Alpha Security-3 WC Blog 138
Retail Anti-Theft Devices-4
Alpha Cable Lock-3
Prevent Shoplifting-4
Why Allow Wallets To Walk Away? Tighten Up Security On Accessories With Alpha Cable Locks
Work in Retail Loss Prevention long enough and you end up with those situations that make you just shake your head and ask yourself, “Did that really just happen?” I had a moment like that when I started off as a department store Loss Prevention Officer. I was in our security office watching our sales floor via a closed circuit television system. One of our top theft departments was handbags and wallets. In order to prevent shoplifting of the highest priced purses, we kept them in lock-up showcases. Everything else was open-sell and protected with electronic article surveillance (EAS) tags, employee customer service and cameras. We did not have the retail anti-theft devices available to us that are on the market today that are available through Alpha Security, such as the Alpha cable lock.
Before I continue my story, everyone knows what a lock-up display case is, however not everyone is as familiar with the Alpha cable lock. The cable lock is made up of a tough, thin, steel cable, connected to an EAS sensitive, housing. The casing or shell has a flashing LED light that makes a visual deterrent to prevent shoplifting by drawing the thief’s attention to the retail anti-theft device. Locks are also tamper proof and will sound a high pitched alarm if someone attempts to cut the cable. Since they are EAS sensitive, if a piece of merchandise with a lock on it is carried too close to EAS antennas the antenna alarm will activate and warn employees of a possible theft attempt. Once alerted, employees can respond to the alarm activation and determine the cause of the alarm or the alarm may cause a crook to drop merchandise and run. I have seen numerous recoveries of merchandise over the years due to EAS alarm activations and proper employee response or merchandise abandoned by would-be shoplifters.
Continuing with my, “Did that really just happen?” story, I was in the camera room monitoring the CCTV system and received a call from a store associate alerting me to a male subject in the handbag department. I asked the associate to give customer service and I would watch on camera. The subject was picking up purses, and wallets, looking at them and then putting them back. I confess I was starting to think this was just a guy gift shopping for someone and I became somewhat less concerned of a possible theft attempt. The sales associate approached the man and offered to assist him. The next thing I knew, the “customer” picked up a very expensive wallet, grinned at the sales associate and ran out of the store. I had never seen a shoplifter take a moment to grin before running off and I had to recover from my momentary shock. I did run after the man and eventually caught him and got the wallet back (disclaimer: don’t do this at home, we did not have restrictions on us way back then preventing the pursuit of shoplifters). A little happily ever after moment, that sales associate was my wife and even today, nearly 25 years later, she reminds me that she never trusted the man and I should have taken her call more seriously. SIGH!
I firmly believe that if we had Alpha Security retail anti-theft devices such as the cable lock available and attached to the wallets, the visibility of the lock would have deterred the shoplifter from stealing.
Not every store can afford to staff a Loss Prevention officer due to the expense of the additional payroll. What a store CAN do is invest in retail anti-theft devices such as an Alpha cable lock and benefit financially from reduced theft and improved profits. Find out how Alpha Security can help your store prevent shoplifting.
Get more information on Alpha Security, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 today.
Work in Retail Loss Prevention long enough and you end up with those situations that make you just shake your head and ask yourself, “Did that really just happen?” I had a moment like that when I started off as a department store Loss Prevention Officer. I was in our security office watching our sales floor via a closed circuit television system. One of our top theft departments was handbags and wallets. In order to prevent shoplifting of the highest priced purses, we kept them in lock-up showcases. Everything else was open-sell and protected with electronic article surveillance (EAS) tags, employee customer service and cameras. We did not have the retail anti-theft devices available to us that are on the market today that are available through Alpha Security, such as the Alpha cable lock.
Before I continue my story, everyone knows what a lock-up display case is, however not everyone is as familiar with the Alpha cable lock. The cable lock is made up of a tough, thin, steel cable, connected to an EAS sensitive, housing. The casing or shell has a flashing LED light that makes a visual deterrent to prevent shoplifting by drawing the thief’s attention to the retail anti-theft device. Locks are also tamper proof and will sound a high pitched alarm if someone attempts to cut the cable. Since they are EAS sensitive, if a piece of merchandise with a lock on it is carried too close to EAS antennas the antenna alarm will activate and warn employees of a possible theft attempt. Once alerted, employees can respond to the alarm activation and determine the cause of the alarm or the alarm may cause a crook to drop merchandise and run. I have seen numerous recoveries of merchandise over the years due to EAS alarm activations and proper employee response or merchandise abandoned by would-be shoplifters.
