By
in
Busy, busy, busy. And for good reason – it’s The Holidays. From Thanksgiving to New Year’s, we’re geared up for one of things many of us do until we drop: Shop. For retailers, the holidays are welcome business, yet a security stressor. How is it possible to navigate the two, in order to minimize business losses in favor of all of the potential gains during the holidays?
Here is a guideline for making sure your (roasted) ducks are all in a row, in time for the biggest shopping season of the year.
1. Prepare Employees. Your staff are both your sales reps and your spies. Since they interact most “on the floor”, they are the most influential in keeping theft at bay. Train them on how to keep an eye out while interacting in a friendly manner. In addition, while the owner sets the tone for a strong security approach, placing responsibility for security with your staff also facilitates a sense of camaraderie, of shared purpose to make the holidays as profitable as can be. Be sure to stress how vital their role is and express your gratitude for their involvement in keeping the shop safe – you might even consider a bonus for anyone catching perpetrators.
2. Hire More Salespeople. Per the above, crunch the numbers and calculate the value of hiring more staff in order to prevent losses. Considering that shoplifting accounts for 10-15% of your expenses, it might well be a good investment to hire more staff during the holidays – not just to handle customers, but to prevent theft.
3. Arm with Alarms. Are you all set, digitally? Do a test run on alarms, theft tags, and cameras. Make sure that these devices are obviously displayed in order that they act as a deterrent. You might even place warning signs on your front window as well as around the store. These warnings can discourage thieves, and also make all the honest customers feel more secure – they might be pickpocketed, after all.
4. Track Keys. Another (literal) key way to prepare is to have a system for tracking all of the keys. All staff should need to sign in their keys, and a maximum of two people should have access to the safe, as well as entry to the shop off hours. No one should be copying keys unless directly instructed by the ownership – failure to comply with this policy is grounds for immediate dismissal.
5. Go for the Guard. Whether in uniform and/or undercover, private security guards can make the pivotal difference in retail loss prevention. The reason is that they have only one job – they do not need to balance their guardianship with attending to customers or stocking shelves. They are dedicated to one purpose: Catching perpetrators.
Working in retail, especially during peak holiday times, is all about striking the balance between sales initiatives and loss prevention. It’s hard to know who to trust. Thankfully, most people are good and therefore it doesn’t serve your purposes to suspect everyone. By hiring competent staff, be they sales staff or private security guards, and having all technical aspects covered, you should be in a good position to stave off crime in your store. While customers might shop until they drop, retail businesses don’t have to “drop” due to preventable losses. Here’s to a profitable holiday season!
