How It Feels To Be in the Middle of a Heist
Retailers deal with this every day
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Leaving work late again, I gathered all of my stuff.
Backpack, snacks, car keys, water bottle.
I took my time as I made my way to the front of the store. It was six o'clock, and the closing crew was trickling in. We didn't have much payroll, so there were two associates on the floor busy with customers, and the manager in charge was getting keys out of a locked drawer for the closers.
I stood near the front, and then I saw them.
A group of five people rushed in and split up.
Oh, fuck! Here we go, I thought.
"That's them!”
Organized retail crime (ORC) had seen a serious uptick, as it now. Every week we heard stories of our stores getting hit and employees getting injured. One manager had been grabbed by her ponytail and yanked to the ground, breaking her arm.
"Whatever you do, don't engage these people." The company told us. "Let them take stuff and get out of the way. We don't want anyone getting hurt."
These thoughts swirled in my brain as I watched them go to work. I didn't want to yell and risk getting punched in the face. I didn't want to engage them physically and risk getting fired. I only wanted to keep the staff safe, so I watched.
The tall guy posted up in the middle of the store as a lookout as the other four people split up and began grabbing armfuls of clothing.
I looked around to make sure the employees were out of the way. The lookout guy didn't notice me, and then he did. I was staring at him, but I had sunglasses on. We locked eyes, and I could only think to shake my head NO at him slowly.
All of a sudden, all five of them ran for the front door to a car backed into a parking spot out front. They'd cleared a rolling rack and at least four face-outs full of name-brand apparel.
The manager on duty realized what was happening, yelled, and ran toward the front door.
"Let them go!" I yelled. "Don't get hurt!" We had security cameras all over the store. Surely we'd gotten some good footage of them.
She snapped a photo of their license plate and scooped up the product they had dropped.
We checked in with the other employees to see if they were okay and to get descriptions from different angles. Then we called our loss prevention manager. Then we called the police to file a report.
The license plate didn't get us anywhere. The car had been rented as part of a fleet under some random company. But we weren't the only store that had been hit that day. The group had mobbed other stores with even better security cameras.
"That's them," I said after my LP manager showed me the photos from the other retailers.
I had a few chats with a local detective, and I let her know about the videos from the other retailers. I don't know if the police ever caught them, but in my mind, it didn't matter. Maybe they wouldn't be back, but another group would.
There was a mastermind here, and it wasn't them. They were the hired help.
Small clues paint a bigger picture.
Loss prevention wasn't on my radar when I began my retail career. It wasn't something I'd even considered I'd have to do. But I got good at it. My situational awareness is heightened now wherever I go.
I watch traffic patterns. I look at what people are carrying and what they're wearing. I take notice of erratic movements or of people rushing around in a place where most people take it slow.
Small clues paint a bigger picture.
Loss prevention is an aspect of being an excellent retail leader that outsiders never consider. It's part of that invisible work that we do. Our eyes are always open to potential threats. We are always on the lookout and trying to keep our team safe.
The next time someone tries to tell you retail isn't a "real job," ask them about the last time they were in the middle of an ORC hit. What did they do? No answer? Yeah, I thought so.
MAILBOX
Here is an excerpt of a message I got recently.
"Not that I would say my manager is bad, but I surely do not get treated as the other younger leaders that kiss butt. Yes, I work hard but I don't worship. Therefore I am on day three of a ten day stretch. Tonight is my second clopen, and I am in charge this weekend."
This leader said that a positive attitude and support for her sales associates are of utmost importance to her.
I replied to her, but man, I feel this.
Her line, “I work hard, but I don't worship.”
Oh.My.God.
That's how I felt my entire career. I'll work my guts out but don't expect me to worship you or this company. You could fire me and have someone else in my spot before I knew what hit me.
Work hard, but prioritize the people in your life that are there for you no matter what.
And if you’re a manager who makes someone work ten days straight with multiple clopen shifts - let me be clear. YOU’RE DOING IT WRONG.
LEVEL UP
One thing you can do today is to be a better leader.
Share information widely.
This is transparency. This is disseminating information to the team. This is part of your job as a leader.
The people that withhold information overwork themselves and turn staff more quickly.
Leaders that share information - and access to information (let people know where to find the info) - keep their current teams engaged and work smarter. They're less likely to burn out because they're actively sharing information and sharing the workload.
Try it.
If you’re hoarding information, you’re playing yourself.
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