Losses from theft—also called shrink—are a part of life for retailers. Shrink will never be completely eliminated, but truckstop and travel plaza operators can take steps to minimize it.
"You have to do everything you can every day to control it,” said Darren Schulte, NATSO’s vice president of membership, while presenting a workshop on shrink loss at The NATSO Show in Savannah, Ga. “It takes a significant amount of increased sales to make up for any shrink loss, so minimizing loss in the first place is key.”
Unfortunately, the greatest losses come from employees. “A portion of your employees will steal no matter what you do. They’re the biggest portion of your shrink,” Schulte said. “Then there are fence riders just waiting to see what you’re going to do. You may see someone eating popcorn and you don’t think it is a big deal, but it is. It shows he or she has no respect for you and your organization. If you don’t address it, those two employees that were stealing from you grows and becomes three or four or five.”
Paperwork errors typically account for 1 to 2 percent of a location’s variation, customers are 5 to 7 percent, vendors make up 7 to 10 percent and employees a whopping 80 to 90 percent...
Addtional Shrink Management Resources
- Download slides from Schutle’s presentation “Become a Shrink Management Master: Tools and Techniques for Immediate Impact”. FireKing Security Group also presented during the workshop.
- NATSO’s Truckstop and Travel Plaza Training Manual contains additional resources on shrink management, including a sample cash audit form. Download a sample chapter here and purchase the manual at here.
- Schulte regularly writes on NATSO’s website about shrink management. For more ideas on minimizing losses, check out Schulte’s recent posts on the NATSO blog One Dozen Ideas to Reduce Shrink at Your Truckstop Immediately and One Dozen More Ideas to Reduce Shrink at Your Truckstop Immediately.
Photo Credit: photopaul65/bigstock.com
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This article originally ran in Stop Watch magazine. Stop Watch provides in-depth content to assist NATSO members in improving their travel plaza business operations. The magazine is mailed to NATSO members bimonthly. If you are a member and not receiving Stop Watch, submit a request to be added to the mailing list. Not a member? Join today or submit a request to receive additional information. |