales floor. In the stadium, staff scan tickets to let people in. In the retail store an electronic article surveillance tower is scanning for active Sensormatic labels or security tags. It isn’t a perfect analogy but I think you get the picture.
What took place that the guys with the backpack somehow made it into the stadium? Did security become tired or careless? Did they decide after a certain time that checking fans was less important than it was when the gates opened? Now let me ask you this; do your employees get lax about responding to electronic article surveillance alarms during the shift? Do cashiers get in a hurry to finish a shift and take short cuts while scanning merchandise that can lead to failing to deactivate Sensormatic labels? Lapses in these areas for a store are not much different than a lapse in the procedures at a sporting event.
We can also look at safety issues surrounding a store when people stop paying attention. If no one is watching and greeting customers as they come through the doors a certain amount of deterrence is lost. Criminals seek out stores where they can enter unnoticed and this isn’t restricted to shoplifters. We are talking about purse snatchers, robbers, sexual predators, etc. all persons you don’t want in your building. Lest you think I’m over-blowing this I worked as a Loss Prevention Manager for thirteen years and I dealt with ALL of these criminal types. I learned that recognition is something they will all avoid and if your employees are not saying hello as customers enter the wrong element will start to frequent your store. No, you can’t require everyone to carry a clear purse or bag to enter your store but you can have other controls in place. Those controls should include people who greet each customer (regardless of what time of the day it is) and an electronic article surveillance system that will sound the alarm when merchandise such as clothing is protected with Sensormatic tags and labels.
Don’t let down your guard. Protect your store and merchandise at all times. If you need more information on how to do it Loss Prevention Systems, Inc. has the answers. Don’t fumble this play, call them today.
Sensormatic labels are important and we can help you with it. Call 1.770.426.0547 and let’s talk.
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.
