anti-theft devices

SOCIAL MEDIA AND ITS BENEFITS TO A LOSS PREVENTION PROGRAM

February 8, 2016 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

Over the past five years or so, social media platforms have exploded. Sites like Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram are essentially a one stop shop for all your news, entertainment and whatever your Aunt Dolly is doing today… Like most Americans, I visit these websites frequently throughout the day (although, I am weaning myself off this addiction slowly, but surely). Businesses have also been quick to jump on the bandwagon and have found that direct to consumer marketing, especially the free kind of marketing, can really help a small business soar. With so many people, places and things interconnected, you can see how the Loss Prevention Industry uses these platforms to not only aid in investigations, but to help track down fencing operations, retail ORC groups and even dishonest employees.

About a month or so ago, I was scrolling through a Facebook “online garage sale group” in my area. A few scrolls down, I noticed a guy was selling a store merchandise credit from one of my stores. I looked up the name in our internal system for any hits and sure enough, it was an employee at one of my stores. A little investigating showed that he had conducted a return of a high end baseball bat, but according to our sales records, the store he worked in had not sold that particular sku. Furthermore, inventory data showed that store to be missing one unit. A little more leg work, and I was able to determine that the employee had altered the price on a high end bat, purchasing it for only a few dollars. He returned the bat for full value at another store and posted the credit on Facebook to sell. From our research, he had done this about a dozen or so times with various merchandise. I was able to make a pretty substantial case from a lead generated from social media.

Take things a little further. Most of you reading this are small business owners. Chances are, you don’t have some large Loss Prevention department; heck, your LP department might be the 16 cameras you have set up in your store. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with that; in fact, without the hassle of a large company’s legal department, you have more freedom with those CCTV images of a thief than I do. Most police departments and sheriff’s offices around the country have also been accepting of a social media presence. From the community outreach and the ability to hear concerns directly from citizens, it’s a great way for law enforcement to take a big step into the future. This also gives those agencies the ability to share BOLOs with an enormous amount of people.

Not two weeks ago, a local sheriff’s office shared some CCTV images from a clothing boutique store that showed a female shoplifter, who made away with several hundred dollars in clothing. The boutique had a very good camera system and shared those images from their Facebook page to the Sheriff’s Office page, who in turn shared it with their followers. Literally, within 30 minutes, the comment section was full of tips, eventually leading to the shoplifter’s identity. Heck, some people even began tagging this woman in her own wanted poster. Classic. Without this platform, this crime may have gone unsolved, and that business would have taken a hit out of their own pockets.

While social media can boost sales and drive traffic into your store, it can only be a great tool to reduce shrink. The ability to quickly search through your employee’s friends, or search in wanted ads for particular items and the ability to share CCTV images quickly and with great success, makes social media almost a necessity of today’s small business’s plan to combat shrink and increase profitability.

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STAYING SAFE DURING AN APPREHENSION

February 8, 2016 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

What is the most important factor to consider when you make a shoplifting apprehension?

Safety. There is no single factor that is stressed more heavily within my department than personal safety when making a shoplifting detention. Not only do I implore my teams to be vigilant of possible weapons, but to also make sound business decisions before making a detention that could jeopardize their safety, the safety of the employees of the store and the safety of our customers. In the blink of an eye, what seems like another routine apprehension can quickly turn violent.

Play by the rules.

Our industry, over the past decades, has come a long way from the days of chasing down shoplifters by any means necessary. We’ve evolved from brute strength and a show of force, to a more pro-active and analytical approach to shrink, especially the way we approach shoplifting incidents. Enter the 5 steps for an apprehension. Selection, display intent, conceal, maintain visual, exit store. Every LP department, for the most part, has adopted this. In addition to no touch policies, this greatly reduces the chances for an apprehension to become physical in nature.

