Sponsor Vector Security Joins Junior Achievement of Pennsylvania to Celebrate Grand Opening of JA BizTown®

Vector Security Joins Forces with Dozens of Top Regional Businesses to Provide Youth with a Real-World Experience in Economics, Business Management & Personal Finance

Junior Achievement of Western Pennsylvania (JA of Western PA) today celebrated the grand opening and first student visit to JA BizTown®, a fully-interactive, true-to-life simulation that recreates the day-to-day functions of thriving communities. Vector Security was one of more than two dozen top regional businesses that have come together and invested millions to create this powerful experience that will inspire students to dream big and reach their full potential. vectorsecurity.com

Checkpoint Systems Adds Alpha® ShoeLok to line of Specialized Anti-Theft Hard Tags for Retailers

Provides Retailers Protection For Shoes When Traditional Devices Won't Work

Checkpoint Systems, a leading global supplier of Electronic Article Surveillance (EAS), RFID solutions and Alpha High-Theft Solutions for the retail industry, today added the Alpha ShoeLok to its line of specialized tags to protect against retail footwear theft.

The one-piece alarming tag easily clamps onto footwear that is challenging to protect. The ratcheting compression mechanism attaches to the shoe – no pin or lanyard required, and no marks left behind after removal.

According to Stuart Rosenthal, Vice President of Sales for Checkpoint's Alpha High-Theft Solutions, "Our first ShoeLok adaptors are reporting significant reductions in theft incidents as well as ease of use and quick removal at the point of sale — making this solution a win for both retailers and consumers." yahoo.com
 

ECR Community Shrink and OSA Group in the UK

UK Group of LP Executives Met Last Week - Led by Professor Adrian Beck, ECR Community Shrink & OSA Group

Use of Video in Retail - Three Key Takeaways from the ECR meeting

Hosted by URW, over 40 participants, representing 20+ retailers attended last weeks annual ECR working group on video meeting in London. Click here for the presentations and meeting recap. Three key takeaways were as follows:

1. Retailer investment in Video is growing – 68% of the participants stated that their company planned to increase investment this year Vs prior year

2. Central Operations, Loss Prevention and the Risk / Audit teams remain the most routine users of video in retail organizations - with only 5% of the participants stating that their Marketing team were routine users of video.

3. Interest in facial recognition in retail remains high, but few are trialing – 63% of participants stated that they would like to run a trial but their company was unwilling, with just 11% reporting that their company was preparing for / were undertaking a trial.

Closing out the workshop were presentations from Primark and Tesco, who reported on their video journey, the lessons learnt, and where they see the technology headed.

The next Video in retail working group meeting will be held on January 20th /21st 2021, these meetings are open to any retailer and are free to attend. If you would like to participate, please email: info@ecr-shrink-group.com

In the meantime, the ECR group will aim to publish new research on the use of video in retail, lead by Professor Beck, in April / May 2020. Please email ECR if you would like to be put on the mailing list for this research. ecr-shrink-group.com

New Report Demonstrates the Importance of Inventory Record Accuracy Within the Retail Industry, and Its Impact on Sales

Study deducted that 60% of the inventory records are inaccurate
and sales can grow on average by 6% when corrected

RGIS and the ECR Community Shrinkage & OSA Group are announcing the results of a new study regarding inventory record accuracy undertaken by academics from EMYLON Business School, TU Darmstadt, and Cardiff Business School.

The researchers conducted an experiment at seven European retailers from the grocery/general merchandise and fashion/apparel sectors where approximately one million stock keeping units (SKUs) sold in about 100 stores were counted at specific points in time. A comparison of stores that were subjected to stock counts to stores that were not, allowed the researchers to understand how an improvement in inventory record accuracy improves sales.

The research showed that approximately 60% of the analyzed SKUs suffered from inventory record inaccuracies. The average magnitude of inventory record inaccuracies for the affected SKUs were roughly +6.6 and -6.0 units for positive and negative discrepancies, respectively. After correcting the inventory record inaccuracies, the participating retailers experienced a sales increase between 4% and 8% - for the entire portfolio of SKUs on stock. newswire.com

Thanks to Colin Peacock, Group Strategic Coordinator for the ECR Community Shrink and OSA Group in the UK, for submitting.
 

Coronavirus Update

"Officials Are Grossly Underestimating
the True Toll of Infections"

China is 'Out of Control'

China now has more cases of coronavirus
than it had of SARS

Are retailers ready for the coronavirus?
To date, five patients in the U.S. have tested positive for the virus, while 32 were negative and 73 others are still awaiting confirmation. States with confirmed cases of the virus include Arizona, California, Illinois and Washington. People infected with the virus have symptoms including fever, cough and shortness of breath. Symptoms may appear anywhere from two to 14 days after exposure.

