I am a video gamer. I’m not very good at them, as my sons like to remind me, but I am a gamer nonetheless. I still have a PS2 at home as well as The Xbox consoles. I don’t have the opportunity to play them as frequently as I would like but I still find time to indulge in them every so often. Occasionally I like to go to the local videogame store and purchase a used game (being a cheapskate I don’t often buy a new one for myself). A while back I went to a particular store and wanted to purchase a game. This store has empty boxes on the shelf, requiring you to select the product you are interested in and take the empty box to the register. The actual game disc is stored in file drawers behind the counter in paper cd sleeves. I found the box for the game I wanted and dutifully walked it up to the register. The clerk hunted for the disc and could not locate it so he had to get a co-worker to help. Together they searched and still could not find the disc I wanted. I wasn’t too happy but I found a different game and ended up purchasing it. I was slightly irritated at the experience but did not say so since the employees did the best they could under the circumstances. Each time I go into this store now I get aggravated seeing empty video game cases on the shelves. I wonder to myself how many other discs they lose due to carelessness, a poor filing system or some other factor. It would be much easier for this business to use gaming keepers to prevent shoplifting rather than removing discs from all the cases they come in.
Gaming keepers are clear, hard, plastic cases with a hinged, locking door designed to prevent shoplifting. Many retailers keep popular and high theft merchandise in lock-up cases. While lock-up cases do prevent theft, they make it impossible for a customer to browse and look at package content without a sales person hovering over them while they look. Alpha Keepers, including those for video game software, provide the protection of a display case and affords customers the ability to read content information. While using empty display boxes also prevents shoplifting they can create a different set of issues for customers, like the one I experienced. Using gaming keepers prevents such a situation since the game disc remains in the package and the package is locked securely in the keeper. Games are only removed from the keepers when they are brought to the point of sale and a special detachment key is used to open keeper.
What prevents someone from simply walking out the door with merchandise in a Gaming Keeper? All Alpha Keepers are designed with electronic article surveillance (EAS) technology built into them. Stores that use Alpha Keepers also have EAS antennas installed at the entrances and exits. The antennas pick up radio frequency signals emitted by Keepers and other EAS tagged merchandise when they are carried too close to the doorway. This causes the antenna alarm to sound and warn store employees of a security breach. Staff respond to the alarm and prevent shoplifting by determining the cause of the alarm and recovering the merchandise from the perpetrator.
As a store owner or manager it is important that you consider the benefits of using Gaming Keepers and other Alpha Keepers to protect your merchandise. You won’t need to pay for extra staff so you have people available to “show” merchandise. You also won’t have to come up with alternative merchandise displays that may create unnecessary headaches of trying to locate items. You can have all of these advantages AND prevent shoplifting at the same time.
Gaming Keepers are important and we can help you with it. Call 1.770.426.0547 and let’s talk.
O Tag-5 WC Blog 189
Prevent Shoplifting-3
Retail Anti-Theft Device-3
Disturbed By Display Disappearance? O Tags Can Disrupt Shoplifter Dastardly Deeds
Does your store sell tools, electric appliances or electric household gadgets such as vacuum cleaners? Most stores that sell such items have display models out that clients may look at to get an idea if they want to purchase the item or not. Usually the display is a working model that can be taken from the shelf and held or examined. For example, I worked in stores that sold vacuum cleaners and we had an unboxed display for most of the units. If someone wanted to get a feel for how light the weight was or how easy it was to remove the dirt bin, they were able to do so with the floor sample. To do so meant that we could not tie the display down or secure it to prevent shoplifting since the idea was to make it accessible to our customers. Similarly, we had displays of power tools that we had out for handling as well. We did experience issues of shoplifting and box switching and had to develop strategies to prevent this from happening. Our strategies would have been a lot easier to create if we had Alpha’s O Tag available to us at that time.
