Retailers look to adopt strategies for combating theft, fraud
There are many technologies, solutions and methods available that retailers use and follow to conduct their operations, whether it is for marketing, customer service, inventory or a variety of other tasks. The same goes for preventing retail loss, theft and fraud, as these are types of problems that merchants unfortunately face every day. These situations can occur due to employees, customers or general errors made throughout various processes. Whatever the cause, businesses want to ensure they are taking the steps to avoid these issues, and many retailers are turning to updated technologies and approaches to accomplish this.
Billions lost annually to fraud, theft
TribLive Business reports that a study by the Centre for Retail Research revealed that U.S. retailers lost approximately $8.9 billion during last year's holiday season due to fraud, theft and errors. Another piece of research by the National Retail Federation (NRF) estimates that throughout 2011, companies experienced a loss of $35 billion for the same reasons. The study also discovered that businesses fell victim to professional thieves in 2011, who stole an approximate total of $12 billion worth of merchandise throughout the year.
On the other hand, the news source notes that the NRF analysis also found that companies are doing more to avoid loss, as merchants implement new systems and procedures for detecting theft and pinpointing areas where improvements need to be made.
Loss prevention methods being used in 2013
Writing in a blog post for the NRF, Jennifer Overstreet highlights some of the trends coming to the forefront of retail loss prevention this year. As new technologies and strategies emerge, businesses incorporate these aspects into their operations to avoid theft, fraud and errors, and 2013 is no different.
Overstreet states that companies are working more with authorities in their respective areas to crack down on organized retail crime. Both organizations are sharing information related to potential loss and problem areas to stop theft before it happens. Overstreet also explains that merchants are conducting background checks on employees to ensure they don't have any past situations that could compromise retail operations.
Technology is also playing a big role in avoiding fraud, theft and errors, the author notes. Solutions such as video analytics, mobile POS and various software forms are being used as prevention methods. Additionally, retail inventory management systems keep accurate track of products in-stock and are able to quickly reflect changes, giving businesses the ability to see if any merchandise has been stolen.
