Research & Trends: Protecting From Loss At The Product Level

By King Rogers, KRG2 LLC

Read Hayes, Ph.D., CPP, CFE, director of the Loss Prevention Research Council (LPRC), has for many years taught the theory of "Zones of Influence" as it relates to retail loss prevention. Using this theory, Dr. Hayes explains that there are a number of zones of influencing loss, beginning with the product itself and extending all the way out into the neighborhood where the retail store conducts its business. At the item level, protecting the product can range from how it is packaged to EAS.

We have all wrestled with the challenge of removing a specific product from a rigid clam pack after we bring that purchase home. We wonder about the small item packaged in a large plastic hard bubble and its impact on the environment. This type of packaging, its size and rigidity, is designed to reduce the item's vulnerability to loss from theft. Products ranging from razor blades to printer cartridges are packaged in ways to deter theft.