Cooler heads will always prevail

Hiring someone that cannot control their own temper is a dreaded mistake. Even I am not immune to making this type of mistake. Granted, we ask our agents (and ourselves) to be there to stop someone from stealing from us. Shoplifters come from different backgrounds, and often we are facing career criminals, or those with drug addictions that are not in a stable mindset. More often than not, the shoplifter will immediately escalate a detention from the moment they are approached. How many times have you stopped someone and they immediately began yelling at the top of the lungs every swear words known to man? I experienced this three times this past week for me. This is where a calm, collective LP professional is most needed. What if you started yelling and screaming back? Chances are, things will get ugly. My advice is simple. Act like an airline pilot. It doesn’t matter if the wings are on fire and you’re hurtling towards the earth at 500 mph. That pilot will still speak in the same tone and pace. It’s to keep the masses calm. This technique works great with rowdy shoplifters too.

What if I’m faced with a weapon?

This has happened to me personally on 3 occasions. Once, a heroin addict pulled a knife on me. The second time, a firearm fell from the pants of a shoplifter and the third, my personal favorite, is when I was pepper sprayed by a shoplifter. Even though it was hard to do so (especially my sprayer), I immediately disengaged the apprehension and allowed them to make quick egress of the store. Yeah, I was pretty upset for a day or so that they got away, but the end result is that no one got hurt. That’s the key; there is nothing in your store that is worth sacrificing the safety of anyone for.

There really isn’t another job in the retail industry where personal safety can be compromised in the blink of an eye. I bet that guys in the IT department never have to worry about being pushed to the ground by a maniac as they try to run out of the store with $2,000 worth of cologne. LP is a unique business. We thrive on what others shy away from. While you’re out this week busting thief after thief, please remember your safety, and the safety of those around should take absolute priority above all else. There is nothing in your store that is worth the risk of injury. Be safe and happy hunting.

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Shoplifting And Organized Shoplifting Rings

February 3, 2016 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

For a long time now police departments across the United States have been working closely with retailers in their areas to protect their stores, the safety of customers and residents alike. The cost associated with shoplifting goes beyond the loses it causes to the retail store and consumers, and violent crimes associated with shoplifting keeps police departments busy and the crime rate increase is bad for business.

For more about shoplifting follow the links below.

Shoplifting putting the pinch on police, businesses

Shoplifting is a significant problem that costs retailers as well as consumers, and may lead to other crimes, according to Martinsville’s Police Chief.

Shoplifting accounted for a fifth of Martinsville’s total Part I crimes in 2014 – crimes that are the best indicator of the safety of citizens, including violent and property crimes, Police Chief Sean Dunn said. Shoplifting accounted for 92 of the city’s 441 total Part 1 crimes (nearly 21 percent) in 2014.

“This is a significant cost to our local retailers, which certainly translates to a higher cost for all of us. As a result of the large percentage of shoplifting incidents, we decided to tackle this from a department-wide approach and enhance our partnership with the business community,” Dunn said.

The Martinsville Police Department’s initial response included patrol officers making periodic stops at local businesses “to deter unlawful activity and to reinforce with the business community their importance to us,” Dunn said.

Observation skills, quick thinking help prevent shoplifting

About 27 million shoplifters live in the United States today, with offenders spanning generations.

According to the National Association for Shoplifting Prevention (NASP), that means 1 in 11 people have shoplifted. There is no “typical” offender.

“It could be anybody,” said Nathan Hershley, the security supervisor at East Hills Shopping Center. “I’ve personally dealt with (shoplifters) from 14 years old, clear up into their 50s.”

Shoplifters target all types of stores, according to NASP — from drug stores to supermarkets, convenience stores and even thrift shops.

Store employees and customers who shop there play an important role in helping catch anyone suspected of stealing. Staying alert for suspicious behavior and catching the suspect(s) on photo or video can help authorities make an arrest.

Along with holiday thefts, stores see increase in organized shoplifting rings

Experts say organized crime rings are on the rise. A September survey by the National Retail Federation showed 97 percent of retailers contacted believed they were victims of organized retail crime within the last year. Almost half reported a “significant” increase in such crimes.

Jan. 02–Supermarkets across Central Florida were puzzled after more than $50,000 worth of merchandise vanished from shelves.

It wasn’t the result of closeout deals or the green-haired Christmas villain known as the Grinch making off with cartloads of products from Publix and Winn-Dixie stores. Rather, a posse of Central Floridians pilfered pricey grocery stock such as Crest White Strips and Gillette razors from almost 100 stores.

