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One of the factor HD vs convenience store has to deal with is the cost of prosecution,
The Manager / Guard / Loss Prevention will be called to testify in the case if it goes that far. Is it worth to the convenience store owner to pay the store manager $15/hr or so, to go to court for a hour or two, to testify that yes he saw that person put the $1 candy bar in his pocket and walk out of the store. Loss due to Shoplifting 50¢ (actual cost of the bar). Cost to show up to testify $30. (Also the staff turn over at convenience store is high, when the case get to court in 6-9 months or so will that manager/clerk still be working there?)
HD, Someone steals a $400 Sawzall.. its worth it to go testify.
This right here.
Hourly employees have to be on the clock while just sitting in court waiting for their case to be called. Stores used to spend $100 or (a lot) more, depending on how many employees go to court. All for prosecuting a $20 loss in batteries...
HD, Someone steals a $400 Sawzall.. its worth it to go testify.
Well over half the shrinkage in retail is employees stealing (and often not low level employees either) - and you *can* reduce customer theft with adequate staffing & store design. How many people walk out of Costco with a stolen $400 iPad? About none, because of the design of the store.
So stores can choose to make themselves easy targets & that choice shouldn't be paid for by taxpayers.
Further, the criminals you really *ought* to be looking at aren't the ones stealing one $400 sawzall - the ones you need to worry about are the ones who can mark a $400 sawzall down to $1.99 and empty the store. For months or years at a time.
The nuisance is that they're chronically understaffed & using the police as their own store security. They have poorly designed / laid out stores & not nearly enough people to staff them. How often do you see an employee when you're walking the aisles at the depot? I rest my case.
Wal mart is just as big of a corporate mooch. In my area, Wal marts average 1000 calls to police per year.
I've worked for Home Depot and there IS security in every single store. You don't see them because they're not dressed in a rent a cop uniform. They are wearing regular every day clothes like everyone else in there.
Some said Lowe's is 4 blocks away. Lowe's and Home Depot have the EXACT same design/layout. Both do have quite a bit of staff. I've worked for both stores and can tell you that there could be an employee in every aisle and people would still steal! This isn't a problem with the store. This is a problem for the losers are purposely going to these stores to steal. Stealing costs everyone! Prices increase when there's theft. The business needs to make up that money. Retail businesses don't make a fortune on every item they sell.
My husband works pt at HD and the theft rate is unbelievable. I've never heard him say that the police are ever called, though. It may be that your town's HD management has taken a more pro active stance. At ours, they just hope to keep it under the expected 10% or so, and write it off.
The Home Depot I worked for was one of the smaller stores and the theft rate was insane. Every month over $10,000 worth of merchandise was stolen. That's CRAZY! When copper theft was huge, the theft amount was even higher. Losers would stuff copper pipes inside each other then into PVC pipes and cap them. It was AMAZING how many people I caught doing this. Suddenly they didn't want any of those pipes.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Zippyman
Well over half the shrinkage in retail is employees stealing (and often not low level employees either) - and you *can* reduce customer theft with adequate staffing & store design. How many people walk out of Costco with a stolen $400 iPad? About none, because of the design of the store.
So stores can choose to make themselves easy targets & that choice shouldn't be paid for by taxpayers.
Further, the criminals you really *ought* to be looking at aren't the ones stealing one $400 sawzall - the ones you need to worry about are the ones who can mark a $400 sawzall down to $1.99 and empty the store. For months or years at a time.
Separate issue though. Just because there is internal theft too doesn't mean we should just give up on catching the shoplifters does it? And apparently this HD does have enough staff to catch their shoplifters and it's still a problem for the local PD and taxpayers.
Costco is probably not the best example because they are a membership club and can do things to protect themselves that other retailers can't.
Hey, with all the automation that is coming to replace cashiers maybe companies will turn to hiring more people just to work security, they sure won't hire to provide adequate customer service, lol.
Last edited by DubbleT; 09-18-2017 at 06:28 PM..
Reason: grammar and spelling ugh, and still probably missed a few
Where do you live that a business getting stuff stolen from them causes the city to shut them down?
Exactly, how about the city focuses on making itself better so people don't have to resort to stealing? Clearly the area is full of sh*tty people, that's the problem. This apparent proposal by the city council, if true, is not addressing the issue at all and is putting a bandaid on the totally wrong place.
The Home Depot I worked for was one of the smaller stores and the theft rate was insane. Every month over $10,000 worth of merchandise was stolen. That's CRAZY! When copper theft was huge, the theft amount was even higher. Losers would stuff copper pipes inside each other then into PVC pipes and cap them. It was AMAZING how many people I caught doing this. Suddenly they didn't want any of those pipes.
not if they have $500k in sales per month... 2% shrink is about average.... here in the Vegas, the good Walmart's goal is 1% shrink.... They easily do $100k per day in sales
not if they have $500k in sales per month... 2% shrink is about average.... here in the Vegas, the good Walmart's goal is 1% shrink.... They easily do $100k per day in sales
Well I wasn't speaking about a WalMart nor was I speaking about a store that sells $100k a day. The manager of the Home Depot I was speaking about was fired. Speculation was because of the high amount of theft. He would approve transactions when it was clear the person checking out wasn't the card holder. That was against company and credit card policies. Mrs. George Smith was a little old lady not a burly gross construction. No joke. Mrs. George Smith's credit card came through my line a lot. And not once was a woman using it! Different grungy guys every time. Stupid store manager approved it.
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