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I've worked in a number of convenience stores over the years, and one of the constants is theft. People steal from even the smallest of convenience stores if they can get away with it. If the store stocks beer, there will be at least one beer run a week. If there's no beer, then it'll be cigarettes, or soda, or candy, or whatever they can get their hands on and get out the door with.
One of the stores I worked for had an interesting way of dealing with it. This was an ARCO franchise (not a corporate-owned store, which makes a difference). The official line was that if someone steals something, let 'em go, write it up, note the time so that the cameras can get it. The unofficial line was - do whatever it takes to keep shrink down.
Now, naturally, the company discourages direct confrontations - those can end up with the clerk hurt or dead. But sometimes, adrenalin doesn't give you that second or two to rationally let them go.
One time, a guy came in to the store. It was late at night - around 3 AM, no cars at the island. He asks for a pack of smokes. I pulled the cigarettes out of the overhead storage unit, set them on the counter, and ring him up. He rummages through his pockets for a minute, then suddenly grabs the cigarettes, dashes out the door, hops on his bicycle, and starts pedaling like Hell was after him.
Because it was. I hit the door two steps behind him, and caught him halfway across the parking lot. I ran faster than he rode. I grabbed the back of his jacket, dug in my heels, and threw him to the ground. He bounced, rolled, and came up with an, "Oh, shit!" look on his face. I must have looked like I was ready to beat him senseless, because he threw the cigarettes at me. I ignored the cigarettes for a moment, kept glaring at him, and then picked up the cigarettes and started walking back inside. I stopped long enough to shout, "And don't ever come back!" at him.
My backup for that shift had been in the cooler, and heard the double-slams of the two of us hitting the front door, but didn't know what was going on until I explained it to him. He was a tough old bird who didn't take shit from anyone. When I got done telling him what had happened, he shared one of his tales with me.
There was a guy who came in with a military-style vest, and made a beeline for the beer cooler. After a few minutes of looking over the selection (and waiting for the clerk to be busy with a customer), he took a 40-oz. beer from the cooler, tucked it in an inside pocket, and strolled to the front. He picked up a pack of candy on his way to the counter.
The old guy had seen the whole thing. He rang up the candy, then looked the thief in the eye, and said, "Will that be everything?" The thief nodded and said, "Yeah, that's it." The old guy pulled his brickbat (that's a small bat - around a foot in length - that masons use to knock bricks into place) out from under the counter, rapped the bottle hard enough to shatter it, and said, "I guess you're right." The guy stood there stunned for a minute, dripping beer, then just walked out.
Even the owners of that location weren't afraid to confront thieves in the store. During one of my rare day shifts, we had a customer steal some beer. The owners were in the store at the time, and got a good look at him on camera. They were going over the footage so that they could turn the tape over to the cops with the appropriate times marked, when the same guy walks back in the store to steal more beer. This was no more than an hour after his first theft. The owners recognized him immediately.
One of the owners stayed in the office to call the police; the other one walked up to the register, explained the situation to me, and walked outside to catch him as he was leaving. The guy walked out, oblivious to the fact that he'd already been caught, and the owner grabbed him. He fought to get away, ran off, leaving his car behind, and it ended up being a 90-minute police chase (on foot!) through the nearby residential area.
With two separate incidents on camera, in addition to resisting arrest, he was going to be in the pokey for a while.
I've got other tales of beer runs (the first time it ever happened to me, I was in a panic, because nobody warned me that it could and would happen!), but I'll save those for another day. The rest aren't as amusing, anyway. =^_^=
One of the stores I worked for had an interesting way of dealing with it. This was an ARCO franchise (not a corporate-owned store, which makes a difference). The official line was that if someone steals something, let 'em go, write it up, note the time so that the cameras can get it. The unofficial line was - do whatever it takes to keep shrink down.
Now, naturally, the company discourages direct confrontations - those can end up with the clerk hurt or dead. But sometimes, adrenalin doesn't give you that second or two to rationally let them go.
One time, a guy came in to the store. It was late at night - around 3 AM, no cars at the island. He asks for a pack of smokes. I pulled the cigarettes out of the overhead storage unit, set them on the counter, and ring him up. He rummages through his pockets for a minute, then suddenly grabs the cigarettes, dashes out the door, hops on his bicycle, and starts pedaling like Hell was after him.
Because it was. I hit the door two steps behind him, and caught him halfway across the parking lot. I ran faster than he rode. I grabbed the back of his jacket, dug in my heels, and threw him to the ground. He bounced, rolled, and came up with an, "Oh, shit!" look on his face. I must have looked like I was ready to beat him senseless, because he threw the cigarettes at me. I ignored the cigarettes for a moment, kept glaring at him, and then picked up the cigarettes and started walking back inside. I stopped long enough to shout, "And don't ever come back!" at him.
My backup for that shift had been in the cooler, and heard the double-slams of the two of us hitting the front door, but didn't know what was going on until I explained it to him. He was a tough old bird who didn't take shit from anyone. When I got done telling him what had happened, he shared one of his tales with me.
There was a guy who came in with a military-style vest, and made a beeline for the beer cooler. After a few minutes of looking over the selection (and waiting for the clerk to be busy with a customer), he took a 40-oz. beer from the cooler, tucked it in an inside pocket, and strolled to the front. He picked up a pack of candy on his way to the counter.
The old guy had seen the whole thing. He rang up the candy, then looked the thief in the eye, and said, "Will that be everything?" The thief nodded and said, "Yeah, that's it." The old guy pulled his brickbat (that's a small bat - around a foot in length - that masons use to knock bricks into place) out from under the counter, rapped the bottle hard enough to shatter it, and said, "I guess you're right." The guy stood there stunned for a minute, dripping beer, then just walked out.
Even the owners of that location weren't afraid to confront thieves in the store. During one of my rare day shifts, we had a customer steal some beer. The owners were in the store at the time, and got a good look at him on camera. They were going over the footage so that they could turn the tape over to the cops with the appropriate times marked, when the same guy walks back in the store to steal more beer. This was no more than an hour after his first theft. The owners recognized him immediately.
One of the owners stayed in the office to call the police; the other one walked up to the register, explained the situation to me, and walked outside to catch him as he was leaving. The guy walked out, oblivious to the fact that he'd already been caught, and the owner grabbed him. He fought to get away, ran off, leaving his car behind, and it ended up being a 90-minute police chase (on foot!) through the nearby residential area.
With two separate incidents on camera, in addition to resisting arrest, he was going to be in the pokey for a while.
I've got other tales of beer runs (the first time it ever happened to me, I was in a panic, because nobody warned me that it could and would happen!), but I'll save those for another day. The rest aren't as amusing, anyway. =^_^=
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