Security camera footage eventually revealed the coordinated thievery, which led to the arrests of five suspects. The organized shoplifting ring busted in August is part of a growing trend that has stores on their toes, especially with the increases of retail theft around the holiday season.

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Using Employee Engagement To Prevent Shoplifting

January 18, 2016 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

There is no question that employee happiness in the workplace can be an asset to your company. Happy employees that are valued can give a business the edge they need to make their business a success. Happy employees are less likely to steal from you, and are less likely to call off regularly. Having employees that feel appreciated can be an advantage to your retail business, and a tool to prevent shoplifting.

For more about shoplifting, follow the links below.

Retailers Experience Success Due to Employee Engagement

Expert advice on how retailers can craft customized services in order to strengthen financial performance through greater quality of management and employee engagement.

Management consultant Oliver “O. Lee” Mincey, who focuses on employee engagement and the attributes of great management, has nearly 25 years of training and leadership development experience. He has developed training and learning programs positively impacting well over 40,000 people for clients and previous employers including Six Flags, Disney, Universal Studios and House of Blues.

Founded in 2009, Oliver Mincey Co. designs strategies to help clients solve their most complex and interesting leadership and employee engagement challenges. Engagement helps reduce costs associated with poor employee retention, relations and morale. Its core values are: Do what is right, always; take ownership and get it done; inspire passion for people; focus on outcomes; fuel growth and innovation for both us and our clients; and embrace good cheer.

Mincey shared five tips for great management and his secrets of employee engagement. A great manager, he said:

Online crime system blitz on retail theft

A new cloud-based crime reporting system could prevent up to $2 million of retail thefts every day.

Police have teamed up with Auckland-based company Auror who developed software that streamlines crime reporting processes.

The software will be rolled out nationally after successful trials in Counties Manukau and Canterbury.

The software enables retailers to complete incident reports and provide relevant information to police about thefts including shoplifting and petrol drive-offs, and other incidents.

The information can be shared between retailers to prevent further offending.

A Police National Headquarters spokeswoman said all information shared through the Auror portal was automatically forwarded to the police crime reporting line.

SeeTec Cayuga BVI Retail Combines Article Surveillance With Video Analytics For Retail Security

If you believe recent surveys to be true, commercial damage in Germany caused by retail shrinkage accounts for about 3.8 billion Euro per year – this is one per cent of the total turnover of this industry. More than half of this is caused by shoplifting. Another 40 % of the total amount can be related in equal terms to employees and suppliers.

The retail industry’s answer to this enormous volume of damage is obvious: prevention and investigation by combining traditional article surveillance and intelligent video technology. Video-based systems do not only reduce retail shrinkage. They can also be used to better understand customers and their buying behaviorand to optimize the sales approach. SeeTec Cayuga BVI Retail provides solutions for both requirements.

Challenges Faced By Retail Business

Highstreet retail businesses don’t have an easy time: Online trading provides maximum price transparency and therefore puts enormous pressure on the margins through a plain cost structure and 24/7 opening hours.

CHRISTMAS EVE CHALLENGE

January 18, 2016 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

I thought I’d take a lighter note and share some post-holiday humor. It was quite an eventful end of December for me and my team. We definitely had our share of idiot shoplifters. A few stood out that really deserved to be on the highlight reel. I hope you enjoy these as much as I did!

Every year, I make it a point to work extra hard to catch a thief on Christmas Eve. Some people call me cold, but why should I pay for gifts for someone that doesn’t want to work? They are, in fact, robbing me of my bonus! So I found myself working Christmas Eve with my top agent, at our highest shrink store. I was, in fact, stacking the deck. About noon-ish, I notice a guy practically running through the store with a shopping cart. Not too odd, given that most people are picking up last minute gifts. I watched as he loaded three motorized scooters into his cart and dashed over to the shoes. There, he asked an employee where this year’s hottest shoes were. Once shown, he threw 4 pairs in the buggy and headed to the apparel section. I stopped watching at this point and made my way around the store. As luck would have it, we intersected paths and my suspect raced down a secluded aisle. He emerged from the next aisle, as I was standing there. He rushed passed me and I noticed that his shoes were now concealed in shopping bags and he was headed to the doors. I called my agent and by the time he answered, my guy was out the door! I love a good push out.