Alpha’s O Tag is a retail anti-theft device that can be clamped around the power cord of a device. The tag has a hard casing with a circular center that can be secured around the power cord and cannot be pulled over the plug end. The only means for a shoplifter to get the tag off a piece of merchandise is to cut the cord, which of course renders the item inoperable. Customers are able to pick up and handle the item they are interested in, but criminals are thwarted from stealing the display. The tag also works with an electronic article surveillance (EAS) system which also prevents shoplifting. If a tag is not properly removed from a display at the point of sale by a cashier, the tag will cause the EAS antennas at the door to sound their built in alarm.
I mentioned that we had problems with box switching of merchandise. This is simply another form of shoplifting, but what would happen was a patron would take an expensive display and also a cheaper, boxed version of another brand and remove the cheaper brand item from its’ box. The expensive display model would go in the box and the cheaper version was placed in the display units spot. The shoplifter would re-tape the box and go through the check lane, paying the price of the cheaper item but in reality getting the expensive item hidden inside. Finding the right retail anti-theft device to deter theft could be a challenge and at the time we did not have the tools at our disposal that are available today.
An O tag attached to the cord of a display item would activate the EAS antenna alarm even when concealed in a box. Store staff would be able to respond to the alarm and investigate the cause, locating the source of the activation. Our problem wasn’t limited to just vacuum cleaners other departments had issues too. We had to prevent shoplifting and box switching in the hardware department as well as in kitchen ware. Power tool displays sometimes disappeared as did small kitchen appliances and we didn’t always identify it right away so thieves did get away with the merchandise from time to time.
If you own a small hardware store or a small appliance store, consider all the merchandise that could be placed on display and protected. Can openers, electric frying pans, coffee makers, and toaster ovens are just a few items I can think of that are often put on display in stores to draw customers and let them see what they are buying. Hardware stores put out electric drills, sanders, electric saws and again, an O Tag could easily be used to deter theft and box switching activity.
Prevent shoplifting and box switching by using an O Tag retail anti-theft device to keep your merchandise in the store and minimize opportunities for loss. Decreased loss means more merchandise on the floor and we all know that translates to increased sales. And isn’t that what drives your bottom line?
Get more information on O Tags, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 today.
Does your store sell tools, electric appliances or electric household gadgets such as vacuum cleaners? Most stores that sell such items have display models out that clients may look at to get an idea if they want to purchase the item or not. Usually the display is a working model that can be taken from the shelf and held or examined. For example, I worked in stores that sold vacuum cleaners and we had an unboxed display for most of the units. If someone wanted to get a feel for how light the weight was or how easy it was to remove the dirt bin, they were able to do so with the floor sample. To do so meant that we could not tie the display down or secure it to prevent shoplifting since the idea was to make it accessible to our customers. Similarly, we had displays of power tools that we had out for handling as well. We did experience issues of shoplifting and box switching and had to develop strategies to prevent this from happening. Our strategies would have been a lot easier to create if we had Alpha’s O Tag available to us at that time.
Alpha’s O Tag is a retail anti-theft device that can be clamped around the power cord of a device. The tag has a hard casing with a circular center that can be secured around the power cord and cannot be pulled over the plug end. The only means for a shoplifter to get the tag off a piece of merchandise is to cut the cord, which of course renders the item inoperable. Customers are able to pick up and handle the item they are interested in, but criminals are thwarted from stealing the display. The tag also works with an electronic article surveillance (EAS) system which also prevents shoplifting. If a tag is not properly removed from a display at the point of sale by a cashier, the tag will cause the EAS antennas at the door to sound their built in alarm.
I mentioned that we had problems with box switching of merchandise. This is simply another form of shoplifting, but what would happen was a patron would take an expensive display and also a cheaper, boxed version of another brand and remove the cheaper brand item from its’ box. The expensive display model would go in the box and the cheaper version was placed in the display units spot. The shoplifter would re-tape the box and go through the check lane, paying the price of the cheaper item but in reality getting the expensive item hidden inside. Finding the right retail anti-theft device to deter theft could be a challenge and at the time we did not have the tools at our disposal that are available today.