Concerns about a global outbreak of the virus have been blamed for turmoil in financial markets in recent days. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 267 points in trading on Monday.

American businesses have begun restricting travel to China and arranged charter flights to bring U.S. citizens home.

U.S. companies operating stores in China are taking steps to address the virus. Starbucks has temporarily closed more than 2,000 of its locations. The coffee giant has cautioned that the coronavirus outbreak in China could "materially affect" its results this year.

Apple: "We've currently closed one of our retail stores and a number of channel partners have also closed their storefronts," said Apple CEO Tim Cook on the company's first-quarter earnings call yesterday. "Many of the stores that remain opened have also reduced operating hours. We're taking additional precautions and frequently deep-cleaning our stores as well as conducting temperature checks for employees."

The CDC has offered preventative actions to help reduce the spread of the coronavirus and other viruses. Number one on the list is for people to wash their hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. If soap and water are not available, the agency recommends alcohol-based sanitizers. Cleaning and disinfecting frequently touched surfaces is also recommended by the CDC. retailwire.com

● 2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) in the U.S. - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
● About 2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 
● Prevention & Treatment - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
● Deaths rise to 132 in China outbreak as foreigners leave - The Associated Press/MSN

China Infections Are 'Out of Control'
Protect yourself against coronavirus infection with one simple step

Businesses Suspend Operations in China

Starbucks - Yum China - KFC - Pizza Hut - McDonald's - Domino's - Carnival - Royal Caribbean - MGM Resorts - Walt Disney - GM - Ford - All Close Operations

The Dow Falls 400+ Points as Coronavirus Fears Escalate

As the World Health Organization mulls whether to label the widening coronavirus outbreak a global public health emergency, an expert warned that the crisis is only "at the beginning" - but people can help protect themselves with one simple step.

Chinese health officials are rushing to contain an outbreak of coronavirus that originated in the city of Wuhan and has infected at least 4,500 people, claimed the lives of at least 100 others, and is slowly popping up in other countries. yahoo.com

Coronavirus Live Updates: U.S. Evacuates Citizens, and Deaths Mount

6,000 Cases - 132 Deaths - 5 Cases in U.S. & 3 in Canada

Chinese officials confirmed nearly 6,000 cases of the mysterious illness as foreign governments airlifted their citizens out of Wuhan, the outbreak's epicenter.

China said on Wednesday that 132 people had died from the virus, which is believed to have originated in the central city of Wuhan and is spreading across the country. The previous count, on Tuesday, was 106.

The number of confirmed cases increased by nearly 25 percent to 5,974 on Wednesday, up from 4,515 on Tuesday, according to China's National Health Commission.

Thailand has reported 14 cases of infection; Hong Kong has eight; the United States, Taiwan, Australia and Macau have five each; Singapore, South Korea and Malaysia each have reported four; Japan has seven; France has four; Canada has three; Vietnam has two; and Nepal, Cambodia, Germany and the United Arab Emirates each have one.

Rise in number of cases outside China is "very concerning," expert says.

Scientists are racing to develop a coronavirus vaccine.

Scientists are working to develop a vaccine capable of stopping the spread of a mysterious new coronavirus that has infected thousands of people, mostly in China. nytimes.com


Read Full Update & More Articles
 

The Crucial Role Prevention Plays Against 2020's Top Business Travel Threats

Building a Strong Duty of Care Program

Millions of people will travel all over the world for business throughout 2020, and it's not without its risks. International SOS recently released its annual Travel Risk Outlook, unveiling the top threats business travelers will face this year. Today, we'll look at the leading three predicted risks and the critical role that prevention plays in protecting employees against these threats as it relates to Duty of Care.

As businesses continue to grow on a global scale and global growth becomes more and more accessible, strengthening resilience ensures protection of human capital. Travel risk resilience can be broken out into three fundamental principles: prevention, protection and productivity. When a business takes all three factors into consideration while creating its Duty of Care program, it builds a strong foundation for both the employer and its employees.

The top three business travel risks of 2020 include geopolitical shifts and civil unrest, mental health issues and physical health issues. securitymagazine.com

Companies, this is why your employees are stealing from you

A new survey of 1,000 employees and managers shows that 68% of workers have stolen from work, and one-fifth of workers think it's okay to steal for the following reasons:

● Company won't notice anything missing (24%)
● Not paid enough (21%)
● Can't afford to buy the item (17%)
● Boss is rude (13%)

Employers should expect to stock employees' homes with office supplies: 4 in 10 employees have stolen pens or pencils, and a quarter have taken paper clips and sticky notes. Office theft has been on the rise nationally, accounting for roughly 20% of supplies.

