Multilayered Loss Prevention Includes Retail Merchandising

April 2012 Integrated Solutions For Retailers

By Dave King, senior project leader, Frank Mayer and Associates, Inc.

New displays can provide effective merchandising while offering loss prevention benefits as well.

In many parts of the United States, spring is in the air, and spirits are high, but our moods are not the only things being lifted. If the holidays were any indication, the good weather that brings shoppers out in droves will spur a new rash of shoplifting. The Global Retail Theft Barometer (GRTB) estimated that U.S. retailers lost $1.84B to shoplifting in the 2011 holiday season alone. The 2011 report estimated total North American retail shrinkage at $45.3B, an increase of 6% over 2010.

Retail loss prevention experts do battle on multiple fronts against shoplifting, organized crime, employee theft, and vendor fraud. GRTB recommends retailers “evolve their loss prevention strategies to multilayer programs designed to detect and prevent all kinds of shrink through diverse steps.” One of the steps the GRTB recommends is to “plan and deploy loss prevention programs customized to local, and even store-level.” Retail merchandising is a key component in a holistic approach to loss prevention, and it can meet store-level needs.