An O tag attached to the cord of a display item would activate the EAS antenna alarm even when concealed in a box. Store staff would be able to respond to the alarm and investigate the cause, locating the source of the activation. Our problem wasn’t limited to just vacuum cleaners other departments had issues too. We had to prevent shoplifting and box switching in the hardware department as well as in kitchen ware. Power tool displays sometimes disappeared as did small kitchen appliances and we didn’t always identify it right away so thieves did get away with the merchandise from time to time.
If you own a small hardware store or a small appliance store, consider all the merchandise that could be placed on display and protected. Can openers, electric frying pans, coffee makers, and toaster ovens are just a few items I can think of that are often put on display in stores to draw customers and let them see what they are buying. Hardware stores put out electric drills, sanders, electric saws and again, an O Tag could easily be used to deter theft and box switching activity.
Prevent shoplifting and box switching by using an O Tag retail anti-theft device to keep your merchandise in the store and minimize opportunities for loss. Decreased loss means more merchandise on the floor and we all know that translates to increased sales. And isn’t that what drives your bottom line?
Get more information on O Tags, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 today.
SEEING IS BELIEVING WITH ALPHA SPIDER WRAPS
I was in my store the other day when I noticed some new products being unboxed by the store team members. It was a line of binoculars and the corresponding PDQ display. It was an entire line from this vendor, so the prices ranged from about $20 all the way up to $350. The only problem was that no one in the buying office thought about how we would prevent shoplifting here. Pretty much par for the course.
The store gets the fixture set up and it is abundantly clear that these high end items are going to be a target for thieves. There’s no peg on the fixture, so I can’t use a peg-lock. A hard pencil tag wouldn’t be very effective and a soft tag just wouldn’t do much in this particular situation. I start rummaging through the warehouse trying to find something to protect my profits with. There, in a corner, I see a box. “Alpha Spider Wraps’ on the side. I think I found what will work.
I’m a huge fan of the Alpha Spider Wraps; I just forgot I had a box in the warehouse. If there is one tag that can prevent shoplifting, it’s this one. The tags are perfect for awkwardly shaped packaging, like binoculars. The ones I had were three alarm, but if you can also go with a 2 alarm to save a little on the cost. So that means they will sound the EAS podium if taken out, alarm if someone tampers with them on the floor, and emit an audible alert once taken past the EAS pedestal.
I was able to tag every item I had over $99 with what I had on hand. My other store down the road didn’t react to the direction I sent and shoplifters targeted the product almost immediately, whereas, we didn’t lose a single unit that was secured with an Alpha Spider Wrap. Could that be fluke? Absolutely not! Shoplifters are like water, where they will take the path of least resistance. If they are targeting a specific item and it’s secured with an EAS device, chances are, they will continue “shopping” until they find a place where those items are unsecured and free for the taking. I’ve personally watched as shoplifters will systematically go through racks and racks of clothing, looking for that one item that was looked over and isn’t secured with an EAS device. Don’t let it happen to you!
While not everyone can prevent shoplifting completely, and not every EAS device is completely impervious to defeat, Alpha Spider Wraps are my go-to tag whenever I need to be confident that a high dollar item won’t grow legs!
Get more information on Alpha Spider Wraps, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 today.
I was in my store the other day when I noticed some new products being unboxed by the store team members. It was a line of binoculars and the corresponding PDQ display. It was an entire line from this vendor, so the prices ranged from about $20 all the way up to $350. The only problem was that no one in the buying office thought about how we would prevent shoplifting here. Pretty much par for the course.
The store gets the fixture set up and it is abundantly clear that these high end items are going to be a target for thieves. There’s no peg on the fixture, so I can’t use a peg-lock. A hard pencil tag wouldn’t be very effective and a soft tag just wouldn’t do much in this particular situation. I start rummaging through the warehouse trying to find something to protect my profits with. There, in a corner, I see a box. “Alpha Spider Wraps’ on the side. I think I found what will work.
