Networked Video Surveillance Provides Benefits For Single-Store Location

June 2014 Integrated Solutions For Retailers

By Adam Blair, contributing editor

Homemakers Furniture’s 170 cameras deter identity theft, discourage fraud, and support employee training.

When the term “retail loss prevention” is used, the mental image that’s most frequently conjured up is still that of a shopper slipping something under their coat and walking out the door without paying. However, this isn’t really an issue for furniture retailers, where even the smallest items for sale are generally too bulky to conceal.

In reality, smart retailers are well aware that fraudulent or suspicious activity actually occurs in a wide variety of ways, and that the solutions required to address it need to be adapted to each retailer’s specific needs. For Homemakers Furniture, this means an array of approximately 170 networked video cameras focused on key areas throughout the exterior and interior of the retailer’s approximately 500,000-square-foot Des Moines, IA, store. A technology upgrade implemented last year provides centralized control and automated storage of video images, as well as improved flexibility and connectivity of the cameras.