Been there done that. 1st time I tried it, I got caught with a bunch of friends. How incredibly mortifying. Over a $5 lipgloss?? What a dumba** I was when I was younger
Have you seen someone shoplift? Did you tell?
- Thread starter meganfm
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Been there done that. 1st time I tried it, I got caught with a bunch of friends. How incredibly mortifying. Over a $5 lipgloss?? What a dumba** I was when I was younger
Strangely, the most expensive department store I ever worked at had some of the craziest thefts I had ever seen. There was new staff constantly revolving in and out mostly because of unrealistic sales goals. The associates were expected to do everything; help customers, stock product, take care of mark downs. I saw so many girls get fired for abusing the mark down machines. They would clearance out all kinds of expensive clothes and buy it themselves or have friends or SO's come in and buy the stuff. It would take forever to catch them even though when you marked something down you had to use your employee number and that was on the tag so you'd think they would get caught the first time they did it. One girl (with the help of her boyfriend) practically cleaned out the kids section every time she worked because she would mark down all the expensive clothes that came in. She wouldn't even put them out on the floor until her boyfriend came in and bought them. She finally got caught because she got even greedier and tried to use her employee discount. I remember the day she got caught she was trying on clothes in the dressing room in my section and the police came in and grabbed all her bags and they were stuffed with expensive just off the truck kids clothing that she had marked down about 80% and bought with her employee discount.
Another problem that really kind of frightened me was when you had to close for the night, you had to constantly check the dressing rooms. Apparently, even with an alarm system, people would hide in the bathrooms or dressing rooms during closing time, wait until everyone left and then grab as much crap as they could and bolt before the cops showed up when they set off the motion sensor alarms. This happened twice while I was working there and apparently it happened many more times before and probably still happens now.
Not really shoplifting, but at that same store I was just baffled by the people who would get hired and immediately start abusing the system. They weren't content to get paid well above minimum wage and actually work. I lost count of the amount of girls who would come in at the start of their shifts, clock in and then go wander around the mall until the end of their shift. It was a really nice mall too so they essentially got paid to shop around all day. Like I said before, the revolving staff made it hard to keep track of these girls and after training you didn't get your first sales review for about three months. Once their review was scheduled, they were usually gone the day before. The pay to work there was not worth the aggravation and drama.
Another problem that really kind of frightened me was when you had to close for the night, you had to constantly check the dressing rooms. Apparently, even with an alarm system, people would hide in the bathrooms or dressing rooms during closing time, wait until everyone left and then grab as much crap as they could and bolt before the cops showed up when they set off the motion sensor alarms. This happened twice while I was working there and apparently it happened many more times before and probably still happens now.
Not really shoplifting, but at that same store I was just baffled by the people who would get hired and immediately start abusing the system. They weren't content to get paid well above minimum wage and actually work. I lost count of the amount of girls who would come in at the start of their shifts, clock in and then go wander around the mall until the end of their shift. It was a really nice mall too so they essentially got paid to shop around all day. Like I said before, the revolving staff made it hard to keep track of these girls and after training you didn't get your first sales review for about three months. Once their review was scheduled, they were usually gone the day before. The pay to work there was not worth the aggravation and drama.
Just a couple months back when a certain luxury brand opened its doors in Australia, a shoplifter came in, swiped an $8,000 Ostrich bag and walked right out with it...
While I was affiliated with the same group as the brand above, half of a phone lanyard was unclipped from a display and went missing. It was there one minute, gone the next. Not wanting to let go of our chances of a bonus (around Christmas time), our manager paid for it.
While I was affiliated with the same group as the brand above, half of a phone lanyard was unclipped from a display and went missing. It was there one minute, gone the next. Not wanting to let go of our chances of a bonus (around Christmas time), our manager paid for it.
I've never been in a situation where I've seen someone shoplift and I hope I never have to. But, in a case that I do see it happening, yes, I would tell, immediately!
Once, when I was about 7 years old. I was with Mom in a discount department store, and an obese woman had passed out in the aisle, and was surrounded by store security and employees. Her skirt was hiked up to reveal a girdle (remember when ladies wore those!?!), stuffed with I think were dinner plates, or platters, something oval and housewares-ish. Of course, we didn't stop and stare, to be polite, so it's a fuzzy memory. A few years later, I was in the same store, and thought I saw a woman shoplifring in the craft department, but I wasn't certain, so Mom didn't turn her in (Mom didn't actually see this woman herself--she was in another aisle).
That store seemed to be shoplifting central! I remember Mom's story about a friend who saw another woman get caught shoplifting there--this woman went in with a girdle (more girdles!) that she had sewn lots of narrow pockets into--so she could shoplift individual pieces of flatware! And this wasn't Tiffany's, folks--just a low-rent store--we're talking cheap forks here!
Hmmm...I'm planning a trip to a fine jewelry store soon--wonder if you can still buy girdles? (Just joking--I'd NEVER steal anything, anywhere--it's just plain WRONG!)
That store seemed to be shoplifting central! I remember Mom's story about a friend who saw another woman get caught shoplifting there--this woman went in with a girdle (more girdles!) that she had sewn lots of narrow pockets into--so she could shoplift individual pieces of flatware! And this wasn't Tiffany's, folks--just a low-rent store--we're talking cheap forks here!
Hmmm...I'm planning a trip to a fine jewelry store soon--wonder if you can still buy girdles? (Just joking--I'd NEVER steal anything, anywhere--it's just plain WRONG!)
These stories kill me! I wonder what the woman was trying to shoplift at Pottery Barn. Placemats? 
Honestly!
I have only seen shoplifting once and that was when I was maybe 8 or 9 years old. We were going to Target and a guy came running out the front door with a TV in his arms. The manager was running after him and yelling. I don't remember if he got caught or not.
I was once in an Abercrombie and saw 2 teenage girls get escorted out of the dressing rooms by cops for shoplifting. That was pretty entertaining because they were being obnoxious.
If I saw someone stealing, I would rat them out for sure. Unless it was something essential like food, and it was obvious they were in dire need, in which case I would probably just offer to pay for it.
Honestly!I have only seen shoplifting once and that was when I was maybe 8 or 9 years old. We were going to Target and a guy came running out the front door with a TV in his arms. The manager was running after him and yelling. I don't remember if he got caught or not.
I was once in an Abercrombie and saw 2 teenage girls get escorted out of the dressing rooms by cops for shoplifting. That was pretty entertaining because they were being obnoxious.
If I saw someone stealing, I would rat them out for sure. Unless it was something essential like food, and it was obvious they were in dire need, in which case I would probably just offer to pay for it.