March 2017

themselves, they tend to behave more appropriately.”
Wilkinson’s company delivers a crime-prevention
initiative called Eyes On, which helps businesses
in the Capital work with each other and police to
proactively reduce theft. Empowering staff with the
skills to deal effectively with shoplifters is crucial,
he says. The Eyes On initiative includes staff training
programmes such as ‘verbal judo’, which teaches
staff how to diffuse tricky situations using words
and body language.
Auror’s Thomson says taking a proactive approach
to shoplifting prevention through customer
service is also a good tactic. “The very best way
to discourage an offender from stealing is to
shower them
with customer
service. If you
spot someone in a
store that seems
suspicious, they
should become
your number one
service priority
while in the shop.
Ask for their
name, be helpful,
point out specific
glasses, offer to
hold bags, and do
anything else you Elaine Silk
can think of to let
them know that they have your full attention. Often
thieves will leave rather than try to press ahead with
a theft if they know they are being watched.”
Another key is to keep communicating with
the public about the efforts you’re taking with
security; with other retailers to share any shoplifting
intelligence, as well as advice and support; and with
police, says Harford. “There’s sometimes, perhaps,
been the perception that the police won’t come
[when shoplifting is reported], or it’s not worth the
effort. Well it absolutely is because the police can’t
do anything about it if they don’t know about it.
Particularly with today’s software tools, you can now
track patterns of activity and piece them together
and build up potentially quite a dossier against
individuals.”
Theft from inside
When it comes to preventing theft from staff, many
of the same principles apply, says Harford. “It’s
around making sure you’ve got security systems in
place, thoroughly vetting your people, and making
sure they’re aware you are watching what’s going
on – in a positive way, in that you’re keeping an eye
on the store.
“Ideally its about having people working together
so there’s good communication within the store,
and again communicating with police and nearby
retailers because if you find there are a lot of
problems in your store and it’s only in your store
then that might be telling you something.”
Frith & Laird’s Treanor says combating internal theft
can be particularly challenging in small businesses
where responsibilities still inevitably need to be
delegated, but there’s not always the luxury of
having them overseen by a number of staff. Then
again relationships between staff in small firms tend
to be closer so it can be easier to pick up on clues that
theft is occurring, such as staff displaying spending
that’s out of sync with their earnings.
“It’s difficult as a store owner in that you can’t
do everything all the time. You have to give people
responsibility and inevitably it’s the front of house
staff who are handling the money. There has to be
an element of trust but at the same time you have
to be vigilant – things like keeping an eye on how
many bank runs you’re doing to deposit cash, or
looking at how many refunds you’re doing.”
Treanor also says that when hiring, practice
owners should check to see if there are any gaps
in the applicant’s CV. “More often than not, it’s the
employees who you’d almost least expect because
they’ve worked hard to earn your trust so you
start giving them more and more responsibility.
Unfortunately, that’s sometimes when it’s
betrayed.” ▀
A corporate take on shrinkage?
Peter Papatheodorou, loss prevention manager at
Specsavers for Australia and New Zealand, shared
his five top tips for securing your business:
1. Position a designated ‘meet-and-greet’ staff
member close to your store entrance. Not only
does this improve the ‘welcome’ factor for
patients and help capture browsers, it also acts as
a deterrent for external theft
2. Installing a CCTV camera and alarm system
will deter potential theft and provide valuable
evidence to assist police when a theft has been
committed. Make sure the CCTV camera is
highly visible
3. Undertake regular stocktakes. This will
identify missing stock very quickly and alert you
and all staff to what could be either internal or
external risks
4. Establish a clear process for staff to report
shoplifting or theft concerns to management
5. Always do a complete end-of-day reconciliation
and run all available reports, ensuring any card or
cash variances are fully understood
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March 2017
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