As a small business owner, nothing is more important than to protect your inventory against theft and damage and providing a safe environment for your employees. In Australia, theft costs retailers billions each year, and for most retailers that number is on the rise. Averaging between 1 and 3% of gross profit, theft can significantly impact the net profitability of retailers, particularly those working on slim margins.
If you own a small business or manage a retail store of any type, you are very aware of the threats you face daily. Internal loss and employee theft, break-ins, organised theft, vandalism and more.
For high-end retailers, stocking and selling valuable inventory such as jewellery, collectibles, and electronics, the risks and potential loss are even greater.
Although it might be tempting, especially for new stores, to go with the cheapest off-the-shelf CCTV security option, this could lead to immeasurable losses in the long run - especially in the case of a violent event that could compromise you and your employees' safety.
So what type of security solution does a retail store need?
CCTV has truly evolved and is now seen as a major building block for retail. Long gone are the days of grainy, low-quality footage. We're in the era of HD and IP camera systems. We have seen the shift from "just surveillance", to adding more value to the customer.
With the ability to incorporate people-counting technology CCTV can be used not only for security purposes but also to monitor shopper movement to better deploy staff, and with heat-mapping technology retailers can literally see hot spots in the store to make sure that replenishment is taking place.