2019 GLPS - Group LP Selfies
Your Team - Your Pride - Our Industry
Building Industry Pride - One Team Selfie at a Time
 

From left to right: Patrick Muller, Georgia Hall, Talisha Esho, Mark Boyd, Sarah O'Connor, Deborah Myers

More news from JD Sports Australia

Australia: JD Sports Profit Protection Team Wins Fraud Awards
"Fantastic evening at the Australian Fraud Awards last night, very proud of the Team winning Highly Commended Team of the Year, Deborah Myers winning Regional Risk Manager of the Year and myself winning Highly Commended Risk Manager of the Year award. Congratulations to all of the winners all very well deserved!" - Mark Boyd, Head of Profit Protection, JD Sports Australia  linkedin.com

REGIONAL RISK MANAGER OF THE YEAR: Winner: Deborah Myers - JD Sports

PROFIT PROTECTION TEAM OF THE YEAR: Highly Commended: Team Profit Protection - JD Sports

GROUP RISK MANAGER OF THE YEAR: Highly Commended: Mark Boyd - JD Sports

Thanks to Mark Boyd, Head of Profit Protection - Australia at JD Sports Fashion, for submitting these these photos to the Daily!

Georgia Retailers Organized Crime Alliance Celebrates
 Successful Conference

The Georgia Retailers Organized Crime Alliance (GROC) recently hosted their 9th Annual Retail Crime Training Conference. The conference was a resounding success as over 400 loss prevention professionals, law enforcement, and solutions providers gathered for a day of education, training, and networking at Atlanta's Cobb Galleria on Thursday, August 22.

"Attendance records were broken, we had a sold-out show, and we've received overwhelming positive feedback. It was truly a great event and we are excited to build upon this momentum for 2020" said Chad McManus , CFE, CFI, LPC, Field Loss Prevention Manager for T-Mobile, and Chair of the Georgia Retailers Loss Prevention Council.

As a result of a successful conference and silent auction, GROC is proud to announce that $5,000 will be donated to the Community Teen Coalition (CTC), CTC targets underserved youth ages 8-18 tackling important issues such as childhood illiteracy, peer pressure, low self-esteem, homelessness, gangs, and drug prevention. The program is designed to generate the skills and motivation necessary for success in post-secondary education. Learn more about CTC at https://ctc-inc.org/.

Planning is already underway for GROC 2020, stay tuned on conference updates, and monthly intel meeting information at www.georgiaroc.org.

Click here to read the full recap with pictures.
 

More Join the Ban Open Carry Trend

Five US retail chains are now banning the open carry of guns in their stores
31 Still Allow Open Carry & Includes Rifles
Walgreens, Wegmans, and CVS said today they will prohibit customers from openly carrying guns in their stores, even in states that are among the 31 that currently allow the open carry of handguns and rifles by civilians. The announcements bring the total number of major US retailers now banning open carry to five, following similar policy shifts by Walmart and Kroger this week.

On average, there has been more than one mass shooting per day this year, with some 53 people shot dead in mass shootings in August alone. More than 10,100 people have been killed by gun violence so far this year, about 2,500 of whom were under the age of 18.

"We support the efforts of individuals and groups working to prevent gun violence, and continually review our policies and procedures to ensure our stores remain a safe environment," CVS, the nation's largest pharmacy chain, said in a statement posted to its corporate website. "We join a growing chorus of businesses in requesting that our customers, other than authorized law enforcement personnel, do not bring firearms into our stores."

Walgreens, the second-largest pharmacy chain in the US, issued a press release that read, "We are joining other retailers in asking our customers to no longer openly carry firearms into our stores other than authorized law enforcement officials."

Some pushed back on what they saw as less-than-forceful language. And Walmart, for one, will still allow concealed carry. State laws "prohibit us from doing a complete ban," a company spokesperson told CBS MoneyWatch. None of the companies will be strictly enforcing the policy, according to the Associated Press, citing a memo by Walmart CEO Doug McMillon that said the company doesn't want to expose workers to potentially dangerous confrontations. qz.com


 

Visit Online Updated Interactive map of Gun Violence Locations in 2019

Updated - 10,100 people killed by gun violence so far in 2019
 

Pew Research Center
More Than Half of U.S. Adults Trust Law Enforcement
to Use Facial Recognition Responsibly
But the public is less accepting of facial recognition technology when used by advertisers or technology companies

A new Pew Research Center survey finds that a majority of Americans (56%) trust law enforcement agencies to use these technologies responsibly. A similar share of the public (59%) says it is acceptable for law enforcement to use facial recognition tools to assess security threats in public spaces.

