Tagmax Security Tagging

​The retail security industry has been reacting to a new report that has outlined five key areas on which traditional brick-and-mortar retailers must improve in a bid to recover from the COVID-19 shutdown. Conducted by the Artificial Intelligence firm, Olvin, their report notes that there are exciting opportunities for retailers in the year ahead but only if they’re able to learn from 2020.

It was a relief that after months of lockdown, stores opened again, embracing shoppers; offering them a welcome return to the ‘normality’ we had prior to March 2020. We can hope that this will be the final time a national lockdown occurs – we now have the chance to plan for the future.

After a year of lockdowns and restrictions, people and businesses alike are now looking forward to a return to the sort of ‘normality’ we experienced pre-2020 – thanks to the UK government rolling out their lockdown roadmap.

​It should go without saying that the COVID-19 pandemic has heavily impacted the retail industry – after months of lockdown measures, social distancing rules and new ways of working...

After a tumultuous, COVID-affected 2020, the rollout of a vaccine has seen hope spring towards 2021 being better – especially for retailers, many of whom were closed for large parts of last year. As providers of retail security systems here at Tagmax, it’s our business to keep abreast of the latest changes and trends in the industry our products protect.

As the public is hoping the second national lockdown will be relaxed before Christmas, the thoughts of retailers will no doubt be concentrated on protecting everyone – and everything – in their stores for whenever they open. After a difficult year, the last thing stores need is to lose more profit unnecessarily; and this where taking new security measures, such as retail security tagging can help.

The use of retail security tags are nothing new – they have been providing a good way for store owners to identify possible instances of theft for the best part of 30 years. Working with an EAS system installed at the entrance/exit of the store, products that are taken close to the monitoring field will set off an alarm for staff to attend to.

Here at Tagmax, we specialise in anti-theft and retail loss prevention services such as retail security tagging to ensure that your business doesn't needlessly lose money.

Ever since the innovation of the ‘shop’, theft has heavily affected a retailer’s profit margins. Whilst up until the mid-late 20th century, the majority of theft was prevented by placing items behind a counter, this placed a (literal) barrier between customers and products. This makes the experience of shopping very impersonal and an unpleasant chore.

Whilst running your own retail business is often very rewarding, sometimes it presents difficult challenges that require much thought and action to overcome. Take shoplifting for example – accounting for much profit loss, incidences of theft can leave the business with a bad reputation that creates a poor in-store atmosphere and may even turn genuine customers away.

Running your own retail operation can be a real joy – seeing those products you've either created yourself or have worked so hard to procure, leaving your shelves in exchange for high profits, is the thrill behind the game. There are challenges too, of course; sadly, not all of them play this 'game' fairly – retail crime, such as theft, has been responsible for around £700m worth of loss in recent years.

Right now, we're in the Christmas season and with a large amount of footfall to attract, it may well prove to be a profitable time for many retailers. The season also acts as a reminder of the need for robust security; whilst an increased number of visitors is indeed great news, bigger crowds will mean staff levels will be stretched, handing anyone with nefarious intentions the ideal opportunity to strike. EAS systems and their accompanying tags can help to prevent this.

Running your own retail operation is undoubtedly a rewarding experience – not only do you see your store making money, you also match customers up with items they may have been searching for, or with products that have just caught their eye and will make a real difference to their lives.

If you run a clothing store, being able to provide a fitting facility is an obvious must – fitting rooms provide customers with the means to try their clothes out, before they purchase and take them home. You could say that fitting rooms are now an expected facility to have for any forward-thinking retailer – the ability to try their clothes out before they buy is seen as a cornerstone of good customer service.

Earlier this year, the British Retail Consortium (BRC) published their annual crime statistics, highlighting the monetary effect it has on retailers. In 2017, retail crime cost the industry more than £700m – a rise of 6% from 2016. The report detailed that the most prevalent in-store crime was theft, which is now responsible for nearly three-quarters of retail crime.

Whilst running your own retail operation is a rewarding pursuit, more often than not, it provides a number of daily challenges that if not dealt with, could see the business losing profit. Shoplifting and theft in general is a particularly large area for profit loss; during 2015 retail crime hit an all-time high, having accounted for over £600 million worth of loss.

Over the years, the team here at TAGMAX have implemented a wide range of security solutions for an even wider range of different business operations and public institutions. Whether it’s anti theft device for shops, CCTV for pubs or tagging systems for warehouses, we’ve been there and done it all.

According to statistics presented by industry insiders, March 2017 saw a 6% weekly rise in the amount of footfall experienced by shopping centres. Although the warmer spring weather may have something to do with getting more people out to shop, it’s likely to be the growth in the events leading up to Mother’s Day that was mostly responsible for the rise in figures.

When it comes to thinking about retail security, thoughts will immediately go towards preventing shoplifting and whether using security guards, CCTV, security tags or a combination of all three is a good idea. However, there are more benefits to be had from each – security guards can offer a friendly greeting service, CCTV can help the store to measure their footfall rates and security tags and EAS gates for retail can help to set a great in-store atmosphere.

Whilst the Christmas and New Year’s sales offer a bountiful opportunity for businesses of all sizes and types to increase their profit margins, it also can see them suffer from profit-affecting shoplifting. Naturally being busy will mean that staff levels will be stretched to meet demand and as a result, anyone with intentions of stealing will be encouraged to do so, without the presence of any visible security. This is where security tagging can help.