I’m a huge fan of the Alpha Spider Wraps; I just forgot I had a box in the warehouse. If there is one tag that can prevent shoplifting, it’s this one. The tags are perfect for awkwardly shaped packaging, like binoculars. The ones I had were three alarm, but if you can also go with a 2 alarm to save a little on the cost. So that means they will sound the EAS podium if taken out, alarm if someone tampers with them on the floor, and emit an audible alert once taken past the EAS pedestal.
I was able to tag every item I had over $99 with what I had on hand. My other store down the road didn’t react to the direction I sent and shoplifters targeted the product almost immediately, whereas, we didn’t lose a single unit that was secured with an Alpha Spider Wrap. Could that be fluke? Absolutely not! Shoplifters are like water, where they will take the path of least resistance. If they are targeting a specific item and it’s secured with an EAS device, chances are, they will continue “shopping” until they find a place where those items are unsecured and free for the taking. I’ve personally watched as shoplifters will systematically go through racks and racks of clothing, looking for that one item that was looked over and isn’t secured with an EAS device. Don’t let it happen to you!
While not everyone can prevent shoplifting completely, and not every EAS device is completely impervious to defeat, Alpha Spider Wraps are my go-to tag whenever I need to be confident that a high dollar item won’t grow legs!
Get more information on Alpha Spider Wraps, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 today.
Clothing Security- 3 WC Blog 212
Clothing Security Tags-3
Checkpoint Tags-5
Checkpoint Tags Eliminated Need To Chase Shoplifters
Chasing shoplifters has become taboo in the retail industry as companies have determined the risks to employees, as well as the shoplifters are too great. There was a time though, when there were few rules governing pursuit and I was fortunate to have worked as a Loss Prevention Officer for a department store when it was still permitted. I will say, in hindsight and the benefit of years of wisdom, chasing is not smart, no merchandise is more valuable than someone’s well-being and safety. That said, those chases sometimes resulted in some funny stories. I had one incident when a young man decided to steal a ball cap or a couple of ball caps from our store. I don’t recall how many he was taking for sure. We had clothing security tags on some of our clothes but at that point, we had not started tagging baseball hats and he tried to take advantage of it.
To clarify for some readers who may be new to retail or merchandise protection, clothing security tags come in a variety of types and styles. There are some manufacturers that provide clothing security by incorporating electronic article surveillance (EAS) tags in their manufacturer hang tags. Frequently, Checkpoint Tags are used for this because of their reliability to activate EAS antennas when someone tries to sneak tagged items out of a store. Checkpoint Tags also come in hard tag designs that are easily seen and deter theft because shoplifters know that they will activate antennas. They also know how difficult clothing security hard tags are to defeat and remove from merchandise. Generally, tampering with these types of tags damages merchandise and renders them unserviceable. Checkpoint Tags of all types provide retailers with security against theft and therefore aid in increasing the profits of a store.
As I mentioned, the young man in this situation was looking at ball caps and I was watching him on closed circuit television because he was in an area of the store where shortage was high. When he decided on a hat(s) he did the usual shoplifter moves of looking around and up at the ceiling. I’ve never understood the looking at the ceiling because you can’t see the camera inside the dome, but that is a story for another time. When the shoplifter apparently felt it was safe, he pulled off the manufacturer tags not knowing if they had Checkpoint tags in them I suppose, and hid the hat(s) under his shirt. I left the office and followed him as he exited the store. I identified myself to him, told him I wanted to talk to him about the hat under his shirt and he decided to run. “Here we go again!” I thought as I took off after him. I chased my culprit across a street to a restaurant where he stopped and sat down on the sidewalk. He decided he was too tired and out of breath to continue…I could sympathize, I was pretty tired too. I put him in a control position so he couldn’t run anymore before the police arrived. While we waited I asked if he had anything on him that he wouldn’t want the police to find. He said he did and asked if he could hide it under the newspaper rack next to him. I told him that was fine with me. He pulled out a scale used for weighing marijuana and hid it under the rack. When the police arrived they handcuffed the suspect, and I told them about the scale the suspect had hidden. They pulled it out and added a charge of possessing drug paraphernalia to his shoplifting crime. The suspect looked at me in disbelief and said, “I thought you said I could hide it!” I reminded him I did allow him to hide it, I kept my word, I just never said I wouldn’t tell the police where it was. I was always careful about what I would tell a shoplifter and I would never promise what I couldn’t or wouldn’t deliver.
