Guide to Shoplifting Prevention

Cameras, mirrors and friendly staff are your best defense

By Geoff Kohl

To understand shoplifting, you first need to understand who you're up against. There are three types of thieves:

1. The hide-it thief. While no one is watching, he slides that T-shirt into the bulky jacket, or stuffs that item into a bag he brought into the store. To steal clothing, he may hide it on his body (sometimes wearing the clothes) while in a fitting room.
2. The grab and go. You'll probably find two techniques here. One is the thief who grabs an item and dashes for the exit into a busy street or waiting car. The other one is more deceptive. When working retail years ago, we had a thief roll a bicycle right out of the store, while all the employees thought it had been paid for. It hadn't!
3. The organized thief. Retail theft rings will use distraction techniques, often entering with multiple associates. Sometimes they swap items (such as in jewelry stores) and have even used foil-lined bags to sneak items beyond door sensors.

Scared yet? Don't be. Let's get started covering the ways you can prevent most shoplifting at your business.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Break out the personal skills

Your employees are your biggest allies against shoplifting. Encourage them to greet and contact shoppers. Your good customers will appreciate it but the shoplifter will think 'They're watching.'

I recommend: The San Diego police put together a great article on educating your employees about shoplifting.

Put the eyes in the sky

If a criminal act can be seen, then you have evidence, which is why shoplifters avoid places where their acts can be spotted. The best tools for this are video surveillance (a.k.a. CCTV) and convex mirrors. Mirrors work best in smaller stores with lower-height shelves on the aisles so employees can see around the shop floor. Cameras work better when you need to put an 'eye' in a place that's difficult to watch. Dummy cameras can even be effective as long as some of the cameras are real.

I recommend: Se-Kure Controls is one vendor of security mirrors in a variety of styles to fit your store layout. A basic four-camera system, complete and ready to install (with cameras, video recorder and monitor) in no time, is available from a number of manufacturers, including Crest Electronics.

Bag it, tag it.

Retailers have found that if you tag the items, they're less likely to be stolen. Systems used typically include ink tags, which explode a dye packet if they're tampered with (and they're darn near impossible to remove in the store without an ink experience). Electronic article surveillance systems (EAS) set off an alarm if an item is removed from the store without the tag being deactivated by your cashiers.

I recommend: Sensormatic (a sister company to ADT Security) is one of the best-known providers of ink tags, plus the company offers full-capability EAS systems. Checkpoint, which is one of the top competitors to Sensormatic in loss prevention tags, also makes a quality EAS system that can be customized to your store's look.

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Make sure your staff also keeps the store tidy (cleanliness and organization makes it easier for you to spot missing items and criminal acts) and check people into the fitting rooms, when appropriate. But your sales employees aren't cops, so don't have them trying to catch shoplifters who are moving with goods. They're best used as prevention, not interception.
• •  If you deal in apparel, limit the number of items that go into fitting rooms and make sure the same number come out.
• •  Keep your aisles low if possible. It's hard to conceal a crime if Bob, who is shopping for candy cars on the next aisle, can see the criminal's every move.
• •  Keep the expensive items away from the grab-and-go area near the front of the store.
• •  Elevate the cashier's counter near the front of the store, giving them a commanding view and placing them between a shoplifter and an exit.