Continuing with my, “Did that really just happen?” story, I was in the camera room monitoring the CCTV system and received a call from a store associate alerting me to a male subject in the handbag department. I asked the associate to give customer service and I would watch on camera. The subject was picking up purses, and wallets, looking at them and then putting them back. I confess I was starting to think this was just a guy gift shopping for someone and I became somewhat less concerned of a possible theft attempt. The sales associate approached the man and offered to assist him. The next thing I knew, the “customer” picked up a very expensive wallet, grinned at the sales associate and ran out of the store. I had never seen a shoplifter take a moment to grin before running off and I had to recover from my momentary shock. I did run after the man and eventually caught him and got the wallet back (disclaimer: don’t do this at home, we did not have restrictions on us way back then preventing the pursuit of shoplifters). A little happily ever after moment, that sales associate was my wife and even today, nearly 25 years later, she reminds me that she never trusted the man and I should have taken her call more seriously. SIGH!
I firmly believe that if we had Alpha Security retail anti-theft devices such as the cable lock available and attached to the wallets, the visibility of the lock would have deterred the shoplifter from stealing.
Not every store can afford to staff a Loss Prevention officer due to the expense of the additional payroll. What a store CAN do is invest in retail anti-theft devices such as an Alpha cable lock and benefit financially from reduced theft and improved profits. Find out how Alpha Security can help your store prevent shoplifting.
Get more information on Alpha Security, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 today.
Checkpoint Security System-4 WC blog 123
Stop Shoplifting-3
Retail Theft Prevention-3
Signal Shoplifters You Are Serious With A Checkpoint Security System
I don’t know about you but sometimes I get a chuckle out of things I see that are supposed to stop shoplifting in stores. For example, in one store I frequent there is a sign on the wall of the restroom as you walk in that warns that unpaid merchandise is not allowed in the restroom. It also tells the reader that shoplifting is not a joke or a game. It is a crime and it makes things more expensive for everyone. It ends by letting shoplifters know they will be prosecuted. This tickles me on so many levels. First, the potential shoplifter has already entered the restroom with the unpaid merchandise when they see the sign. I am sure they are thinking, “Well shucks, I can’t bring this in here to steal, guess I have to find another place to do it.” But wait, they read on and find out that it costs everyone more money when they steal. Now, I can’t say for certain, but it seems to me that my expenditures for goods are not really high on the list of priorities for someone who is contemplating theft.
All kidding aside, I understand the idea behind the signs, they are meant to discourage someone from bringing merchandise into a restroom or alerting potential shoplifters that there are cameras in use in the store. This type of retail theft prevention is meant to stop shoplifting efforts by first-time and opportunist shoplifters. I would contend that a better retail theft prevention approach would be installing a Checkpoint security system.
A Checkpoint security system deters theft at all levels from the opportunist to the professional involved in organized retail crime (ORC). Electronic article surveillance (EAS) antennas are installed at entry/exit points and detect unpaid merchandise being carried out of the store. Deactivation devices are integrated at points of sale to ensure EAS tags deactivate when a purchase is made. Checkpoint labels and tags are purchased and applied to a variety of merchandise to be both a visual deterrent to thieves and a physical protection that causes and alarm activation if an attempt to shoplift is made. Opportunist shoplifters are not sure how to defeat the security tags and professionals are trying to avoid attention so they don’t want risk alarm activations.
A Checkpoint Security System is also a deterrent to employee theft. One thing I learned from almost 20 years of retail loss prevention experience is that store associates become immune to signs, cameras and even loss prevention staff. They see these things every day and they become just another store fixture. I would be hard pressed to say how many employees I caught stealing over that time who just didn’t think about the cameras and public view monitors. As part of new hire orientation I took the time to warn employees about our capabilities and still they would attempt to steal. On the other hand, employees hear the beeping of the EAS antennas on a regular basis and they physically handle products protected with Checkpoint tags. As a result they are not de-sensitized, so to speak, to this security measure. Employees are less likely to steal when a retailer has this retail theft prevention system installed.
Investing in a Checkpoint security system is a step in the right direction to stop shoplifting and prevent employee theft. When criminals notice the new hardware and tagged merchandise they will begin to take their activity elsewhere. As this happens, your in-stocks will improve and as a consequence so will your sales. Over time a Checkpoint system can pay for itself so why wait any longer to protect your business and merchandise?
Get more information on a Checkpoint security system, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 today.
