BF017
Alpha Shark Tags -4
Wardrobing -4
Return Fraud -4
WARDROBING ON THE RISE IN HARSH ECONOMIC TIMES
Times are tough for most of us and many of us are doing what we have to do in order to save money. We’re clipping coupons, eating off of the dollar menu at fast food and even buying more efficient lightbulbs for our homes. Some people even cross the pasture of ethicalness right over in the valley of illegality. One of the most common forms of cutting back on the retail side is by engaging in wardrobing. This is quite simply where a customer will legitimately purchase an item of clothing and return it later after they are done using it. It may sound familiar to you as a retailer because if it’s going on in your store, it’s absolutely killing your revenues.
Is wardrobing illegal? Actually, although its considered to be unarguably unethical (and a form of return fraud) it’s not necessary illegal under the eyes of the law. Most jurisdictional courts would argue that a retailer’s posted return policy would supersede any legal ramifications of alleged fraud, directed from a retailer towards a return fraud committing consumer. In this sense, although the person trying to save a buck while acting immorally and wrong, they are just within the guidelines of the stores return policy. It’s sort of a ‘catch 22’ for the store. As a retailer it’s hard to offer comfort for purchases without at least having some sort of an offer in compromise or return policy. So what do you do? Get some Alpha Shark Tags!
These little devices when used with a matching return policy will deliver the much needed brakes to your out of control return fraud issue. Stores use the tags in order to not only assure that the merchandise being returned was purchased from the store but to ensure that customers aren’t just borrowing clothes from you and returning them later. They prevent wardrobing altogether and here’s how they work: The Shark tags attach to your garment in a conspicuous place. They simply take up a little real estate on the garment to let the customer know that it’s there. Once the customer purchases the piece of clothing and takes it home, they have a choice; remove the tag or bring it back to the store for a refund. If the stores return policy requires the Shark tags to be attached to the garment upon return and it is not, no refund will be issued. See the tag is visually obtrusive and too unflattering to worn ‘out on the town’. If the customer plans on using the garment, they’ll need to remove it or run the chance of looking ultra-tacky with a tag hanging off of their clothes. If they remove it, they cannot return it. Plain and simple.
Alpha Shark Tags aren’t meant to prevent direct retail theft in general. They are especially meant for reducing instances of fraud. There are no elements inside that act as triggers for store EAS (Electronic Article Surveillance) systems and it isn’t meant for a visual anti-shoplifting deterrent alone, in the usual sense. It simply lets the customer know that once it’s removed from the garment, it’s not eligible for a refund. These awesome little tags are available for tagging many different types of garments but are especially useful for ‘securing’ short term use garments like prom dresses, shoes, tuxedos, ties, furs and other like article of clothing. Alpha Shark Tags are meant to protect your final sale and your profit margin by reducing cases of return fraud at your service desk. This not only eliminates monetary loss but saves time by not having your associates bogged down with extra returns.
The bottom line is this; nobody wants to purchase new clothes when they have been worn by someone else. They want new, unsoiled, damage free garments. If you allow others to commit fraud by letting wardrobing go on in your store, you not only lose money because you’re having a hard time reselling used merchandise, you can also wind up with dissatisfied customers who wind up with soiled, used stuff. It’s a no-win situation for everyone. Get the Alpha Shark Tags; adjust your merchandise refund policy and your good to go!
For more information on how to prevent return fraud please contact us at 1-770-426-0547.
Times are tough for most of us and many of us are doing what we have to do in order to save money. We’re clipping coupons, eating off of the dollar menu at fast food and even buying more efficient lightbulbs for our homes. Some people even cross the pasture of ethicalness right over in the valley of illegality. One of the most common forms of cutting back on the retail side is by engaging in wardrobing. This is quite simply where a customer will legitimately purchase an item of clothing and return it later after they are done using it. It may sound familiar to you as a retailer because if it’s going on in your store, it’s absolutely killing your revenues.
Is wardrobing illegal? Actually, although its considered to be unarguably unethical (and a form of return fraud) it’s not necessary illegal under the eyes of the law. Most jurisdictional courts would argue that a retailer’s posted return policy would supersede any legal ramifications of alleged fraud, directed from a retailer towards a return fraud committing consumer. In this sense, although the person trying to save a buck while acting immorally and wrong, they are just within the guidelines of the stores return policy. It’s sort of a ‘catch 22’ for the store. As a retailer it’s hard to offer comfort for purchases without at least having some sort of an offer in compromise or return policy. So what do you do? Get some Alpha Shark Tags!
These little devices when used with a matching return policy will deliver the much needed brakes to your out of control return fraud issue. Stores use the tags in order to not only assure that the merchandise being returned was purchased from the store but to ensure that customers aren’t just borrowing clothes from you and returning them later. They prevent wardrobing altogether and here’s how they work: The Shark tags attach to your garment in a conspicuous place. They simply take up a little real estate on the garment to let the customer know that it’s there. Once the customer purchases the piece of clothing and takes it home, they have a choice; remove the tag or bring it back to the store for a refund. If the stores return policy requires the Shark tags to be attached to the garment upon return and it is not, no refund will be issued. See the tag is visually obtrusive and too unflattering to worn ‘out on the town’. If the customer plans on using the garment, they’ll need to remove it or run the chance of looking ultra-tacky with a tag hanging off of their clothes. If they remove it, they cannot return it. Plain and simple.
Alpha Shark Tags aren’t meant to prevent direct retail theft in general. They are especially meant for reducing instances of fraud. There are no elements inside that act as triggers for store EAS (Electronic Article Surveillance) systems and it isn’t meant for a visual anti-shoplifting deterrent alone, in the usual sense. It simply lets the customer know that once it’s removed from the garment, it’s not eligible for a refund. These awesome little tags are available for tagging many different types of garments but are especially useful for ‘securing’ short term use garments like prom dresses, shoes, tuxedos, ties, furs and other like article of clothing. Alpha Shark Tags are meant to protect your final sale and your profit margin by reducing cases of return fraud at your service desk. This not only eliminates monetary loss but saves time by not having your associates bogged down with extra returns.
The bottom line is this; nobody wants to purchase new clothes when they have been worn by someone else. They want new, unsoiled, damage free garments. If you allow others to commit fraud by letting wardrobing go on in your store, you not only lose money because you’re having a hard time reselling used merchandise, you can also wind up with dissatisfied customers who wind up with soiled, used stuff. It’s a no-win situation for everyone. Get the Alpha Shark Tags; adjust your merchandise refund policy and your good to go!
For more information on how to prevent return fraud please contact us at 1-770-426-0547.
