As workplace theft remains a constant issue for retail operations, c-stores continue to look for new means to complement tried-and-true theft prevention strategies, as 2016 progresses.
Theft by employees, of both stock and cash, is now among retailers’ top three areas of concern, according to the “US Retail Fraud Survey 2015” conducted by Retail Knowledge, a retail fraud and loss prevention firm. Cash theft, which grew 2% in 2015 is the second biggest concern followed by administrative loss (23%) and shoplifting (11%).
“We can see from consecutive surveys that the amount spent by companies on loss prevention offline has dropped over 30% in the last two years,” said Mark Emmott, director of Retail Knowledge. Meanwhile, money spent on online loss prevention has doubled. “It may be that cutting budgets on loss prevention in some areas have made it easier, in a tough economic environment, for good people to make bad choices,” he added.
NOVEL STRATEGY
This past January, Crime Stoppers and Canada-based Mac’s Convenience Stores joined popular Canadian comic book hero, Captain Canuck, as part of the comic’s 40th Anniversary edition. The issue is being distributed exclusively and free of charge at Mac’s, and through local Crime Stopper programs across Canada.
“Mac’s is thinking outside the box to educate the community on safety, while providing readers of the comic book a better understanding of what Crime Stoppers is all about,” said Sean Sportun, manager of security & loss prevention for Mac’s. “It is our hope that by constantly engaging our customers and overall community with safety messages we will by default be less attractive to the criminal element.”
BACK TO BASICS
Retailers in 2016 are working to get the basics of loss prevention right while also looking to technology, such as video monitoring to help catch theft.
Emmott pointed to smart safes that authenticate, count and store bills securely as one means of combating theft. “Systems like that are brilliant because they deal with a number of areas really cost effectively and pay for themselves within a few months. Most importantly they are accessible to an owner of 2-3 stores,” he said.
“We train our people on what to look for,” said Brent Mouton, president of Brenton Investment Corp., which has 13 Hit N Run Convenience Stores. The chain uses mirrors to give employees better visibility throughout the store, as well as video surveillance.
“In some locations we’ll have the video monitor out where the customers can see it and know they’re being watched and recorded,” Mouton said.
Simply requiring every employee to make eye contact with and greet every customer who walks into the store, can put a potential shoplifter on edge, advised Chris McGoey, founder of McGoey Security Consulting. “Training employees to keep the store organized can also help catch thieves immediately as missing items will stand out.”
Stay tuned to Convenience Store Decisions‘ March issue, where we delve into 38 in-store categories to identify emerging trends and garner retailer analysis to forecast what operators can expect for 2016 and beyond.