As our company expanded the use of clothing security on merchandise, eventually we did find a clothing security tag that we used on baseball hats. As we did use them, the theft in that department dropped dramatically. Try them out yourself and see the benefits of using clothing security tags and more specifically, Checkpoint tags to prevent shoplifting. They can also prevent the need to chase a thief!
Need information on Checkpoint Tags? Give us a call at 1.770.426.0547 now.
Chasing shoplifters has become taboo in the retail industry as companies have determined the risks to employees, as well as the shoplifters are too great. There was a time though, when there were few rules governing pursuit and I was fortunate to have worked as a Loss Prevention Officer for a department store when it was still permitted. I will say, in hindsight and the benefit of years of wisdom, chasing is not smart, no merchandise is more valuable than someone’s well-being and safety. That said, those chases sometimes resulted in some funny stories. I had one incident when a young man decided to steal a ball cap or a couple of ball caps from our store I don’t recall how many he was taking for sure. We had clothing security tags on some of our clothes but at that point, we had not started tagging baseball hats and he tried to take advantage of it.
To clarify for some readers who may be new to retail or merchandise protection, clothing security tags come in a variety of types and styles. There are some manufacturers that provide clothing security by incorporating electronic article surveillance (EAS) tags in their manufacturer hang tags. Frequently, Checkpoint Tags are used for this because of their reliability to activate EAS antennas when someone tries to sneak tagged items out of a store. Checkpoint Tags also come in hard tag designs that are easily seen and deter theft because shoplifters know that they will activate antennas. They also know how difficult clothing security hard tags are to defeat and remove from merchandise. Generally, tampering with these types of tags damages merchandise and renders them unserviceable. Checkpoint Tags of all types provide retailers with security against theft and therefore aid in increasing the profits of a store.
As I mentioned, the young man in this situation was looking at ball caps and I was watching him on closed circuit television because he was in an area of the store where shortage was high. When he decided on a hat(s) he did the usual shoplifter moves of looking around and up at the ceiling. I’ve never understood the looking at the ceiling because you can’t see the camera inside the dome, but that is a story for another time. When the shoplifter apparently felt it was safe, he pulled off the manufacturer tags not knowing if they had Checkpoint tags in them I suppose, and hid the hat(s) under his shirt. I left the office and followed him as he exited the store. I identified myself to him, told him I wanted to talk to him about the hat under his shirt and he decided to run. “Here we go again!” I thought as I took off after him. I chased my culprit across a street to a restaurant where he stopped and sat down on the sidewalk. He decided he was too tired and out of breath to continue…I could sympathize, I was pretty tired too. I put him in a control position so he couldn’t run anymore before the police arrived. While we waited I asked if he had anything on him that he wouldn’t want the police to find. He said he did and asked if he could hide it under the newspaper rack next to him. I told him that was fine with me. He pulled out a scale used for weighing marijuana and hid it under the rack. When the police arrived they handcuffed the suspect, and I told them about the scale the suspect had hidden. They pulled it out and added a charge of possessing drug paraphernalia to his shoplifting crime. The suspect looked at me in disbelief and said, “I thought you said I could hide it!” I reminded him I did allow him to hide it, I kept my word, I just never said I wouldn’t tell the police where it was. I was always careful about what I would tell a shoplifter and I would never promise what I couldn’t or wouldn’t deliver.
As our company expanded the use of clothing security on merchandise, eventually we did find a clothing security tag that we used on baseball hats. As we did use them, the theft in that department dropped dramatically. Try them out yourself and see the benefits of using clothing security tags and more specifically, Checkpoint tags to prevent shoplifting. They can also prevent the need to chase a thief!
Need information on Checkpoint Tags? Give us a call at 1.770.426.0547 now.
