For retailers, the weekend after Thanksgiving is the beginning of the holiday shopping season, complete with crowded stores, bargain sales and aisles decorated with colorful Christmas flair.

It is also a time of concern for store personnel, who do what they can to prevent shoplifters from carrying away too much of the company's profits.

Last year, shoplifters took about $10 billion in merchandise from the retail industry, according to the 2001 National Retail Security Survey.

'Security to area B'

At Cape Girardeau's Kmart store, like at most stores, thieves of high-priced goods are caught more often than petty criminals, said assistant manager Margie White. But White said Kmart treats shoplifting of inexpensive items just as seriously, while other retailers may overlook small thefts.

"They're all treated the same here," she said. "Shoplifting is shoplifting, and all of our floor personnel are trained to look for certain behaviors."

Traditional methods of preventing theft include putting security tags on vulnerable merchandise and installing added security measures in "blind spots" around the store, including bright lighting, security mirrors, shoplifting warning signs and cameras.

Kmart has used electronic sensor devices at its doors for the last six years to detect stolen merchandise, White said. The store's loss-prevention personnel also use cameras and monitors to observe suspects.

Some stores make frequent loudspeaker announcements, such as "Security to area B," even if the store doesn't have security personnel or an area B.

Clothing clerks make pleasant comments to customers about items being taken into fitting rooms, so the customers are aware of what is expected to be either returned or purchased.

Customer-service approach

However, many department stores are taking a new approach to preventing shoplifting. Instead of simply following a suspect around, waiting for a theft to occur and then making an apprehension, stores are instructing employees to get into a prevention state of mind by greeting every customer who enters their department and providing personal service to as many customers as possible.

Best Buy has designed its stores with only one entrance and one exit for customers. A store associate stationed at the doors checks the receipts of customers exiting the store and observes persons entering the store, taking particular notice of those entering with a shopping bag.

"We practice prevention by interaction with customers," said Steve Maxcy, manager of the new Best Buy store in Cape Girardeau. "We use a team approach by covering the sales floor, providing service and having a loss-prevention attitude with our associates."

Cape Girardeau Police patrolman Jason Selzer emphasized the importance of store personnel apprehending suspects.

"There are more people that get away with shoplifting than get caught at it," he said. "We rely on the stores to catch them for us. Retail stores are the front line in this."

But he understands the approach used by Best Buy because of the legal issues surrounding apprehending shoplifting suspects.

"Some stores are rightfully worried about getting sued if their employees use force to detain people," he said.

While Best Buy does use security cameras, Maxcy said store associates are the best tools his store has to combat shoplifting because they have something to gain by preventing it.

Like many retail companies, Best Buy annually estimates what its stores can expect to lose each year due to lost or stolen merchandise or money, commonly called "shrinkage" in the industry. If a store was projected to lose $50,000 in shrinkage this year but only loses $10,000, then all of the store's employees are rewarded by the company with the difference of $40,000, split among them.

"When someone steals from us, our associates know it's not just stealing from Best Buy, but it's stealing from their pocketbooks too," Maxcy said.

Calls to police daily

The Cape Girardeau Police Department responds to shoplifting calls on a nearly daily basis during the holiday season, Selzer said. But retail security is primarily the stores' responsibility.

"Some stores in the city hire off-duty police officers as security," he said. The officers appear at the store in uniform as a visible deterrent to shoplifting and only become involved with an apprehension of a suspect at the store's request.

"It is totally up to the stores if they want us to arrest and seek prosecution," Selzer said. "Some stores have a very aggressive policy."

A survey conducted by Checkpoint Systems from Retail Forward Inc. found that 58 percent of those arrested for theft in 2000 were under the age of 25.

"Most are juveniles, but it's usually not their first time shoplifting," said Selzer. "It's just their first time getting caught."

Selzer said most people might be surprised to know that many of those arrested for shoplifting had the cash on them to pay for the merchandise, but simply chose to steal it.

"A lot of times, when we inventory a suspect's money as part of booking them in, we'll find they had the cash to more than cover it, but they just didn't want to pay for it," he said. "Some people get a thrill or a high from stealing, and that's why they do it."

In addition, Selzer said Cape Girardeau stores are often hit by shoplifters passing through the area.

"There's a lot of influx here of outsiders," he said. "We're a central hub and get a lot of people who shoplift from out of town."

If a person is arrested for shoplifting, the suspect can expect to be fingerprinted, photographed and have an arrest added to their permanent record, Selzer said. If it's the first or second offense, and if the person is local or has ties to the community, he will usually get a summons and be released.

"But if it's the third time or more, we want them to stay in jail while we ask the prosecutor to file for felony stealing," he said.

A felony charge can also be filed if the stolen merchandise has a value of at least $500.

mwells@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 160