Clothing Security –3 WC Blog 806
Sensormatic Tags-3
Clothing Security And Late Night Clothing Tasks
It can be difficult to make clothing security a priority or stop any shoplifting when it is late at night and you are ready to close the store. The other night our store was in the process of getting ready to close and I noticed a car pull into the parking lot. It was about five minutes until time to lock the doors and the customer entered and proceeded to a specific department. He wanted something that he indicated would only take a few minutes. A few minutes turned into fifty minutes until the store manager finally had enough and “helped” hurry the process along. Fortunately, this was a situation where the customer was by himself and needed a specific service. I have seen similar situations as a Loss Prevention Manager where two people would enter close to closing time and split up in a store. If a store is operating without a Sensormatic system and not using Sensormatic tags it can be a prime opportunity for crooks to get away with gobs of goods. How could this be? Because the truth is, once a store gets close to closing time employees focus on tasks not people.
You know what I am talking about. You might be trying to save payroll so the quicker you can close the store and get workers out the more money you save. You may be trying to get the store straightened up and a customer late in the evening is just in the way. Rather than a seeing them as a potential sale (or theft) they are a hindrance. We have all been in that situation and it happens. Holidays are even worse when we want to close up and get home to our families or to a party somewhere. Patrons take a backseat to the necessity of cleaning up and getting out in a timely manner. As a Loss Prevention Manager Associate and then a Manager I began to take note of these late night criminals. These folks can be slick and they know the places to hit and the times to hit. They don’t care for trying to steal from stores that use Sensormatic tags and they don’t like to frequent stores that focus on customers up to the time doors are locked.
Managing the store closing process and keeping an eye out for late night or last minute customers can be difficult. The use of clothing security devices and electronic article surveillance tags can play an important part in helping managers get tasks done. With merchandise protected against theft a team can spend a little less energy on giving “extra” customer service to the last minute patron. Note that I did not say ignore the customer but if the shopper is not giving obvious indications they are intending to steal your team can periodically check on the person. Sensormatic tags alleviate some of that extra unnecessary focus that allows your team to focus on closing tasks.
Let me add one last thought on the late night customer. Be cautious of anyone coming in last minute. Where did they park their car? Is it by the curb outside the doors? Is the vehicle running? Is the customer in line but allowing other customers to go ahead of them? These could be indicators of a much more serious crime that is about to happen than shoplifting and that is a robbery. Preparing for and responding to a robbery is another issue to address in another article. The main thing is to know that the night time is the right time…for crime (to paraphrase one of my all-time favorite rock groups, Credence Clearwater Revival). Always have employee and customer safety in mind especially at the end of the day.
Clothing security and merchandise protection in general is an important part of keeping a store profitable. Without it goods are stolen, shelves are empty and sales lag or die off as customers stop coming to a store. Safety also becomes an issue as criminals recognize the vulnerabilities of a store and more of them frequent that location. Install a Sensormatic system and get more tasks done at the end of the evening while still protecting merchandise. You can still greet customers but there will be fewer thieves to focus on in the end.
For more information about Sensormatic tags contact us or call 1.770.426.0547.
It can be difficult to make clothing security a priority or stop any shoplifting when it is late at night and you are ready to close the store. The other night our store was in the process of getting ready to close and I noticed a car pull into the parking lot. It was about five minutes until time to lock the doors and the customer entered and proceeded to a specific department. He wanted something that he indicated would only take a few minutes. A few minutes turned into fifty minutes until the store manager finally had enough and “helped” hurry the process along. Fortunately, this was a situation where the customer was by himself and needed a specific service. I have seen similar situations as a Loss Prevention Manager where two people would enter close to closing time and split up in a store. If a store is operating without a Sensormatic system and not using Sensormatic tags it can be a prime opportunity for crooks to get away with gobs of goods. How could this be? Because the truth is, once a store gets close to closing time employees’ focus on tasks not people.
You know what I am talking about. You might be trying to save payroll so the quicker you can close the store and get workers out the more money you save. You may be trying to get the store straightened up and a customer late in the evening is just in the way. Rather than a seeing them as a potential sale (or theft) they are a hindrance. We have all been in that situation and it happens. Holidays are even worse when we want to close up and get home to our families or to a party somewhere. Patrons take a backseat to the necessity of cleaning up and getting out in a timely manner. As a Loss Prevention Manager Associate and then a Manager I began to take note of these late night criminals. These folks can be slick and they know the places to hit and the times to hit. They don’t care for trying to steal from stores that use Sensormatic tags and they don’t like to frequent stores that focus on customers up to the time doors are locked.
Managing the store closing process and keeping an eye out for late night or last minute customers can be difficult. The use of clothing security devices and electronic article surveillance tags can play an important part in helping managers get tasks done. With merchandise protected against theft a team can spend a little less energy on giving “extra” customer service to the last minute patron. Note that I did not say ignore the customer but if the shopper is not giving obvious indications they are intending to steal your team can periodically check on the person. Sensormatic tags alleviate some of that extra unnecessary focus that allows your team to focus on closing tasks.
Let me add one last thought on the late night customer. Be cautious of anyone coming in last minute. Where did they park their car? Is it by the curb outside the doors? Is the vehicle running? Is the customer in line but allowing other customers to go ahead of them? These could be indicators of a much more serious crime that is about to happen than shoplifting and that is a robbery. Preparing for and responding to a robbery is another issue to address in another article. The main thing is to know that the night time is the right time…for crime (to paraphrase one of my all-time favorite rock groups, Credence Clearwater Revival). Always have employee and customer safety in mind especially at the end of the day.
Clothing security and merchandise protection in general is an important part of keeping a store profitable. Without it goods are stolen, shelves are empty and sales lag or die off as customers stop coming to a store. Safety also becomes an issue as criminals recognize the vulnerabilities of a store and more of them frequent that location. Install a Sensormatic system and get more tasks done at the end of the evening while still protecting merchandise. You can still greet customers but there will be fewer thieves to focus on in the end.
For more information about Sensormatic tags contact us or call 1.770.426.0547.
