Starting A Better Year

According to the National Association for Shoplifting Prevention-NASP-there are 27 million people that shoplift in the United States today. That is 1 in 11  people, and 75% of those people are adults.  Women shoplift as much as men, and in case you were getting ready to profile an individual, there is no such thing as a profile of a typical shoplifter.

The busiest shopping season has passed, and if you haven’t taken inventory or are in the process of conducting one, you will realized the losses you suffered.  For many stores across the country, the holiday season is the busiest season for sales and hopefully profits, but is also the busiest time for shoplifters. One will hope that shoplifting stops when the holiday season ends, but as always, shoplifting is a year long crime that never ends.

What is there to do then?  Vigilance and preparation can help you prevent some of the shoplifting that happens at your store.

Did you know that good customer service can help you prevent some of the shoplifting at your store?

1. Greet every customer that enters your store and ask them if they need any help
2. Place high value items behind registers or locked up.  If they want the item, they need to have a person helping them unlock it.
3. Have visible signs alerting the customer you will prosecute in case of shoplifting.
4. Make the promise  of prosecuting true.  Believe it or not, shoplifters know which stores are easy target. Which stores have poor security, and which stores cannot really prosecute the shoplifter.
5. If you check social media platforms, you will realize that there are groups of individuals that ask advice about which store they should target.  The help from other shoplifters is amazing, but you can learn whether your store is targeted and how they go about it.

Prevention, trained personnel, and clear policies and procedures can help your store and profits stay afloat.  The policies and procedures from store to store will change, but the underlying goal is the same.  Prevent losses or at least minimize the amount your store losses to shoplifting and employee theft by having clear goals and exceptionally well trained employees.