At the same time, the survey finds that this relatively broad acceptance of facial recognition use by law enforcement does not necessarily apply to other entities that might use these technologies. Notably smaller shares of the public say they trust technology companies (36%) or advertisers (18%) to use facial recognition responsibly. And minorities of the public would find it acceptable for these tools to be used for purposes such as tracking who is entering or leaving apartment buildings (36%), monitoring the attendance of employees at a place of business (30%) or seeing how people respond to public advertising displays in real time (15%).

Most Americans have heard about facial recognition technology, with one-quarter having heard a lot about it. pewinternet.org

Retailers Extorted
Fall River Mayor Charged with Extorting Marijuana Vendors for Cash
Four others, including former chief of staff, also charged today
BOSTON - Jasiel F. Correia II, the Mayor of Fall River, Massachusetts, has been arrested and charged for allegedly extorting marijuana vendors for hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes; extorting a building owner for cash and a Rolex watch in exchange for activating the water supply to a commercial building; and demanding that his chief of staff give him half of her salary in return for appointing her and allowing her to keep her city job. Correia's former Chief of Staff was also charged today on extortion, theft and bribery, and false statement charges. Both will appear in federal court today.

According to the superseding indictment, Correia agreed to issue non-opposition letters to marijuana vendors, which are required in order to operate in Massachusetts, in return for cash bribes and other payments. The bribes alleged today ranged from approximately $100,000 to $250,000 in cash, campaign contributions and mortgage discharges - in return for non-opposition letters and host community agreements. Marijuana was also exchanged for resale. It is alleged that Andrade and Correia met with marijuana vendors and discussed signing non-opposition letters in return for cash.

Facing a total of 73 years in prison on all accounts. justice.gov
 

Today's HOT Topic: Redefining Retail Metrics
Making the News Media Rounds

What the CEO's read: The Robin Report
Retailers Are Relying on the Wrong Numbers to Tell the State of Business
Here's How to Get Them Right
New report from Deloitte entitled The Future of Retail Metrics: Measuring success in a shifting marketplace. Its conclusion is that companies should make fundamental changes to how they define success and to what they measure.

"Traditional retail metrics do not align with the configuration of the industry today and are not suited for the evolution we can expect in the future. If today's metrics aren't painting an accurate picture of the businesses we are trying to measure, then the logical move is to change our perspective."

Traditional Retail Metrics Are Garbage-In, Garbage-Out
In other words, traditional retail metrics result in "garbage-in, garbage-out," and no retailer can afford that anymore in an industry where customers have endless retail opportunities due to the proliferation of new retail business models.

For mature-phase retail businesses, some of those metrics are thrown out in favor of comp sales, sales per-square-foot, digital sales growth, margins, earnings-per-share, return-on-invested-capital and free cash flow. therobinreport.com

For the serious retail executive who understands retail's seismic shift and wants to see the new suggested formula for measurement. A topic many have been debating for some time.



The Future of Retail Metrics: Traditional benchmarks no longer give full picture
A growing number of executives agree - in Deloitte's recent survey of retail CFOs and finance executives, 88% said they are rethinking metrics to better reflect cross-channel operations. This reimagining has emerged in response to widespread dissatisfaction with existing data: Only a third of the executives said their internal metrics "really align" with external reporting, and only 8% believe their metrics are well-positioned to help them succeed amid all the changes in retail. So, what are the metrics financial leaders really want insight on?