We catch up to him under the patio and he ditches the basket and breaks out running through the parking lot. We break off and relay his direction of flight to local law enforcement. To my amazement he stops running and ducks into retailer next door. Police arrive and we both enter the store to identify him. It didn’t take long for us to find the guy, standing in the magazine section, pretending to read an upside down edition of the Times, sweating profusely, and practically wheezing. He then tried to run from the police. Seriously, I have no idea where he got the energy… On his second run, he was (un) lucky enough to knock an officer to the ground. That officer was in no mood to run; Hunter was, though. That Belgian Malinois broke out of the patrol car faster than American Pharoah at Belmont Stakes. It was awesome. I’m also 10/10 on throwing a thief in jail on Christmas Eve. In case you were keeping score.

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FISCAL INVENTORIES FROM AN LP POINT OF VIEW

January 18, 2016 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

With January the last month fiscal month for plenty of retailers, we can all look forward to *drum roll* INVENTORIES!! Wait, am I the only one excited to count millions of pieces of merchandise in a single night? I’ve always been the odd-ball in my department I guess. Inventory is a great way to start a new fiscal year off. Clean inventory counts, accurate pricing and getting back in stock is the key to making sales in the 1^st quarter. Remember, customer service starts with being in stock!

I am responsible for nearly 30 stores, so it’s practically impossible for me to get out each store’s annual inventory, however I do manage to see a few. I’ve also built up quite a few pointers, from an LP perspective that is aimed at helping managers and making the counting process that much easier. As my Christmas gift to you, I’ll share my top 5 best practices.

Do you have basedecks?

Those are the bottom shelves of your gondolas. They make great hiding spots for employees to stash product. About one week prior to inventory night, it would be a wise idea to assign someone to go aisle by aisle, lifting up every single basedeck in the store. I normally find the equivalent to 5-7 shopping baskets of product hidden underneath. This equates to thousands of dollars that would have otherwise been written off as shrink.

What about warehouses, common areas and offices?

I find these ripe with stashed product and it drives me up the wall. Again, look in all areas that are common “hiding places” to pull all of that product out so it can either be sold… or counted.

You don’t have time to look for SKUs on inventory night!

This one is aimed at soft goods and apparel mainly. I’ve seen stores write off hundreds of apparel items because a sku could not be located 13 hours into the count. Go rack to rack, at least a few days prior and make sure everything is tagged with a scannable bar-code. Trust me, this will save you time, energy and money on inventory night.

Do you have storage containers?

You would not believe how many times I’ve seen stores post losses of $10k+ on inventory night, only to realize 3 days later that they failed to scan an entire storage trailer of product x. Don’t be this store. I find that pre-counting these areas is much more effective than counting on inventory night. Just don’t forget about them!

Don’t let just any associate scan/count!

This is for you retailers out there that scan your own inventory and who don’t rely on an outside agency. I see it year, after year. Managers try to get as many people scheduled to work that night, and now your trusting some of your worst employees with your greatest financial investment (your inventory). Choose quality over quantity. Please, believe me when I say this; 1 person can completely ruin an inventory. One lazy employee who is 1 tardy away from being terminated does not care one bit about your shrink and how it affects the store’s bottom line, or your pockets. I beg you, please only let those that have a vested interest in your store conduct your inventory. I’ve seen cases where one employee had single-handedly scanned an entire stock of baseball bats as one single sku. This mistake wasn’t caught until replenishment on every single bat started hitting the stores. It was a complete disaster. Don’t let this happen to you!

I hope you all had a safe and enjoyable New Years. I hope 2016 is profitable, prosperous and full of (good) surprises. I hope your 2015 inventory is just the same.

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Merchandise Return Fraud

December 30, 2015 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

Shoplifting during the holidays is a big problem for retailers in the United States. The holiday season brings more customers into their stores, but shoplifters know this and they take advantage of this fact to go into the stores and walk out with hundreds of dollars in stolen merchandise. But after the holidays, you are dealing with another kind of fraud. Merchandise return fraud has seen an increase over the previous year, and retailers now have to deal with this problem after the holidays are over.