I don’t know about you but sometimes I get a chuckle out of things I see that are supposed to stop shoplifting in stores. For example, in one store I frequent there is a sign on the wall of the restroom as you walk in that warns that unpaid merchandise is not allowed in the restroom. It also tells the reader that shoplifting is not a joke or a game. It is a crime and it makes things more expensive for everyone. It ends by letting shoplifters know they will be prosecuted. This tickles me on so many levels. First, the potential shoplifter has already entered the restroom with the unpaid merchandise when they see the sign. I am sure they are thinking, “Well shucks, I can’t bring this in here to steal, guess I have to find another place to do it.” But wait, they read on and find out that it costs everyone more money when they steal. Now, I can’t say for certain, but it seems to me that my expenditures for goods are not really high on the list of priorities for someone who is contemplating theft.
All kidding aside, I understand the idea behind the signs, they are meant to discourage someone from bringing merchandise into a restroom or alerting potential shoplifters that there are cameras in use in the store. This type of retail theft prevention is meant to stop shoplifting efforts by first-time and opportunist shoplifters. I would contend that a better retail theft prevention approach would be installing a Checkpoint security system.
A Checkpoint security system deters theft at all levels from the opportunist to the professional involved in organized retail crime (ORC). Electronic article surveillance (EAS) antennas are installed at entry/exit points and detect unpaid merchandise being carried out of the store. Deactivation devices are integrated at points of sale to ensure EAS tags deactivate when a purchase is made. Checkpoint labels and tags are purchased and applied to a variety of merchandise to be both a visual deterrent to thieves and a physical protection that causes and alarm activation if an attempt to shoplift is made. Opportunist shoplifters are not sure how to defeat the security tags and professionals are trying to avoid attention so they don’t want risk alarm activations.
A Checkpoint Security System is also a deterrent to employee theft. One thing I learned from almost 20 years of retail loss prevention experience is that store associates become immune to signs, cameras and even loss prevention staff. They see these things every day and they become just another store fixture. I would be hard pressed to say how many employees I caught stealing over that time who just didn’t think about the cameras and public view monitors. As part of new hire orientation I took the time to warn employees about our capabilities and still they would attempt to steal. On the other hand, employees hear the beeping of the EAS antennas on a regular basis and they physically handle products protected with Checkpoint tags. As a result they are not de-sensitized, so to speak, to this security measure. Employees are less likely to steal when a retailer has this retail theft prevention system installed.
Investing in a Checkpoint security system is a step in the right direction to stop shoplifting and prevent employee theft. When criminals notice the new hardware and tagged merchandise they will begin to take their activity elsewhere. As this happens, your in-stocks will improve and as a consequence so will your sales. Over time a Checkpoint system can pay for itself so why wait any longer to protect your business and merchandise?
Get more information on a Checkpoint security system, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 today.
Bottle Locks-5 WC blog 143
Liquor bottle security-3
Alpha Security-3
Are Staff Stealing Spirits? Bottle Locks Improve Liquor Bottle Security
Liquor store owners and managers are aware of the risk to the business from shoplifting, but how aware are you of the threat to your business from your employees? Along with the obvious chance of cash theft, employees can also steal product from your business. It can be difficult to identify and prevent cash shortages, but how do you prevent internal merchandise theft? Were you aware that in retail as a whole, employee theft accounts for more theft and shortage than shoplifting? Preventative measures for liquor bottle security can protect the business against both shoplifting and employee theft. Using bottle locks and electronic article surveillance antennas can prevent a lot of merchandise theft. In fact, it appears from the 2014-2015 Global Retail Theft Report that there is a strong correlation between the amount of money invested by a retailer on Loss Prevention spending and the amount of shortage experienced. Shortage tended to decline when money was invested in various Loss Prevention systems, including security personnel, closed circuit television and retail anti-theft devices.
Since we are focusing on liquor store businesses, the use of bottle locks is a valuable means of protecting against theft. Liquor bottles come in many different shapes and sizes and Alpha Security makes locks that can fit almost every bottle design on the market. The locks are placed over the cap and depending on the type of lock used they cover much of the neck of the bottle as well. The lock prevents a thief from being able to open a bottle or pry the cap off. Bottle locks are designed to activate to an electronic article surveillance antenna if a bottle with a lock on it is carried in range of the antenna. The alarm alerts store staff of an attempted breach. Whether it is a shoplifter or an employee trying to steal, liquor bottle security will protect merchandise.