Defining value - Defining new metrics

Implementing and upholding a new standard of metrics could lead the entire industry to increased effectiveness and accuracy around value capture and value creation. At the very least, a more comprehensive measurement of performance could boost resilience in the face of the industry's next (inevitable) disruption.  chainstoreage.com

With Digital Sales Impacting Store Performance Globally
Retails Metrics Need to be Redefined
Going as far as Deloitte did may not be the simple answer and because of that may be difficult to apply. Certainly with reviews and bonuses driven by the old comp store performance the industry needs to define how digital sales, cost of delivery, and direct to consumer from the distribution centers are shared throughout the organization at least from the store teams prospective. Just our thoughts -Gus Downing
 

Workplace Safety Can Worsen Under Bullying Bosses
A new Portland State University study suggests that bullying bosses aren't just bad for employee morale and well-being - they can also be bad for workplace safety.

The study was published in the Journal of Applied Psychology.

Yang said that bosses' behaviors can strengthen or weaken employees' sense of belonging to the work group by supporting or undermining their status within the group. Poor treatment from a boss can make employees feel that they're not valued by a group. As a result, they can become more self-centered, leading them to occasionally forget to comply with safety rules or overlook opportunities to promote a safer work environment.

Yang said this was especially true among employees who were more uncertain about their social standing within the group.

Yang said workplace safety is a critical issue - and more so in an environment where one employee's failure to behave safely can create circumstances where other people are likely to be injured.

"Organizations need to understand how important it is to curb leaders' bad behavior and to create positive team dynamics, so that there will be fewer negative safety consequences for employees or customers," she said. "It's really critical to manage such leader behavior, support victimized employees and prevent such issues."  securitymagazine.com

Will Macy's 'Growth50' Remodels at 100 More Stores Be Enough?
All told, those 150 stores cough up half of the company's brick-and-mortar revenue.

The effort is part of the company's store strategy announced last year, a triad of concepts - flagships including its Herald Square icon, smaller neighborhood stores and the Growth "magnet" stores. The department store is on track to reach $1 billion in capital expenditures this year, she also said. "Beyond our capital investment, the customer will see an increase in colleague support, advancement in omnichannel technology and more curated merchandise, tailored to their store location."

"I would characterize the changes as evolutionary rather than revolutionary. They are really about righting years of underinvestment than creating an innovative new format that is fit for the modern realities of retailing." said Neil Saunders, GlobalData Retail Managing Director.

"There are still too many Macy's stores in good retail locations that are down-at-heel and dingy," he said. "Store investment alone will not cut it, however. There also needs to be a change in how Macy's merchandises ... including the development of more own-brand product in apparel and homewares." retaildive.com

When Pot Went Legal in Canada 1 VC Heard 1,523 Pitches in 365 Days
That's Seven Deals a Day for One Year
End Result 18 Investments & "Canada is Played Out"
Members of the deal team at Canopy Rivers Inc. look at about seven investment opportunities a day, getting to know cannabis entrepreneurs eager for financial backing in a sector where the stigma of illegal drugs lingers.

Canopy Rivers was founded in April 2017 with the goal of investing in companies the Smiths Falls, Ont.-based cannabis giant couldn't swallow. Today, it's leveraging those talks with entrepreneurs to suss out global opportunities and think beyond dried flower.

Venture-capital investment in Canada soared to a record high of $2.15 billion in the first half of 2019. We're seeing the maturing of the market taking place right in front of you."

Big changes are underway in cannabis investing that mirror the technology sector in the early 2000s, he said, including a shift away from vertically integrated companies taking cannabis from seeds to retail. yahoo.com

Hurricane Dorian Clobbers the Carolinas, Virginia; Over 350,000 Loss Power As Hurricane Dorian made landfall along North Carolina's Outer Banks as a Category 1 storm Friday morning, powerful winds and storm surge had major impacts on the coastline, where serious flooding was reported and residents were believed to be trapped. Severe flooding was reported on Ocracoke Island and in Hatteras, where the storm made landfall.  weather.com

US store closures could reach 12,000 by the end of 2019
So far this year, US retailers have announced 8,201 store closures and 3,446 store openings. This compares to 5,844 closures and 3,258 openings for the full year 2018.