For more about this and other topics, follow the links below.

Post-Holiday Merchandise Return Fraud

Retail theft statistics show that the vast majority of returns are legitimate and part of doing business as a retailer.

Returns and return fraud are a big issue—and getting bigger. In 2014, $284 billion worth of retail merchandise was returned in the United States,according to the Retail Equation. That represented a 6.2% increase over the prior year, and 2015’s numbers are expected to grow even higher. Brick-and-mortar stores report returns in the 5-10 percent range. E-commerce retailers report numbers averaging 10-15 percent, with returns of apparel running as high as 20-30 percent. The research firm IHL Group estimates that, overall, returns cost retailers 4.4 percent in revenue that is lost on items that can’t be resold or must be discarded.

Within the retail loss prevention community, when returns are mentioned, most focus on return fraud. To be sure, it is a huge issue with volume estimated at $9.1 billion, again according to The Retail Equation. When return abuse is added in, that number jumps to an estimated $15.9 billion. But, as large as these numbers are, it is estimated that return fraud and abuse only make up about 6.1 percent of returns. So 94 percent of all return transactions (equating to $245 billion) are legitimate.

Retailers Estimate Holiday Return Fraud Will Cost Them $3.8 Billion, According to NRF Survey

WASHINGTON, December 19, 2014 – Techniques and processes put in place to thwart criminal activity around retailers’ return policies continue to be put to the test, and with steadily improving retail sales, even more is on the line when it comes to losses from return fraud.

According to the National Retail Federation’s 2014 Return Fraud Survey* completed by loss prevention executives at 60 retail companies representing grocery, department, discount, specialty and small retailers, the industry will lose an estimated $10.9 billion to return fraud this year. Additionally, of those surveyed, retailers estimate $3.8 billion will be lost to return fraud this holiday season alone, up slightly from last year’s $3.4 billion. Overall, retailers polled estimate 5.5 percent of holiday returns are fraudulent, similar to last year’s 5.8 percent.

“Today’s sophisticated technology does well keeping criminals at arm’s length but often isn’t enough to completely stop the unethical practices of organized and individual retail fraud occurrences,” said NRF Vice President of Loss Prevention Bob Moraca. “Return fraud has become an unfortunate trend in retail thanks to thieves taking advantage of retailers’ return policies to benefit from the cash or store credit they don’t deserve. Additionally, many of these return fraud instances are a direct result of larger, more experienced crime rings that continue to pose serious threats to retailers’ operations and their bottom lines.”

Reflects on How a Shoplifting Charge Changed Her Life

Shoplifting consequences that ended a 35-year career in journalism.

On February 11, 2012, officers of the Tucson Police Department cited former Tucson KVOA news anchor Martha Vazquez on a shoplifting charge. According to the report that was filed, Vazquez was cited for shoplifting at the Dillard’s in the Tucson Mall after a loss prevention officer observed her conceal an Eileen Fisher jacket value at $338.00. After she was detained, a search of her belongings also yielded a pair of Kenneth Cole sunglasses valued at $30 that had also been shoplifted.

Vazquez said that after the shoplifting charges ended her 35-year career in broadcast journalism, her life hit “rock bottom.” She resigned her prominent position, sank into a deep depression and left Tucson for Washington State. Now, Vazquez says the time that she spent out of the public eye in Washington after her incident in 2012, was “a healing journey.” She is now back in Tucson; is being treated for depression and says that she wants to help others.

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Shoplifting Prevention and Tips

December 22, 2015 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

The security of your store during the holiday season is often tested to the limits by the quantity of customers and employees that enter your store daily. Preventing employee theft and shoplifting during this time of year is not something you expect to accomplish 100% of the time, but if you have preventive measures and procedures in place, you can minimize your loses and keep your employees and customers safe. If you need more tips or information about this topic, follow the links below to read more.

Business Owner’s Rights for Shoplifters

Shoplifting is a major expense for many businesses. A retailer suffers a loss from the unpaid merchandise, and it has the added expense of surveillance equipment and personnel. Each state enacts its own shoplifting laws that should be read by the prudent business owner. While an employee may be justifiably angry when he witnesses a crime in progress, he must follow the store policy or face the possibility of the thief suing him and the store for a violation of his civil rights.

