STORES Magazine - July 2008 - (Page L4)

NEWSbeat Measuring Returns Fraud wo-thirds of retailers believe that their current return policies and systems are “ineffective” or only “somewhat” effective in deterring returns fraud and abuse, according to a recent survey sponsored by the Loss Prevention Research Council and The Retail Equation. A majority of retailers’ current processes and systems for reducing returns fraud appear to emphasize non-receipted return situations, but the survey reveals that well over half of the incidents of returns fraud are committed using forged receipts. While the bad guys look for new ways to commit returns fraud, retailers are fighting back by deploying technological solutions. It is estimated that the use of applications created to prevent fraudulent and abusive returns are currently saving retailers more than $200 million annually. The study shows that returns fraud and abuse was a $15.5 billion problem in 2007. That figure is actually down 10 percent from the year before, but the spon- T sors warn retailers about growing complacent about this ever-morphing problem. Fighting Losses at BXs and PXs ven stores on military bases aren’t immune to shrink. Theft at BXs and PXs rose 1 percent last year, according to statistics from the Army & Air Force Exchange Service, and the average value of products in detected cases ($129) rose more than 8 percent. Loss prevention associates are step- E loss prevention Gerald Danish. “Because AAFES is a command with a mission to return earnings to support Morale, Welfare and Recreation (MWR) programs, shoplifting at the BX or PX is essentially the same as taking money directly from the pockets of the military families the exchanges serve.” ping up education efforts to drive home the cost and perils of stealing, and AAFES also is testing intelligent video analysis solutions capable of alerting personnel to crucial incidents as they happen. The new systems will allow store personnel to intervene before merchandise leaves the store. “Shoplifting at the exchange results in a reduced return on investment to our primary shareholders — the military community,” says AAFES vice president of Preventing Productivity Losses R Simon Segues to Segways imon Property Group now uses more than 225 Segway Personal Transporters (PTs) for security purposes at more than 125 shopping malls in the United States, making it the largest deployment by any company in the shopping center industry. Simon began investing in Segways for mall security patrols in 2004 with a trial program in Texas. Today, it uses them in San Diego, Las Vegas, Houston, Miami, Boston and a handful of other cities. “From Day 1 . . . our goal has been to give our security personnel the tools they need to ensure that our mall guests and retail partners have a safe and enjoyable experience,” says John Petruzzi, vice president of corporate security and emergency management for Simon Property Group. “They have increased the visibility and range of our security personnel and enabled them to swiftly respond to emergency situations wherever they might occur. The entire initiative has been very well received by our security personnel, our retail partners and millions of our mall guests.” L4 STORES / JULY 2008 S etailers typically deploy closed circuit television to deter shopper theft and stem losses, but executives at Visual Management Systems believe CCTV can also be a powerful tool for deterring slackers. Toms River, N.J.-based VMS highlights six unproductive employee activities that, it claims, can be nipped in the bud by a CCTV system. These include cell phone usage and excessive/extended cigarette, lunch and coffee breaks. In addition, CCTV can reveal employees who waste time pretending to work and those who engage in “brooming” — the act of sweeping customers out of the store when employees are ready to close. According to data compiled by VMS, business owners have counted their employees receiving incoming cell phone calls totaling as much as 20 minutes in one eight-hour shift. The average smoker takes five fiveminute cigarette breaks during that time, and lunches and other breaks are being “stretched” beyond their allotted time. WWW.LPINFORMATION.COM http://WWW.LPINFORMATION.COM

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of STORES Magazine - July 2008

STORES Magazine - July 2008 Contents Executive Editor's Page President's Page Dearth of Retail Creativity What Shoppers Think Wow, Is That a Wawa? 10 Things You May Have Missed Numbers Worth Counting Full Price/Markdown Retail People Merchandising Strategy Concept2Watch Point of Sale Outsourcing Human Resources Top 100 Retailers Store Design RFID IT Operations Systems Managements LP Vantage Point Newsbeat Cover Story Emergency Response Systems Background Checks LOEB Retail Letter Point of View NRF News Retail Crossword Retail Industry Calendar Last Laugh

STORES Magazine - July 2008

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