1. FIX YOUR FIXTURES
In most cases, shoplifters require privacy in order to conceal merchandise. It is especially true with small specialty shops that the arrangement of the fixtures creates many areas for the shoplifter to be hidden from the sight of your staff.
Determine where your staff spends the majority of their time. For many small stores this is near the cash register.
Arrange you fixtures with the goal of minimizing "blind spots" on the sales floor. From their usual vantage point, your staff should be able to look down every aisle. Once you have maximized visibility by arranging fixtures, consider installing a large convex mirror to view unavoidable hiding places.
Next time you are in a convenience store, note the layout; most allow maximum visibility by the lone clerk.
2. ALTERNATE HANGER DIRECTIONS
One way shoplifters can steal a tremendous amount of clothing is to quickly grab as much clothing from a display as they can carry, and run out of the store into a waiting car, before your staff can react.
A simple way to thwart this is to alternate the direction of the hangers on the display, especially on those near the store exit. This makes it impossible to take an entire armful of clothing off of the rack at once. Make it part of the opening or closing duties to "Set the Hangers".
3.REQUIRE A RECEIPT
Many shoplifters steal with the express intent of returning the merchandise to the store, the same or another branch, for a cash refund. This can be addressed by requiring a purchase receipt for all returns.
This creates some conflict, however, with the interest in delivering quality customer service. A compromise policy is to require a receipt for cash refunds and general store credits, and to allow same-item-only exchanges without one. This way, the customer with a defective product, or with the wrong size or color is accommodated, but the thief is not.
4.LOCK UP
As a general rule, the smaller and more valuable an item is, the more attractive it is to a shoplifter, particularly those who steal with intent to either sell the merchandise themselves, or return it for a refund.
Keep small, expensive items behind the counter or locked in a display case.
5.SMART E.A.S. TAG PLACEMENT
Electronic Article Surveillance (EAS) is a system in which merchandise has a small "tag" affixed to it which is either removed or deactivated when the item is purchased. If not removed or deactivated, it triggers an alarm as it passes sensors near the store exit.
EAS systems are expensive, but effective. If you have one in place, affix your alarm tags carefully. Hide the tags beneath seams and labels, or on an internal page of books and magazines. If you can't hide the tag, try to make it less noticeable by aligning it with physical aspects of the packaging.
Also consider placing two tags on the merchandise: one obvious, and one not so obvious. The shoplifter may remove the obvious tag and not notice the other one, thus setting off the alarm.
If you don't have a EAS system, consider buying some tags anyway. Shoplifters will recognize the tags, but since they didn't see any sensor gates at the exit, they may think you are using a new system that they aren't yet aware of. It might just be enough to deter the theft.