Year to date, UK retailers have announced 431 store closures and 633 store openings. coresight.com

Canada's Lululemon's Q2 sales up 22% shows why Nike is concerned

Party City to hire 25K for Halloween Stores


Quarterly Results
Canada's Lululemon Q2 comp's up 15%, sales up 22%
Genesco Q2 comp's up 3%, sales down 0.08%
American Eagle Q2 comp's up 2%, Aerie's comp's up 16%,
UK's Dixons Carphone Q1 comp's up 2%
UK's Arcadia (TopShop) full year sales down 4.5%
 

Oscar van den Broek welcomes you to the RFID LP Academy in this video and explains how retailers can benefit from RFID for Loss Prevention.

Nedap's recently launched online academy supports retail executives by providing a resource center of knowledge, study guides, and tests to help aid in adoption and education of RFID technology.

RFID-based EAS technology creates a real-time understanding of what, when and how specific items go missing by integrating item-level inventory and loss prevention data. This new insight leverages EAS and RFID inventory-visibility technologies to provide a complete pictures of loss events to help take loss prevention efforts to the next level.

Credit Card Fraudster Gang of 22 Operating Nationwide Gets Prison & Forfeitures
International Fraudster Gets 97 Months Fed Prison for $7M+ Credit Card Fraud & Money Laundering
A man who pleaded guilty to his involvement in a multimillion dollar international counterfeit credit card fraud and money laundering conspiracy was sentenced today to 97 months in federal prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, announced United States Attorney Nicholas A. Trutanich for the District of Nevada.

Bruno Macedo Correia, 29, pleaded guilty in July 2019, and in addition to imprisonment he was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $2,288,180.97. The Court also imposed a $5,000,000 criminal forfeiture money judgment, and ordered 196 items of property and U.S. currency forfeited.

Correia and his co-conspirators skimmed ATM's and bought stole accounts online and set-up credit card forgery "laboratories" in residences and hotel rooms to manufacture counterfeit credit and debit cards. They used the counterfeit credit and debit cards to obtain cash withdrawals from ATMs and GCA machines located in Nevada and elsewhere and also to purchase high-end merchandise including luxury watches, jewelry, and clothing at hotel-casinos and businesses in Las Vegas, Nevada and other cities throughout the United States, including: Del Mar, California; Detroit, Michigan; New Orleans, Louisiana; Nassau County, New York; Biloxi, Mississippi; and Atlantic City, New Jersey. The group laundered the fraud proceeds and resold the fraudulently obtained retail items on the black market or online marketplaces.

Twenty-one individuals were charged in a 2017 indictment for their alleged roles in the conspiracy. To date, 12 defendants have pleaded guilty or have been sentenced. justice.gov

Ex-NFL player one of 12 accused in 61 robberies that netted $1M in Electronics
An NFL cornerback who was waived by the Indianapolis Colts last week has been charged along with 11 other people in connection with 61 robberies of UPS drivers across Northern California that resulted in the theft of $1 million in electronics, authorities announced Thursday. The Alameda County District Attorney's Office said Isaiah Langley, 22, was part of a crew that stole cell phones, tablets and other electronic devices by rushing the delivery drivers as they dropped off the merchandise at cell phone stores. The suspected thieves would flee the scene in vehicles that displayed paper dealer plates. KTVU reported that the thefts took place between Dec. 6, 2018 and Aug. 21 of this year. Cellphone data, surveillance video and physical evidence helped identify Langley, the news station added. foxnews.com

San Mateo, CA: Grab & Run at Apple Store in San Mateo; 40 items stolen
A trio of thieves stole 40 products from a San Mateo Apple Store in mere minutes Thursday night, authorities said. The high-speed robbery is the latest to occur at one of the tech giant's retail outlets in the Bay Area. Last week, thieves made off with $70,000 in products from a store in Burlingame. San Mateo police said the robbery at the Hillsdale Shopping Center Apple Store was reported at 9:01 p.m. Officers arrived within two minutes, but the three suspects had already left.  mercurynews.com

New York, NY: Burglar Steals $48K In Clothes From Midtown Boutique The NYPD is trying to identify a burglar that made off with a five-figure haul after breaking into a Midtown Manhattan fashion boutique. The suspect disabled the alarm at The Aeffe USA boutique on West 56th Street between Fifth and Sixth avenues during an Aug. 31 break-in, police said. While inside the store, the man stole merchandise valued at $48,000 and then fled the location.  patch.com