PROTECTING FRAGRANCE FROM SHOPLIFTERS
Over the past couple of years, I have forged a partnership with law enforcement agencies and fellow retailers across my home state. I call it the “LEARN” program. (Law Enforcement and Retail Network). It all started when I just got fed up with the amount of shoplifting I was dealing with. We were doing all we possible could to prevent shoplifting in our store, but the thieves were continually targeting us. I approached my local sheriff’s office and partnered up with a great detective.
We began working together and eventually started going retailer to retailer, talking to managers and especially the loss prevention staff. We’d collect email addresses and when someone had a shoplifter, we’d share that information with the group. Over the years the group has grown larger and larger. There are over 150 different retailers in my state participating, along with dozens of law enforcement agencies. If someone steals and gets away, we are usually able to identify them with relative ease. We also hold quarterly conference to share intel and discuss crime patterns. While our store teams are doing everything in their power to prevent shoplifting, we are constantly investigating it on the backside.
Just recently, an email was shared from a local merchant that specializes in designer clothing and fragrances. Apparently, even though price-points for some bottles approach $100, they’ve never thought to use EAS devices to protect fragrance. The email was contained some still images of a couple boosters that cleaned them out on a certain line of perfume. They were hoping someone could identify the clean smelling cohorts so they could attempt to recover their bouquet of bounty.
A few days later, the same merchant sent out another “BOLO” regarding the same duo. They had targeted another store location and cleaned up another haul of perfume. Seriously guys, if this is a popular target, there are several options available that can help you protect fragrance. This time, the photos were a little better quality and I immediately recognized one of the shoplifters. I kid you not, her name is Essence. Law enforcement was able to track her down and luckily for the store, a large portion of their product was recovered before it could be sold through various online mediums.
How many of you out there, reading this right now are in the same boat? You try to prevent shoplifting by using the latest technology, but there are those commonly stolen items that you simply overlook. If you sell high end fragrance, then PROTECT FRAGRANCE with keeper boxes!
For more information about Alpha Keepers contact us or call 1.770.426.0547.
Over the past couple of years, I have forged a partnership with law enforcement agencies and fellow retailers across my home state. I call it the “LEARN” program. (Law Enforcement and Retail Network). It all started when I just got fed up with the amount of shoplifting I was dealing with. We were doing all we possible could to prevent shoplifting in our store, but the thieves were continually targeting us. I approached my local sheriff’s office and partnered up with a great detective.
We began working together and eventually started going retailer to retailer, talking to managers and especially the loss prevention staff. We’d collect email addresses and when someone had a shoplifter, we’d share that information with the group. Over the years the group has grown larger and larger. There are over 150 different retailers in my state participating, along with dozens of law enforcement agencies. If someone steals and gets away, we are usually able to identify them with relative ease. We also hold quarterly conference to share intel and discuss crime patterns. While our store teams are doing everything in their power to prevent shoplifting, we are constantly investigating it on the backside.
Just recently, an email was shared from a local merchant that specializes in designer clothing and fragrances. Apparently, even though price-points for some bottles approach $100, they’ve never thought to use EAS devices to protect fragrance. The email contained some still images of a couple boosters that cleaned them out on a certain line of perfume. They were hoping someone could identify the clean smelling cohorts so they could attempt to recover their bouquet of bounty.
A few days later, the same merchant sent out another “BOLO” regarding the same duo. They had targeted another store location and cleaned up another haul of perfume. Seriously guys, if this is a popular target, there are several options available that can help you protect fragrance. This time, the photos were a little better quality and I immediately recognized one of the shoplifters. I kid you not, her name is Essence. Law enforcement was able to track her down and luckily for the store, a large portion of their product was recovered before it could be sold through various online mediums.
How many of you out there, reading this right now are in the same boat? You try to prevent shoplifting by using the latest technology, but there are those commonly stolen items that you simply overlook. If you sell high end fragrance, then PROTECT FRAGRANCE with keeper boxes!
For more information about Alpha Keepers contact us or call 1.770.426.0547.
