Three-quarters (75 percent) of retail jewelers participating in a Senseon® Secure Access survey said they are more concerned about jewelry theft than in the past, Senseon reported recently. Of those jewelers expressing anxiety, 44 percent are “a lot” or “moderately” concerned.
Among other findings:
- Nearly one-third (31 percent) of respondents experienced jewelry theft in 2015, 2016 or 2017.
- Losses in 2016 totaled $10,001 or more for 39 percent of those reporting theft.
- Over one-third (35 percent) of jewelers experiencing theft expect inventory shrink in 2017 to surpass that in 2016.
- Shoplifting is the most common cause of theft, cited by 44 percent of respondents. It’s followed by burglary (27 percent), employee theft (26 percent) and robbery (21 percent).
- Thirty-five percent of jewelers experiencing theft in the last three years saw an increase in shoplifting, the most-reported category for growth.
- The biggest merchandise protection problem for jewelers is “display cases and cabinets left unlocked and unattended,” an issue for 24 percent of respondents. The No. 2 problem is “too much time and trouble using physical keys to access merchandise to show customers,” cited by 12 percent.
“Merchandise theft clearly is an increasing concern and a significant reality for retail jewelers,” said Sid Kalantar, senior vice president of sales and marketing for Senseon. “Based on our survey findings and industry experience, we believe it’s time for jewelers to adopt emerging technologies and improve procedures to better protect valuable merchandise. Doing so will also make it easier for sales associates to access jewelry, speeding transactions and enhancing the customer experience.”
The Senseon email survey was distributed by INSTORE Magazine to subscribers from Sept. 30, 2017 – Dec. 6, 2017, producing nearly 200 responses.