Another reason the show was good is the direction the industry appears to be going in.  It wasn’t too long ago where these shows focused more on surviving than prospering, but thankfully the past couple of years have seen intellectual discussions about the future, and a greater focus on software and people to improve inefficiencies.  The NRF LP 2013 show continued this trend of software and people, but with an added buzzword…The Cloud.  Both vendors and retailers are starting to realize that solutions hosted in a cloud model are just as efficient, if not more so, then licensed models, and are much less expensive.  The fact that we are even talking about new and different deployment models is a great sign for the state of LP.

Finally, the one thing that helped us stand out this year, our booth.  In the weeks leading up to the show we would hint at the fact that there would be water in our booth: “listen for the water” and “we’ll be making a splash” are two of the lines you may remember us teasing.  Some anticipated a pond, others a small water feature.  But no, we had something much bigger on our hands, a digital water curtain.  As promised below is a video highlight of our booth:

If you were at the show I’m sure you remember this curtain, you may have even seen your name written in the water.  Whether you stopped by our booth for a demonstration of Retail 20/20, or were drawn in by the water, thank you.  This year’s show was amazing and it’s all because of you.  The only bad thing about this year’s show is now we have to outdo ourselves for next year’s show, but that’s alright with us.

The post NRF LP 2013 Recap appeared first on Next Generation Exception Reporting.

Implementing SaaS cannot be easier. Even if a retailer has an established on-premise infrastructure from a previous solution, SaaS can be effortlessly installed on to existing hardware.  In addition, there is virtually no need for capital expenditure considering all necessary infrastructure is already established at an off-premise location. Software-as-a-service also provides a subscription based payment model which allows retailers to conveniently disperse their expense as a monthly fee. With cloud technology, software providers take full responsibility to maintain data leaving the existent IT department time to re-focus on improving their enterprise. During this time, software providers can manage, upgrade, and fix any tech issues with ease which can be universally administered to all retail locations.

Lastly, the biggest concern of adopting the SaaS model is the security when sending and storing private information. The data centers have taken measures in security to make it nearly impossible to breach. If anything were to happen to a data center, your information is still safe because it is automatically backed up to an alternate location. Furthermore, the process of sending information from a single store to the cloud is no different from sending information from a store to headquarters – completely safe.

Bottom line, it’s time to leave the outdated solution behind and take the leap to implement SaaS. With limited risk involved and the potential for high reward, SaaS can keep your business ahead of the curve. If you want to read more about this topic, check out our white paper which goes into detail about the benefits of SaaS implementation and Cloud Computing.

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The associate was interviewed and was quickly separated from employment.

Looks like this guy’s luck just ran out.

• $82,000 in losses
• Validated Losses: $1210
• Total value to client: $82,000

Tickets come in and the cash I take out

“I won the lottery” in my head, I do shout

But this is a game I play all alone

How long can I keep my deception unknown

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2012’s show was an exciting one.  It saw individuals starting to gain back confidence in the economy which allowed for discussions of strategy and the future, not simply surviving.  From what we heard at the show, between those we spoke with and the buzz around the floor, there were two main areas of interest: mobile and data solutions.

Much of the buzz about mobile was for mobile POS.  Retailers were excited about the possibility of having their associates walking their stores rather than being tethered to a single work station.  This is likely to be a popular topic at this year’s show as well.  Mobile POS has come a long way in the last year, and retailers are anxious to give it a go.

The talk about data solutions was a little more interesting, in my opinion.  This is because it showed a major shift in the way retailers think about security.  The interest is no longer in hardware, such as cameras and EAS tags, it is in the software that brings all of these technologies together.  Now hardware is still vital to LP efforts, but the solutions are able to bring everything together in one simple, intuitive interface that makes preventing loss easier than ever.

These solutions are going to be part of many discussions at this year’s show as well, but with a slight twist.  The traditional licensed LP solution model is becoming a thing of the past.  It’s all about the cloud now, and those solutions with hosted models will be heavy hitters at this year’s show.

One of the solutions available as a hosted model is our very own Retail 20/20.  If you want to take it for a test drive be sure to stop by our booth (821).  Our solution is designed to collect information from multiple data inputs, including synchronized video, giving you valuable insight into your stores.  The cloud based solution along with our own analyst team makes it ideal for independent retailers too!

If you are heading to the show and would like to schedule a meeting, send an email to sales@agilenceinc.com.  If you are unable to attend the show, but would like to learn more about Retail 20/20 give us a call at (856) 366-1200 or schedule a demo online.

We will also be spending some time with our friends at Axis Communications in their booth 1201 right by the entrance to the convention center, as well as Bass Security Services in their booth 915 right in the middle of the floor.  Be sure to stop by!

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Small retailers have a knack for finding creative and inexpensive ways to implement loss prevention activities.  Some popular tactics include building a reliable team and utilizing customer service, thinking like a thief and analyzing high vulnerability items in their store, and using cameras and signs throughout the store.  These tactics are a great start but have one common flaw, employees.

Now I’m not saying all employees are bad, but as the big retailers will tell you employees are often the largest cause of shrink.  And with employee engagement being the base for each LP activity it’s easy to see how this can become an issue.  The obvious concern is bad apples who may neglect these activities to steal for themselves; however, there can also be a problem with lazy employees who may simply ignore these activities.

Either way, it may be time for smaller retailers to start looking into the same solutions the big players use.  This may appear to be a pricy path to follow, but thanks to advancements in technology and cheaper deployment methods the little guys may finally be able to utilize the same solutions that the large chains do.

Loss prevention software deployed using SaaS (“the cloud”) is a great help to independent retailers.  This is because SaaS deployment requires little up-front expenditure, and there is no need to upkeep your own servers.  LP tools with smart analytics that sift through the data for you, highlighting outliers, are also making it more beneficial for small retailers to use.  In today’s world independent retailers need to think more about loss prevention without losing their focus on in-store activities.  Solutions like our own Retail 20/20 are here to help independents reduce shrink without losing what makes you special.

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