Happy New Year! Following the busy end-of-year shopping season, it can be easy for some on the outside of the retail sector to think that a trader’s work is done and they can slow down and put their feet up for a bit (like Father Christmas himself!) The fact of the matter is, they can’t – whilst it’s likely that retailers will experience a downturn in customers in the early part of the year, the need to manage and protect its profit margins remains as vital as ever – something that EAS security systems can help with.

Here at TAGMAX, we have spent many a year installing the latest security devices for retailers up-and-down the country. Our work has helped our clients to better protect their stock, staff and customers – it has also had benefits for the atmosphere of their stores too.

You can’t help but to have noticed that no matter where you turned, what you watched or read – Black Friday adverts were everywhere this year. During the last few years, many a retailer has joined in with this imported marketing initiative from the United States, designed to kick-start the Christmas shopping season by offering customers special deals or massive reductions on products in order to get shoppers into their stores.

For over 20 years, the team here at TAGMAX have served many a retailer in installing EAS security tag systems just in time for the busy Christmas season. With many retailers taking advantage of relatively-new innovations such as Black Friday to increase the footfall of their stores during the season, the ability to protect their stock has never been as important. In this blog, we’re going to look at the effects of the Christmas season on retailers and how they are able to protect themselves from the unwanted profit-effecting spectre of shoplifting.

The busy Christmas period can be both a blessing and a curse; to get so many people in their stores, a retailer has the better chance of increasing their profit margins. Then again, a busy store could potentially provide a magnet for thieves – they’ll see popular stores as being sellers of items that people are interested in and their busy nature also means that their staff will be busy too. Easy pickings you might think? Not with security systems such as EAS security tags in place.

For the uninitiated, it may sound like something from a science-fiction film; the ability to prevent a crime before one takes place. This ultimate crime prevention technique doesn’t require experimentation or a natural genetic mutation that allows us to see into the future though. Thanks to EAS security tag systems we can detect when someone is attempting to steal something before they get away with it.

Whilst measures such as EAS security systems and CCTV in retail are generally considered useful to combat external shoplifting, internal theft represents another area of loss for a business. All being well, we should be able to place trust in everyone we meet – unfortunately, the reality is completely different. This is why an increasing number of retailers are taking measures to prevent theft from every level – whether it’s through the usage of CCTV or security tagging; knowing the store is protected and being watched, genuine customers and staff members will feel protected and anyone with intentions of stealing, will be discouraged.

Today, we all can enjoy the benefits provided by modern technology. Almost every aspect of our lives has been improved by the vast options and easy access given to us by mobile phones, tablet devices and laptop computers. For our security, technology has greatly helped to identify and deter those who plan to cause any ill will to individuals, property or businesses.

Here at TAGMAX, we have been providing retail security equipment and devices to a wide range of retailers for well over 2 decades now. Keeping up with the latest changes and trends in the industry over that time has given us a unique knowledge of the industry and how each device we retail can help to reduce and prevent crime from affecting a business.

Despite the recent introduction of sales events such as Black Friday and Cyber Monday, the traditional January sales are still a busy time for British retailers. Whilst this is great news for businesses, the fact that it’s such a busy time could also potentially cause some retail security concerns for businesses hoping to take advantage of the period.

Retail businesses make obvious targets for criminals by their very nature of selling products that people want. It's because of this that as a retailer, you must be aware of the threat that shoplifting and general theft has, not just on the profits of the business, but also on the general safety and wellbeing of staff, customers and the building itself. A great way to combat these issues is to install security system installations, such asCCTV cameras and tag alarm systems.

Installing a pedestal security system is a great method to help combat shoplifting, read this to find out 10 best ways to protect your store from shoplifters!

If you run your own retail operation, then you’ll know that the unfortunate impact that shoplifting has on your business losing money, can be huge. The cost of retail crime during 2015 reached an all-time high, with an estimated £613m worth of goods stolen.

Shoplifting has a huge impact on a retailer's profits - the cost of retail theft accounted for over £613m of profits lost last year. Even though in the biggest of stores, the amount of money lost can still be hard-hitting, for the smaller stores, the loss can prove to be a critical difference between staying in business, or not.

If you’ve ever walked around a big retailer, you’ll have noticed that the most-expensive goods are electronically tagged. From clothes, to beauty products to even alcohol – anything and everything can be tagged.

Retail crime in London is at an all time, even after the efforts of the London Metropolitan Police to keep it in check. Largely, this is due to the fact that the greatest burden of prevention lies with the retail businesses and outlets themselves.

They’ve been in use for a long time now, but retail security experts still consider retail tagging devices such as Electronic Article Surveillance (EAS) tags one of the most effective forms of retail security.

C. and J. Clark International Ltd, trading as Clarks, is a British, international shoe manufacturer and retailer based in Street, Somerset. The retailer is the number one shoe brand in the UK and also the world’s largest casual and smart shoe company and the fourth largest footwear company on the planet.

French Fashion Retailer Agnes ‘B’ has chosen TAGMAX as its new Security Tagging Supplier.

Lingerie brand ‘Boux Avenue’ founded by Dragon’s Den Star Theo Paphitis has chosen Tagmax to install a Digital 66Khz Loop security tagging system in their new store in Gibraltar.

US online retailer Griffin Technology has opened its first Retail store in the Westfield Centre in Stratford, London and chosen TAGMAX as its preferred security supplier.