Surveillance

Most consumers realize that the majority of stores have security cameras installed inside and outside the building. In addition, loss prevention specialists walk the aisles looking for suspicious activity and responding to alerts from the monitors. What people may not realize is that the insides of dressing rooms are under surveillance in at least one major department store. On July 21, 2011 Channel 10 News in Tampa Bay, Florida, reported that Macy’s flips the doors to dressing rooms so the slats face downward. This allows anyone — or any camera — outside the room to see in, although that’s not obvious to the customer inside the room trying on clothes.

SHOPLIFTERS STEAL AN AVERAGE OF $134 EACH TIME

November and December are peak months for shoplifting. Not really a surprise. Shoplifting increases 10 percent or more during the holidays, according to security companies.

Retailers are getting better at preventing shoplifting and recovering some of their merchandise, but the losses are still staggering. The average value of items stolen per case is $134.

Over $10 billion in merchandise is lost annually, according to University of Florida research of the nation’s largest retailers, and just $159 million in stolen merchandise was recovered in 2014. Another $82 million was recovered when the shoplifter got away.

Nearly 1.2 million shoplifters were caught in 2014, an increase in apprehensions of 7.4 percent over the previous year, according to the annual retail theft survey by Jack Hayes International, a loss prevention consulting firm. The survey included 25 large retailers with over $700 billion in sales and 23,250 stores.

10 Tips to Prevent Shoplifting

Shrinkage, or retail theft, can have a serious impact on your bottom line. The National Association for Shoplifting Prevention says more than $35 million worth of goods are stolen from retailers every day. And while all businesses are susceptible to shoplifting, some — like clothing, book and jewelry sellers — are more so.

While teaching your staff to spot and handle shoplifters properly is a crucial deterrent, you can also implement store design tactics to help prevent stealing. Here are 10 of the best ways your retail small business can deter shoplifters today:

Maximize Visibility: Keeping an eye on merchandise is the first step in loss prevention. Place shorter displays close to the register and taller displays near the perimeter of the store so all merchandise is completely visible from your perch. Use mirrors to eliminate any blind spots, and be sure to keep your store neat and tidy, so employees can tell at a glance if something is missing or out of place.

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Employee Theft

December 16, 2015 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

Shoplifting costs the retail industry million of dollars daily. The harm done to the businesses and the economy in general is socially and economically harmful, but employee theft hurts the company’s culture, damages trust between owners and employees, and financially are responsible for billions of dollars that companies lose due to this horrible crime. For more about this topic follow the links below.

A New Employee Theft Study

An Analysis of Employee Theft at a Specialty Retailer.

When I was a doctoral graduate student at the University of Minnesota during the late 1970s, I began conducting research on employee theft. At the time this was an area of criminology that was virtually unexplored. I found that it was very hard to study this subject then, since few retailers were willing to let a social scientist have full access to the records on this subject. Over forty years later, the scholarly literature on dishonesty in the workplace is still understudied and poorly understood despite the best efforts of a handful of researchers.

As such, I am always on the lookout for new and cutting-edge research on this topic. This month I wish to share the results of a quality employee theft study that was recently published as a doctoral dissertation. The author is Dana N. Baxter. She completed her research while studying under Dr. Dennis Giever at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. She finished her dissertation this past spring and graduated in May. She is presently an assistant professor at Davis and Elkins College in West Virginia.

A Snapshot of Employee Theft in the US

The majority of employee thefts are occurring in organizations with 500 employees or less. The sizes and types of thefts vary by industry, but smaller organizations across the spectrum exhibited high incidences of embezzlement overall.

The unfortunate reality of employee theft is every organization is at risk.

When we looked at the totality of federal actions involving employee theft over the calendar year, nearly 72% involved organizations with fewer than 500 employees. Within that data set, we found that four of every five victim organizations had fewer than 100 employees; more than half had fewer than 25 employees. Is there a connection between the size of an organization and the size of the loss? Our research suggests that there may be. While some of the largest losses occurred in organizations with fewer than 50 employees, in the aggregate, we note the following:

U.S. retail workers are No. 1…in employee theft

Light-fingered employees cost American stores (and consumers) more than shoplifters do.

