Tuesday, March 13, 2018

5 Ways To Prevent Shoplifting

When you own a business that sells products, shoplifting is one of the biggest problems you need to deal with. Anything that is stolen from your store becomes a liability and is therefore money lost from your assets. While you may not be able to prevent every shoplifter, these tips will definitely help reduce your risk.

Greet All Customers

Every time a customer enters your place of business, greet them and ask if they need help with anything. People who are there to shoplift are going to be nervous and want to avoid communicating with you. If there is a store where they know the salespeople are friendly, ask a lot of questions, or greet everyone face-to-face, they are much less likely to target that store.


Look Out For Red Flags

Potential shoplifters tend to give off some very common red flags. They will wander around often, going up and down aisles multiple times, without looking interested in buying anything. Their eyes and head will also wander, looking around them continuously, and appearing nervous or on guard. They are doing this to look out for people who might catch them, so if you see someone showing this behavior, ask if they need help making a purchase. If they know they are being watched, they will probably leave and not bother.

Organize Your Store

The way your store is set up and organized also helps to reduce shoplifting. Keep all shelves and racks clean and well organized, having employees walking down the aisles often to put items back that were left in the wrong place by customers who were browsing. There should be good lighting in every area of the store, and displays and shelves should be kept low so you can see over them and there aren’t places to hide. By keeping everything neat and tidy, the shoplifters know you pay attention and it reduces their urge to take items.

Keep Targeted Items Up Front

If your store has items that tend to be commonly stolen, keep them in plain view. Try to have display racks near the front of the store where employees can see them, or in areas of the store where a shoplifter would be seen by others. Candy, gum and small items are often stolen by kids, and should always be near the register. For more valuable items, keep them in locked cabinets or locked to the rack, where the customer must ask for help from an employee.

Limit Items Allowed in a Fitting Room

The fitting room is a common place where people steal clothing items, as they use it as an opportunity to hide clothing in their handbag or underneath their other clothes. The first thing to do is have metal tags on all clothing, making it impossible to remove them and take off with the clothes. You should also limit how many items customers can bring in the fitting room, and give them number tags so the employee sees how many items they go in with, and how many they walk out with.

While these tips will help you to prevent shoplifting, you also need to protect your business from theft with a business insurance policy. This will cover losses related to theft or shoplifting. Also, security measures can help reduce the cost of insurance. For more information, contact a company like Windfall Insurance.

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