Securing the High End
New options prevent theft of electronic devices while allowing for maximum customer interactivity—without the mess and clutter
- By Del Williams
- Jul 01, 2017
For retailers of high end consumer
electronics such as
smartphones, tablets, e-readers,
drones, digital cameras and fitness
watches, the customer’s
retail experience can be just as important
as loss prevention. Often the look, feel and
performance of the product on display in
store, including the ability to interact and
fully experience features such as menus and
apps, can be crucial in a customer’s purchasing
decision.
Yet, retailers cannot let expensive merchandise
“walk out the door,” due to shoplifting
or employee theft. According to the 2016
National Retail Security Survey (NRSS),
retailer inventory shrinkage accounted for
1.38 percent of sales—up $1.2 billion from
the previous year. In addition, 47 percent of
retailers surveyed reported increases in overall
inventory shrinkage.
Electronic loss prevention devices, which
typically involve an alarm console, sensors
and related accessories, are the ideal way to
display this type of merchandise. Now as a
proliferation of new consumer electronics
products hits the market and retailers face
competitive pressure to reduce costs and
staffing, a greater array of standard and
custom options is further improving this category’s
appeal in the industry.
“Customers need to interact with our latest
smartphones to see what has changed and
how the devices perform,” says Bill Jones, an
AT&T regional director of asset protection.
“But it is a balancing act between customerproduct
interaction and theft deterrence.”
According to Jones—who evaluates loss
prevention system cost and effectiveness—in
today’s competitive retail environment, how
a product looks and feels when displayed can
affect a retailer’s bottom line just as much as
theft prevention.
“We want the focus to be on the product,
rather than on the power and security
cords,” Jones said. “Some of the theft deterrent
options on the market create quite a bit
of clutter and look outdated. They do not
match the cutting edge products or brands
we promote.”
Improving Product
Presentation
Any electronic loss prevention device—
whether alarm console, sensor, pedestal
stand, grippers, tethering or charging cable—
should not overshadow the product itself or
be cumbersome or difficult to maintain by
employees. To meet this need, innovators in
the industry offer a variety of loss prevention
devices that secure electronic products without
the mess and clutter.
A growing number of retailers, for instance,
are turning to electronic merchandise
display security systems like the Vantage II
by Se-Kure Controls, a manufacturer of retail
product security devices. While most systems
require separate wires for security and
charging the electronic device it protects, this
system uses a single wire to provide both security
and power.
“One of the things that drew us to our
display security system is how nice, clean and
modern it looked to have the one cord,” said
Kevin Lasky, project manager for Arch Telecom,
a wireless retailer with 140 locations in
13 states. “There is no separate cable running
up the side of the pedestal or coming out of
the display to charge the phone. That was important
to us.”
The system also offers an option for dual
sensors to prevent theft of the device, as well
as detachable accessories of value such as
lithium batteries or a removable camera lens
for digital cameras.
To facilitate customer-product interaction
in stores, retailers can pair each smartphone
with a retractable cord so it can be pulled off
its pedestal and easily viewed at a distance several
feet away. When the shopper returns the
phone to the pedestal, the cord retracts and a
magnet enables ideal product positioning.
The industry has also managed to further
reduce clutter in retail showrooms by streamlining
how electronic devices are powered.
Some alarm consoles, have been designed
to provide continuous power and security to
multiple 5V devices such as tablets, smartphones
and e-readers through a single cable
via a series of USB ports. Up to 12 devices
can be charged from one alarm console. This
eliminates the need to plug in a bulky power
adapter for each device into a power strip
mounted below the display.
Jones said he is also impressed with the
simplified, cleaner look of the single cord
approach. It also simplifies removal of electronic
products to a more secure location
each evening to prevent “smash and grab”
robbery attempts.
“At the end of each day, we put all our
devices in an inventory room, and then each
morning we put them back on the display
counters,” he adds. “Having just one cord
helps us close down and set back up faster.”
It is crucial that systems are sturdy and
durable. Jones estimates that not having to
repair or replace items such as the alarm box
or power/security cords often can lead to significant
savings annually. “In an organization
as big as ours, it can add up to millions
of dollars over time,” Jones said.
Because retail settings vary widely in their
display requirements, loss prevention devices
frequently need to be customized. Some
manufacturers of loss prevention devices
have the capability and resources to make
critical adjustments. This can include accommodating
devices to the number and size of
items requiring protection, along with features
such as pedestal height, security cord
length, size, color and retractability, as well
as alarm, power and sensor options.
With in-house metal fabrication and plastic
injection molding capabilities, as well as
electronic manufacturing expertise, Se-Kure
Controls is also able to adapt to inevitable
changes in the types and styles of consumer
electronics on the market.
With the global market for wearable
electronics projected to surpass $30 billion
by 2020, the need to adapt loss prevention
devices to protect new products while allowing
for continued customer interaction will
only increase.
“Our retail stores are always experimenting
with what we carry,” Jones said. “As technology
continues to change, the adaptability
of our loss prevention
vendors to accommodate
those changes is important
to us.”
This article originally appeared in the July 2017 issue of Security Today.