It’s almost Groundhog Day, but for retailers, the holiday season is finally winding down.

“The four months from October through January are when stores see not just their biggest sales volume of the year, but also the most returns and exchanges,” says Ernie Deyle, a 30-year veteran of the retail loss-prevention wars who leads the business consulting practice at London-based data analytics firm Sysrepublic. “Unfortunately, the same four months account for about half of all annual shrinkage.”

That shrinkage, made up of missing goods from shoplifting and other causes, costs U.S. retailers about $42 billion a year, according to the latest Global Retail Theft Barometer, an annual industry study led by Deyle and inventory management firm Checkpoint Systems.

Shoppers pay the price for such theft. The cost of mysteriously vanishing merchandise comes to $403 annually per U.S. household.

Of course, retailers everywhere deal with shrinkage, but there is one big difference between the U.S. and the rest of the world: Globally, dishonest employees are behind about 28% of inventory losses, while shoplifters account for a markedly higher 39%. Not so stateside, the study says, where employee theft accounts for 43% of lost revenue. That’s about $18 billion, or $2.3 billion more than the cost of five-finger discounts taken by customers.

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Preventing Shoplifting This Holiday Season

December 14, 2015 by Staff Editor Leave a Comment

By now the holiday season has been in full force for a few weeks, and the stress your management team, employees and security personnel are feeling is a bit overwhelming. Shoplifters during the holiday season are abundant, and police and retailers try to be more vigilant and proactive by implementing security measures during this time than at any other time of the year. Follow the links below for more information about this and other topics.

Police step up efforts for holiday crime

As the holiday season gets under way, local police are gearing up for the all-too-predictable spike in property crime.

Hanford police Capt. Pat Crowe said officers will be stepping up their game over the next few weeks to deter vehicle burglaries, robberies and other crimes typical of this time of year.

“Every [patrol] shift was tasked with coming up with their own holiday project,” Crowe said.

Crowe said those projects include probation and parole sweeps focusing on individuals with known histories of gang activity, drug-related offenses and property crimes. Foot patrols and motorcycle units will also increase their presence at the Hanford Mall and other major shopping centers.

“Our main focus is to be visible and hopefully deter criminals from doing what they’re going to do,” Crowe said.

Lemoore Police Chief Darrell Smith said each of his department’s patrol shifts also devised a plan to tackle holiday crime. The result was a number of special operations that will unfold through New Year’s Eve.

Police offer tips to stay safe during holidays

If you’re tempted to share your holiday plans or photographs of Christmas loot on social media, local law enforcement officials want you to think twice.

“We live in an age where people put so much information out there about themselves,” said Cindy Kozerow, crime prevention specialist with the Lynchburg Police Department.

“Do not announce on Facebook, ‘Hey, we’re going to grandma’s for the holidays,’ because what that says is ‘Hey, my house is empty, so come and steal my stuff.’”

She explained how the holidays present a unique opportunity for thieves looking to capitalize on people’s good will and sense of safety in their own homes.

Checking in at stores on social media pages or opening window curtains at night to show off decorations lets potential thieves know when your home is empty, and gives them a glimpse of goods stashed under your Christmas tree.

‘Shoplifting Season’ for local businesses

Rogue River, Ore — The holiday shopping season can mean trouble for local businesses as big crowds come in but some say they’re sick and tired of getting ripped off. Sometimes it’s as simple as a Facebook post.

In Rogue River the police are working with one local business to make sure their products stay on the shelves and don’t fall into the hands of thieves.

“We’re a small store, and it really hurts us,” said Justin Norris.

At Rogue River Pharmacy and variety store shoplifting is something assistant manager Justin Norris has to deal with far too often.

“Lately we’ve had a problem with people from out of town coming in and shoplifting,” said Norris.

Rogue River police are looking to put an end to it by posting pictures online of suspected shoplifters and suspicious persons, one of whom confronted a uniformed police officer before leaving empty handed Tuesday.

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