How Do You Combat Shrinkage in Your Store?

By far our best asset protection is our employees.
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"We have seminars and training sessions as part of the ongoing training and expectations where we tie shrinkage to their quotas to try to keep management engaged. We recently entered into item-level auditing. When there is a shrink you can actually figure out what it is that is missing. You can say, ‘Look at that, it is 52 bottles of Five-Hour Energy’. It allows you to take more of a light-bulb approach than a shotgun approach. We also have surveillance cameras and do a monthly audit. We audit cigarettes daily. We can focus on problem areas and make sure all of the employees understand that there is a situation that is being monitored and try to get them involved to prevent it. Sometimes they are the cause of it and once they know you’re watching it hopefully it will diminish.”
- Scott Paulson, Watkins Co. Dba Tomahawk Auto Truck Plaza 

"We focus 80 percent of our anti-theft efforts on monitoring for internal theft and holding all accountable for missing merchandise, making a public display of those who are caught. Our DSD vendors are held to a strict receiving zone, hours and procedures. Our store is dusted, faced and stocked frequently throughout each shift, with our team members engaging our guests in the process. We also use discretely worn headsets to communicate between team members. For example, one cashier at the gas side of my store might radio to a team member near the diesel entrance that the guest in the dark green tee shirt and ball cap has not paid for the CB mic he is carrying.”
- Christopher Sanders, London Auto Truck Center 

"By far our best asset protection is our employees. With our World Class Customer Experience (WCCE) program we train our employees to engage our customers. When you acknowledge a customer you are doing two things: providing a warm greeting that is imperative in securing a repeat customer for first timers and securing your current customer base with meaningful interaction and also keeping honest people honest by reducing the temptation for potential theft now that they know you know there in the building.”
- Chris Wetzel, Jubitz Travel Center 

Read more truckstop shrink management tips from Wetzel here.

 

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This article originally ran in Stop Watch magazineStop Watch provides in-depth content to assist NATSO members in improving their travel plaza business operations and provides context on trends and news affecting the industry.

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