The most common items stolen from work are: pens, pencils, paper clips, sticky notes, paper, notepads, and highlighters, which are commonly taken from large companies. But 11-14% have stolen food, coffee, and soda, mostly from smaller companies. Only 5% have stolen more expensive items such as tech accessories.

Regardless of the excuse or explanation for committing a crime, most people stand strong in opposition to criminal activity. But when it comes to small, seemingly harmless theft in the workplace, 18.3% of employees thought it was OK to steal from work. However, under certain circumstances, that percentage began to creep up. Just over 24% of employees thought it was acceptable to steal when a company had multiples of one item and wouldn't notice any missing. Some people took a stance on necessity: Nearly 21% of employees also said it was acceptable to steal from work when you're underpaid.

Eighty percent of managers said that stealing is an automatic fireable offense at their company. The survey was commissioned by job-seeker resource TheInterviewGuys.com, who presumably don't want you to get canned for pilfering. theinterviewguys.com

Staten Island Wholesaler Smuggles $40 Million of Tobacco into New York
The defendant operated Capital Trade, Inc., a tobacco wholesaler based in Bristol, Pennsylvania. During the charged conduct, Al Najar and his associates transported almost $40 million worth of tobacco from Pennsylvania to New York, while failing to pay millions of dollars in New York state excise taxes on that tobacco. justice.gov

EEOC Harassment Charges Reflect #MeToo's Relevance
Despite a slight dip in the number of sexual-harassment charges filed last year, the monetary benefits of sexual-harassment cases settled by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) - excluding the awards obtained through litigation - was nearly $70 million. This was much higher than in previous years, showing that the #MeToo movement continues to make changes in the workplace.

The monetary benefits from the agency's sexual-harassment settlements have steadily risen over the past four years:

2016 -- $40.7 million
2017 -- $46.3 million
2018 -- $56.6 million
2019 -- $68.2 million

State Anti-Harassment Laws Have Been Strengthened
In the wake of the #MeToo movement, many states have strengthened their anti-discrimination laws and developed more-robust workplace sexual-harassment prevention training requirements. HR professionals and organizational leaders should treat the eruption of such mandates as an opportunity - not an obligation. shrm.org

L Brands Investigates Sale of Victoria's Secret - Wexner May Step Down

Started with 1 store in 1963 and built an Empire

Wexner criticized for his longtime association with accused child-sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein

The potential moves come as Wexner has been criticized in recent months for his longtime association with accused child-sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.

The Wall Street Journal first reported the possible sale online Wednesday morning, and The Dispatch confirmed the story through a source close to the company. The company declined to comment Wednesday morning, saying it doesn't comment on rumors.

The lingerie brand has been a drag on the profitability of L Brands, whose stock tumbled nearly 30% in 2019 on top of a nearly 60% decline in 2018. L Brand shares have sunk from a high of $100.22 on Nov. 4, 2015. The share price in Tuesday's trading closed at $20.56. dispatch.com

Editor's Note: No one ever thought they'd see the day when Leslie Wexner sold Victoria's Secret, much less step down. This is one for the history books if you follow retail.

NRF welcomes signing of USMCA legislation
The National Retail Federation welcomed today's signing by President Trump of legislation to implement the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

"We believe this agreement will bring continued decades of economic prosperity that will benefit American consumers and the millions of U.S. workers whose jobs depend on the free flow of trade with our nation's two closest trading partners," NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay said. nrf.com

Home Depot launches drive thru for pros & trucks in Dallas

Lucky's Markets Sells 11 Stores, Begins Chapter 11

Pederson's Natural Farms Adopts ReposiTrak for Compliance

DHS Free E-Verify Webinars - February 2020

Hotels Tackle Human Trafficking at Super Bowl


Quarterly Results

LVMH Full Year revenue up 15%, world's largest luxury brand with 4,915 stores, 829 in U.S.
     Asia = 30%, U.S. = 24% of revenue

McDonald's Q4 Global comp's up 5.9%, U.S. comp's up 5.1%, International comp's up 6.2%, sales up 3.7%
McDonald's Full Yr. Global comp's up 5.9%, U.S. comp's up 5%. International comp's up 6.1%, sales up 4%

Starbucks Q1 comp's up 5% Globally, comp's up 6% in the U.S., comp's up 3% in China, net revenue up 7%