Ira Wexler/NATSO
Last month I spent a few days with Chris Sanders at London Auto Truck in London, Ky. We discussed shrink management and the impact on profitability. In August I will visit a member that has requested that I review and discuss shrink control management.
Given those recent conversations, I thought that this article by Andrew Wren posed in Chain Store Age under the Retail Executive Update really was timely. Take a read and enjoy! Some good solid information.
"It’s no secret in the loss prevention industry that sweethearting, the practice of giving customers unauthorized discounts or free merchandise or services, is a major source of loss in retail. In fact, it has long been recognized as the most common type of employee theft and the largest contributor to loss in the industry. It is also a unique challenge to loss prevention efforts. Unlike other forms of employee theft, both the customer and the employee are aware of sweethearting.
There is very little historical data regarding sweethearting, which is surprising given that the problem is so pervasive and represents such significant loss. However, the most recent National Retail Security Survey, published in October 2011, provided statistics for the first time pertaining to theft via collusion between employees and customers. According to the survey, 96% of the 140 retail companies surveyed reported some incident of internal theft through collusion with someone who was not an employee of the company."
Be sure to check out the entire article here.
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