Shoplifting: about prevention and how we treat

Shoplifting is a serious problem for retailers – in fact, 40% of store impairment may be due to the theft of products by customers, according to a study conducted in 2014 in the United States by the National Retail Federation. So how to relate / to deal with such an injury revenue? We have some ideas for you.

The best antidote – prevention

The best way to cope is to prevent shoplifting at him. For this purpose, there are some tactics simple, but effective, which may be made:

Installation of adequate safety measures

Ideal installation of cameras at your business headquarters will achieve two goals – a psychological deterrent to potential thieves that can be observed by cameras and understanding that this document is evidence for their illegal activities. You have no budget for security cameras? Appropriate warnings into and out of the store and / or sample chambers poatefi very effective at removing potential thieves. Do you want more? There are shop owners who have installed mirrors in strategic parts of the store, and they help to ensure that there are no dead spots / blind customers can do whatever they want without being seen.

A customer service competent and easily accessible

Tools such as cameras, mirrors or alarms are excellent, but to minimize incidents of theft have harnessed all the team at this problem. One way to do this is to train the sellers at the store to greet customers with a greeting as soon as they enter the store. Beyond that personal attention is a major component sales, this tactic can undermine the safety of potential thieves – once they know that someone has noticed this up from the beginning, it’s less likely to act. Jay Gourevitch, owner ArcadiaNYC Cowra, wrote in a posting that he tried to fight the thefts watching “keeping an open field of vision clear, so that customers know that we can see them at any time. More importantly, we questioned all those who entered the store. My law No. L – every customer should be greeted with a smile and a greeting, an invitation to ask questions or be given help – in 10 seconds from the moment you entered the door, without exception. Even if the mobile client talks to greet him still hoping to make him react. “Gourevitch is not just satisfied with that, he and his staff instructed him to contact customers once during their stay in the store. If customers are looking for a particular product, they will try to provide information useful and short in relation to it, such as, for example, “this vase is handmade.” this allows customers to ask questions and in terms of prevention of losses is issuing the message that we know that they are interested in a particular product or take it in their hands.

recognizing Signs

Another way to involve staff in the war thefts is to teach vendors identify thieves. Signs of suspicious behavior include:

• Avoid eye contact;
• Thief staffing and products not in stores;
• Entering and leaving the store without making a purchase;
• Wearing long robes, as well as large and heavy coats or jackets in lukewarm or hot days;
• Who came with a large group of people.

In a post published, CEO of V-Point Security Inc. adds other important points. Uncle Peck from BizmakeBiz recommended to pay attention to body language customers in the store. According to him, a thief trying to create the impression of a genuine interest in our products – but in fact, he tries to understand the security arrangements at stores. Typically, careful monitoring and maintaining visual contact with the suspect are sufficient. It realizes that theft will fail, and will try their luck elsewhere.

Keep a tidy shop

A magazine that is not kept tidy thieves makes working easier and makes it difficult to identify when something is missing. Therefore, this recommendation is important – you need to keep a tidy shop at any time. Arrange products in such a way as to be easily recognizable if anything is missing.

How to treat thieves

Sometimes even the best deterrent and warning measures not determined deters thieves. So what should you do if you caught a thief? The answer depends on several factors, including the location and size of the store, the price, stolen, etc. – however I gathered some rules “of thumb” to help you handle it in this delicate situation:

To establish that the situation is real. In case you plan to catch a thief, you must ensure that there are clear reasons for this. That means that you or someone on your team that he saw a thief merchandise and attempt to leave the store without paying.

Confronting the thief – if you decide you experience suspectatul theft him approach the exit of the store. A security expert Chris A. MacGooi recommends not doing this alone. You must have a numerical advantage against the thief, at least one person. An extra man prevents normally suspect to fight or try to escape. If the thief is a thief, it is better to be accompanied by a working team. Also MacGooi recommend to tell what will give the authority to detain a person, for example: “I am the shop owner and want to talk to you about two bottles of wine in your briefcase.” In the next step you should try to get the goods back, so you can prove that the theft occurred – before detain thief. in their post, Peck stresses that “in any case not to use violent force against the suspect,” and recommended not to make charges theft in public.

Drive back to the store thief. You may want more than one staff member to accompany you on you and your thief, so be sure not to run. Once you are in the store, check it to see if the thief has other additional products that are part of the store and then deems the amount stolen.

The next step depends on the store policy in this area. Some shops choose to sue and to involve the police in some cases, retailers are choosing to settle the return of goods and expulsion thief in the store. No matter which is your policy to avoid confusion or mistakes. make sure your employees know.

This post is based on an article published in the original HERE