If you are a small business owner, here are some interesting statistics for you from the website statisticbrain.com (research date September 7th, 2015):
Employee Theft Statistics:
– Amount stolen annually from U.S. Businesses by employees $50,000,000,000
– Percent of annual revenues lost annually to theft or fraud 7%
– Percent of employees who have stolen at least once from their employer 75%
– Percent of employees who have stolen at least twice from their employer 37.5%
– Percent of all business bankruptcies caused by employee theft 33%
Additionally, the report finds that the average time office fraud lasts before it is detected is two years. In my years of Loss Prevention experience, I found that the difficulty with employees was that frequently their theft started out in small amounts and often infrequently. It might be a dollar here or there from the register for a snack during break. It could be minor merchandise theft in the beginning, such as a candy bar from a checkout lane or a drink from a food service area. Over time employees tend to become bolder and test the store with theft that becomes more noticeable. Eventually the employee gets greedy and takes something substantial or more readily identified. For a small business owner of a liquor store, how long can you afford losses before employee theft puts you in the 33% declaring bankruptcy due to theft?
By installing EAS antennas at all store entrances and putting Alpha Security bottle locks on merchandise located both on the sales floor as well as the stock room you can quickly begin to deter liquor theft by employees. It is also important to ensure that owners and managers always staff the store, open to close with at least two employees as a check and balance. If one person is alone in the building, there is no one to be aware if bottles are removed through EAS antennas, setting off the alarm.
Make liquor bottle security a priority for your store. Find out about all of the bottle locks available to you from Alpha Security. Don’t let your employees send your business into bankruptcy.
Need information on liquor bottle security? Give us a call at 1.770.426.0547 now.
Liquor store owners and managers are aware of the risk to the business from shoplifting, but how aware are you of the threat to your business from your employees? Along with the obvious chance of cash theft, employees can also steal product from your business. It can be difficult to identify and prevent cash shortages, but how do you prevent internal merchandise theft? Were you aware that in retail as a whole, employee theft accounts for more theft and shortage than shoplifting? Preventative measures for liquor bottle security can protect the business against both shoplifting and employee theft. Using bottle locks and electronic article surveillance antennas can prevent a lot of merchandise theft. In fact, it appears from the 2014-2015 Global Retail Theft Report that there is a strong correlation between the amount of money invested by a retailer on Loss Prevention spending and the amount of shortage experienced. Shortage tended to decline when money was invested in various Loss Prevention systems, including security personnel, closed circuit television and retail anti-theft devices.
Since we are focusing on liquor store businesses, the use of bottle locks is a valuable means of protecting against theft. Liquor bottles come in many different shapes and sizes and Alpha Security makes locks that can fit almost every bottle design on the market. The locks are placed over the cap and depending on the type of lock used they cover much of the neck of the bottle as well. The lock prevents a thief from being able to open a bottle or pry the cap off. Bottle locks are designed to activate to an electronic article surveillance antenna if a bottle with a lock on it is carried in range of the antenna. The alarm alerts store staff of an attempted breach. Whether it is a shoplifter or an employee trying to steal, liquor bottle security will protect merchandise.
If you are a small business owner, here are some interesting statistics for you from the website statisticbrain.com (research date September 7th, 2015):
Employee Theft Statistics:
– Amount stolen annually from U.S. Businesses by employees $50,000,000,000
– Percent of annual revenues lost annually to theft or fraud 7%
– Percent of employees who have stolen at least once from their employer 75%- Percent of employees who have stolen at least twice from their employer 37.5%
– Percent of all business bankruptcies caused by employee theft 33%
Additionally, the report finds that the average time office fraud lasts before it is detected is two years. In my years of Loss Prevention experience, I found that the difficulty with employees was that frequently their theft started out in small amounts and often infrequently. It might be a dollar here or there from the register for a snack during break. It could be minor merchandise theft in the beginning, such as a candy bar from a checkout lane or a drink from a food service area. Over time employees tend to become bolder and test the store with theft that becomes more noticeable. Eventually the employee gets greedy and takes something substantial or more readily identified. For a small business owner of a liquor store, how long can you afford losses before employee theft puts you in the 33% declaring bankruptcy due to theft?
By installing EAS antennas at all store entrances and putting Alpha Security bottle locks on merchandise located both on the sales floor as well as the stock room you can quickly begin to deter liquor theft by employees. It is also important to ensure that owners and managers always staff the store, open to close with at least two employees as a check and balance. If one person is alone in the building, there is no one to be aware if bottles are removed through EAS antennas, setting off the alarm.
Make liquor bottle security a priority for your store. Find out about all of the bottle locks available to you from Alpha Security. Don’t let your employees send your business into bankruptcy.
Need information on liquor bottle security? Give us a call at 1.770.426.0547 now.
