My Turn
Wednesday, 05 June 2013 10:45
Coming Full Circle: How Your DC Can Help Enhance Your Career
Written by Herman Laskey Jr., LPQ, CFI
(It took me 18 years to learn this. You can learn it in one week) Recently, my role in the loss prevention industry has evolved and I am now learning more and more about all facets of the retail industry. When most people hear about loss prevention, they think shoplifters and internal cases. For eighteen years, I have only known the store side of LP. I have recently taken up employment in another side of loss prevention, which is the distribution side. Now, I say this with great care and sincerity, but a large majority of loss prevention professionals have…
Tuesday, 07 May 2013 10:44
Hacking Loss Prevention: How to Add Value by Not Doing Your Job
Written by Brandon Brown
Who doesn't love a good deal? Recently, I was in need of some shop towels for my garage and headed to my local auto parts store. I expected to purchase one bundle of towels for my money, and actually got an additional one free as part of a promotional sale, plus a five dollar gift card for my next visit. I walked out of that store like I owned it. I arrived at the store expecting to get one item for my money, and I left with three. That's value. Now imagine your company's delight if you can give them…
Since opening our first store, I have learned that Mexico presents unique challenges related not only to business metrics but also related to customer and community engagement. It's been a little over two years since we opened our first location in Reynosa, Mexico just eight miles south of McAllen, Texas. After recently opening our 100th store, we plan to continue our aggressive growth strategy with 60 new stores scheduled for 2013 thanks to investigating the different challenges and understanding their impact to the business. Shrinkage Methodology In general, our exposure to store level merchandise shrinkage is lower than traditional retail…
Tuesday, 16 April 2013 12:34
Networking…Have a Plan and Work That Plan Before You Need It
Written by Kevin M. Plante, LPC
If you were training for a marathon, when would you start? A day before the race? A week? Probably not if you actually want to be successful. What if you'd never run for any long distances before? Would you need three months to get ready? Six months or even a year, perhaps? If you really want to run well and have a relatively good chance of finishing (or surviving) the marathon, you probably need the better part of a year to train under normal circumstances. That said; why would you wait until you need to look for a new job…
Tuesday, 09 April 2013 09:41
Hacking Loss Prevention: Unique Strategies for Ensuring Success
Written by Brandon Brown, CFI
EDITOR'S NOTE: "Life hacking" is a term that has its roots in technology, stemming from the hacker culture of the 1980s.[1] It is a descriptive term that captures the essence of any strategy, skill, trick to productivity, or shortcut to a desired result. These methods ensure efficiency and achieve results. It can further be defined as a way to a solution through ingenuity. Brandon Brown, CFI believes the concept of life hacking can not only explain the unusual results some are able to obtain across their personal lives, but more importantly, it can explain the extraordinary levels of performance displayed…
Wednesday, 20 March 2013 11:10
Are Retailers Selling Shoplifting Tools?
Written by Scott Womak, Senior Officer, Raleigh PD
Boosters are very savvy in their methodology of offending. They often find creative ways in which to conceal property such as in their clothing, constructing a special "booster bag," etc. However, occasionally they capitalize on resources provided by the very location they intend to victimize. While shopping in a nationally known chain drug store I found an inexpensive insulated six can cooler bag, which appeared to have an aluminum lining, sitting on an isle shelf out of view of the customer service area. When I saw this I found it to potentially be an aluminum-lined booster bag, the use of…
I was recently in an industry meeting where we were given a 10-point scale to self-assess our honesty level. I declared myself 8 out of 10. After all the gasps in the room quieted down, my colleagues around the table each stated they were absolutely 10 out of 10. Apparently, I've never met more honest people. But are they really? It's difficult to write an article about ethics. Like all people, writers are not perfect human beings themselves. Any article raising questions about the ethics of a group of people or an industry will most likely be turned around to…
In 1996 the Navy Exchange Service Command (NEXCOM) hired Fritz Hirchert as the new director of loss prevention and safety. Many of you in traditional retail likely know Fritz from his many years with Home Quarters, Payless Cashways, and other retailers, including Montgomery Ward where he started as a store detective. I transferred from the European region and was the first person to report directly to him. During my first week of transition, Fritz set me down and we reviewed my resume. During our conversation, Fritz said to me, "I see you have a wealth of security, loss prevention,…
Wednesday, 06 February 2013 16:33
Online Investigations: Partnering with PROACT
Written by Scott Sanford
Investigating online sellers can be much more efficient, and productive when pairing investigative skills with those of eBay PROACT Investigators. While criminals use many online venues to sell stolen goods, eBay has been the clear Internet industry leader in working cooperatively and effectively with retail investigators to tackle this problem. Following is a case review that involved a four-hour total time investment to identify the suspect, develop the case, and interview the suspect. This recent case involved inventory shortages involving Lego and hardcover new release books that led to an elderly eBay seller who had flown under the radar for…
Wednesday, 02 January 2013 11:36
Establishing Greater Rapport with Management and Store Associates
Written by Herman Laskey Jr., LPQ, CFI
I am writing this article to help up and coming, young LP professionals build better rapport with their stores, and because of my recent personal experiences. I was with Academy Sports and Outdoors for fourteen years before I left in November of 2011, and I have maintained a great relationship with all of the stores in my previous region. I still get invited to weddings, told about shoplifting incidents and just general inquiries of my well being. I tried to be a friend as well as their loss prevention representative. You may not think so, but it is possible to…
