10 Tips to Beat Shoplifters

by Mike Delaney

Studies have shown that, in the United States, as many as
one in twelve customers is a shoplifter, and that
shoplifters commit an average of 50 thefts before being
caught. That's if they are caught at all; it's estimated
that only 10-15% are apprehended.

There are vast numbers of tips circulating regarding how to
deter shoplifting. With over 20 years' experience as a
shoplifter, I know which are effective, and which are a
waste of time. Here are a few battle-tested and inexpensive
things you can do to minimize shoplifting in your store.

1. FIX YOUR FIXTURES
In most cases, shoplifters require privacy in order to
conceal merchandise. This is especially true with small
specialty shops that the arrangement of the fixtures creates
many areas for the shoplifter to be hidden from sight.

Determine where your staff spends the majority of their
time. For many small stores this is near the cash register.
For others, it might be near the phone, or the office.

Arrange you fixtures with the goal of minimizing "blind
spots" on the sales floor. From their usual vantage point,
your staff should be able to look down almost every aisle.

Once you have maximized visibility by arranging fixtures,
consider installing a large convex mirror to view any
unavoidable hiding places.

Next time you are in a convenience store, take note of the
layout. Most allow direct visibility of the sales floor to a
lone clerk, and mirrors expose the remaining areas.

2. ALTERNATE CLOTHING HANGER DIRECTIONS
One way shoplifters can steal a tremendous amount of
clothing is to quickly grab as much clothing from a display
as they can carry, and run out of the store into a waiting
car, before your staff can react.

A simple way to thwart this is to alternate the direction of
each hanger on the display, especially on those near the
store exit. This makes it impossible to take an entire
armful of clothing off of a circular rack at once, and makes
it difficult on a tree rack. Make it part of the opening or
closing duties to have an employee "Set the Hangers".

3.REQUIRE A RECEIPT FOR ALL RETURNS
Many shoplifters steal with the express intent of returning
the merchandise to the store, the same or another branch,
for a cash refund.

This can be addressed by requiring a purchase receipt for
all returns. This creates some conflict, however, with the
interest in delivering quality customer service.

A compromise policy is to require a receipt for cash refunds
and general store credits, and to allow same-item-only
exchanges without one. This way, the legitimate customer
with a defective product, or with the wrong size or color,
is accommodated, but the thief is not.

4.LOCK UP SHOPLIFTER-ATTRACTIVE MERCHANDISE
As a general rule, the smaller and more valuable an item is,
the more attractive it is to a shoplifter; particularly to
those who steal with intent to either sell the merchandise
themselves, or return it for a refund.

Keep small, expensive items behind the counter or locked in
a display case. If the display case has a lock, lock it; do
not assume that the case alone will dissuade a shoplifter.
Legitimate customers will understand this as a necessary
evil and won't object, shoplifters will go elsewhere.

5.BE SMART ABOUT E.A.S. TAG PLACEMENT
Electronic Article Surveillance (EAS) is a system in which
merchandise has a small "tag" affixed to it which is either
removed or deactivated when the item is purchased. If not
removed or deactivated, it triggers an alarm as it passes
sensors near the store exit

EAS systems are expensive, but fairly effective. If you have
one in place, affix your alarm tags carefully. Hide the tags
beneath seams and labels, or on an internal page of books
and magazines.

If you can't hide the tag, try to make it less noticeable by
aligning it with physical aspects of, or the graphic design
on the packaging.

Consider placing two tags on the merchandise: one
obvious,and one not so obvious. The shoplifter may remove
the obvious tag and not notice the other one, thus setting
off the alarm.

Guerrilla Loss Prevention Tip: Even if you don't have a EAS
system, consider buying some tags anyway. There are
suppliers who sell recycled tags inexpensively. Shoplifters
will recognize the tags, but since they don't see any sensor
gates at the exit, they may think you are using a new system
that they aren't yet aware of. It might just be enough to
deter the theft.

6.MONITOR YOUR FITTING ROOMS
Do not let customers enter and exit your fitting rooms
without encountering your staff. A fitting room is an ideal
place to conceal merchandise: if shoplifters can get
merchandise into the fitting room, they have complete
privacy, and even a mirror to gauge how nicely the
merchandise is concealed.

A favorite shoplifting method is to place several items of
clothing on a single hanger. This relies upon the
inattentive employee counting the number of hangers, not the
number of clothing items. Or worse, barely lifting their
eyes as they ask "How many?"

Shoplifters then enter the fitting room and conceal the
extra merchandise brought in on the single hanger.
Generally, it will be extra clothing brought into fitting
rooms, but I have brought 35mm cameras in with a pair of
jeans draped over my arm (and the camers).

Make sure your fitting rooms do not have anyplace to discard
labels and pricetags.

7.SIGNAGE
Posting the correct signs around your store can deter many
shoplifters, even (possibly especially) experienced
shoplifters.

Guerrilla Loss Prevention Tip: Shoplifters are dishonest
people, so don't feel guilty about stretching the truth a
little on your signage, for effect. For example, you might
post the classic sign that says simply, "Smile,You're on
Candid Camera", whether you use cameras or not.

Or a sign with changeable numerals on J-hooks that says "##
Shoplifters Prosecuted This Year. Are you next?" Be
creative. All the retail greats were creative people. And
remember your primary goal is to coerce shoplifters into
taking their craft elsewhere.

8.CAMERA DOMES
A recent study has showed that closed circuit television
(CCTV) cameras are now the most feared anti-shoplifting
device. Perhaps this is due to cameras being mentioned so
often in the nightly news.

Whatever the reason, shoplifters don't like them. CCTV
systems can be costly. But as with signage, if shoplifters
can be deceptive, why can't you?

Guerrilla Loss Prevention Tip: The smoke-colored dome
housings used to mount CCTV are fairly inexpensive. Buy
several, and place a lot of them in the ceiling tiles all
around your store.

Smart shoplifters know that not every dome has a camera
inside. But then the question in the shoplifters mind is,
"Am I standing under one that does have a camera in it?"
This is extremely effective. To see it in action, next time
you visit a Wal-Mart, look up.

You don't have to prove you have any cameras at all in order
to deter theft, all you have to do is make the shoplifter
think you have cameras!

9.PROSECUTE ALL THIEVES
Call the police on every shoplifter you catch. No
exceptions.

In the shoplifters' minds, if you don't call the police,
they win, and they will continue to hit your store over and
over.

Do not release juvenile shoplifters to their parents;
prosecute them. The only time I was ever caught, I was
thirteen years old. The police were not called, and I
continued shoplifting another 15 years --including from the
store in which I was caught.

Prosecute all thieves. Period.

10. EXCEPTIONAL CUSTOMER SERVICE
This is, far and away, the single most effective thing you
can do to deter shoplifting. By knowing where your customers
are, offering your assistance, and anticipating their needs,
you will virtually eliminate shoplifting. An alert employee
is your most effective weapons against thieves who thrive on
anonymity.

Isn't it strange how virtually everything about successful
retailing eventually comes around to quality customer
service?

About the Author

Mike Delaney has over 20 years' experience as a shoplifter,
and nearly 10 years' experience in retail loss prevention.
Contact him at: delaneybookreview@yahoo.com

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