Archived Why don't we keep certain products behind glass?

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Its a discussion that the AP leader in your building (ETL-AP or APTL) have to have with the APBP and STL. For example, my store is in the city and we have a large amount of formula stolen, we also have a large amount of formula bought. If it was put under glass (like CVS & Walgreens) you have to have some pretty dedicated employees to run over there to unlock it every few minutes. Which takes them away from their work area, which in turn lowers productivity.

I continually battle with my APBP about what I can tether down, put behind glass, spiderwrap etc... Most of the time I just do it. When we have a planned visit I unlock it all and make it the way my APBP wants. When we have a surprise visit I take my licks and move on. I'd rather lock everything down and hear a call button every 5 minutes then watch stuff walk out the door on my day off.

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Yes, you can remove spider-wraps because TM's don't tighten them enough / other illegal ways. However, if there is spider-wrap on it, there is a camera on it. I spider-wrap stuff and put cameras all around it because that spider-wrap isn't going to deter anything, what it is going to do is give me extra time to notice a shoplifter attempting to take it off. I spider-wrap and locking peghook a ton of electronics and put alarms in each aisle. That way if the person spends more then a few seconds in there trying to get the wrap off, alarms are going off all throughout the office and I'm there watching them.

***

Downside to spiderwrapping and putting things behind glass is it causes a normal shoplifter to bring in a weapon to achieve their goal. I've watched people smash iPod cases and uses knives to do things. Now I can't apprehend them and need to call the police, which if you haven't built up a good report with the local police, will probably not get there in time to catch the shoplifter.
 
So why not keep the formula at guest services?
 
Whatever happened to that idea I had read about a year or so ago that would make every bar code have a microchip in it that would set off the alarm if it wasn't deactivated at the register? Now that was a brilliant idea!!!!
 
FlowChick said:
Whatever happened to that idea I had read about a year or so ago that would make every bar code have a microchip in it that would set off the alarm if it wasn't deactivated at the register? Now that was a brilliant idea!!!!
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I remember reading something once about using RFID technology instead of a barcode-based system. It sounds like a neat idea, but the equipment would be very expensive, plus every item would have to be fitted with a transponder and encoded with the correct information - ain't nobody got time fo' dat.
 
FlowChick said:
Whatever happened to that idea I had read about a year or so ago that would make every bar code have a microchip in it that would set off the alarm if it wasn't deactivated at the register? Now that was a brilliant idea!!!!
Click to expand...
Those are the magnetic tags we use, electronics and GS both have a black pad that deactivates those at my store. Replacing barcodes with microchips is a cool idea but it is too expensive and probably would have more tech troubles than our new iPods.
 
Our store recently had to limit formula purchases to six per guest because we regularly have many Chinese guests buying mass quantities of formula to send to China for resale. They have generally complied with our policy, but some still try buying more. The Walmart down the street from our store locks up their formula and TBH I think we should too to prevent excess buying.
 
FlowChick said:
I heard one time we had over $2000 dollars worth of infant formula missing. Why is it w'ere one if not the only place that doesn't require a guest to ask for the item? As in unlock the case to get the item, or go to Guest Services for it. Seems more logical to have Formula locked up.....but I guess not.
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You can't lock up every damn item that gets hit hard. If formula is getting wiped out, AP should have a camera on it or constantly be nearby.

Remember, we're here to service the guest, not make their shopping inconvenient for the sake of reducing shortage. People don't shop at target because they look forward to tracking down a TM to unlock an item for them.
 
dave white said:
FlowChick said:
I heard one time we had over $2000 dollars worth of infant formula missing. Why is it w'ere one if not the only place that doesn't require a guest to ask for the item? As in unlock the case to get the item, or go to Guest Services for it. Seems more logical to have Formula locked up.....but I guess not.
Click to expand...

You can't lock up every damn item that gets hit hard. If formula is getting wiped out, AP should have a camera on it or constantly be nearby.

Remember, we're here to service the guest, not make their shopping inconvenient for the sake of reducing shortage. People don't shop at target because they look forward to tracking down a TM to unlock an item for them.
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Good point. Especially during the days when every SF TM is up at the lanes for backup. Which happens often. Too often.
 
FlowChick said:
So why not keep the formula at guest services?
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Does your store have a big enough GSD to make this plausible? Personally, I've never been to a Target where this would work. Plus a lot of the PFresh layouts include an integrated guest service desk.
 
Yeah, those magnetic S3 keys aren't that hard to come by. I know a few have gone missing in our store over the years, and they're pretty universal. I'm sure they're out there being used to rip off lots of retailers, including us.

We had a girl taking all kinds of stuff in our store a few years ago with an S3 key. She was pretty smart, was patient enough to take the time to figure out who our small AP team was and always hit us when they weren't in the building (we didn't have TVS back then.) She kept hitting different areas and we didn't know who it was until we finally got a really good look at her on a pinhole camera. When the city police circulated her picture to other stores in the area, one of the WalMarts called them and told them that they could come pick her up, because she was currently working at their pharmacy counter! She was a freaking WalMart employee, and was apparently supporting her drug habit with our shortage. She was smart enough not to steal from her own pharmacy, but not smart enough to know better than to keep hitting the same Target store (4 blocks away) every other day! :cool:
 
DoctorWho said:
Yeah, those magnetic S3 keys aren't that hard to come by. I know a few have gone missing in our store over the years, and they're pretty universal. I'm sure they're out there being used to rip off lots of retailers, including us.

We had a girl taking all kinds of stuff in our store a few years ago with an S3 key. She was pretty smart, was patient enough to take the time to figure out who our small AP team was and always hit us when they weren't in the building (we didn't have TVS back then.) She kept hitting different areas and we didn't know who it was until we finally got a really good look at her on a pinhole camera. When the city police circulated her picture to other stores in the area, one of the WalMarts called them and told them that they could come pick her up, because she was currently working at their pharmacy counter! She was a freaking WalMart employee, and was apparently supporting her drug habit with our shortage. She was smart enough not to steal from her own pharmacy, but not smart enough to know better than to keep hitting the same Target store (4 blocks away) every other day! :cool:
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Hell no...She really took that competition too serious. Haha.
 
They are not too difficult to make with some supplies from a hardware store in all honesty, found out what the insides were made of when nobody replaced the broken key and it kept falling out. Magnets are rather weak in all honesty as well. Never made one but the ease it would take to do it is scary.
 
redcharmander10 said:
Our store recently had to limit formula purchases to six per guest because we regularly have many Chinese guests buying mass quantities of formula to send to China for resale. They have generally complied with our policy, but some still try buying more. The Walmart down the street from our store locks up their formula and TBH I think we should too to prevent excess buying.
Click to expand...
my store too. are resellers are pretty blatant though , trying to use a resale tax exemption. most times it is just a poorly xeroxed copy of their business license.
 
BckRmBeast said:
And no, I am not going to explain how to construct one so please do not bother asking.
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I get asked how the S3 keys work almost once a week. If it's a kid, I tell them "magic elves" if it's an adult, I fake not knowing. "I'm really not sure.." People don't get that we aren't supposed to give shoplifting instructions out.
 
NitroKing2110 said:
I get asked how the S3 keys work almost once a week. If it's a kid, I tell them "magic elves" if it's an adult, I fake not knowing. "I'm really not sure.." People don't get that we aren't supposed to give shoplifting instructions out.
Click to expand...

Just telling them that it uses magnets isn't going to help them shoftlift.
 
Better a $20 off brand S3 than taping one up every few days and having it constantly fall apart.
 
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