Shrinking Shrinkage for Retailers

When you are in the retail industry, the last thing that you want to talk about is shrinkage. Everybody knows that this is a bane to the industry and accounts to more than 20 per cent of operating profits for some. It is estimated that shrinkage costs the retail industry about $ 31 billion every year. For the uninitiated, shrinkage refers to the losses due to theft, fraud, error, or even a faulty process. While employee theft is a major cause for concern, other reasons for shrinkage include shoplifting, retail pricing, damaged goods, and even incorrect accounting. Business security companies all over the world are continually trying their best to get rid of problems in the industry. Here are some systems that allow people to control shrinkage that occurs from employee theft.

Key card access systems:

Doesn’t matter if the company is large or small, a good key card access system helps to simplify facility management. You can restrict and control access provided to employees. And this control is indeed much better than security provided by key based access. You can define the categories of employees who can enter the different sections, and determine the type of access that can be provided. Besides these you can also track attendance, and work timings. Reports can also be generated and reviewed later. And if an employee has forgotten or lost his card, special access can be provided and the old card deactivated. You can choose from the simple key card access system to the complex bio metric finger print types, and even the numeric PIN’s. For large enterprises, IP enabled access control devices help to control large scale access systems in multiple locations.

Business security camera systems:

Digital and analog surveillance cameras made by top industry manufacturers help retailers monitor their employees at all times. These can be strategically located to ensure maximum protection of goods. The IP mega pixel range varies from 2 to 20, allowing for better picture quality. You can also choose from the 160 degree to the 360 degree camera angle that can capture up to 30 frames per second. There are various models, including the indoor and outdoor ones to choose from. Besides monitoring employees, these are also helpful in monitoring customer traffic, or store openings and closings from remote locations. It can also be helpful in determining consumer interest in a product, checking if your establishment is adequately staffed, and even verifying item sales against the point of sales reports.