The latest development in retail tagging is said to be the ‘hardest’ act to follow, and is set to create a magnetic attraction for retailers hoping to defeat organised criminals who ‘go shopping’ armed to remove EAS tags.
The new Dural Tag, which is being trialled by a select group of retailers, is claimed to be the most secure hard tag solution on the market because of its high-powered magnetic locking system which cannot be defeated by any black market detacher.
The technology introduced by TAG Company has been developed over three years of research in response to the organised gangs of shoplifters who take black market detachers into stores in order to remove hard tags in changing rooms or behind displays.
Traditional detachers can be obtained legally online for a few pounds, and can defeat hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of Electronic Article Surveillance (EAS) investment because the tags can no longer activate the alarm antenna located in store doorways.
Major issue for UK retailers
“In these harsh economic times, detachers that end up in skips when stores close down can too often find their way into the wrong hands,” explained Jon Marchese, managing director of The TAG Company. “This means that what was a controlled problem with EAS has become a major issue for retailers.”
He added: “We have developed the Dural tag with a unique locking system because such is the power of the magnets that no conventional detachers have managed to remove the tag in our rigorous tests to date. We will also closely control the distribution of the detachers so they cannot fall into the wrong hands, which is why we are carrying out controlled trials with mainly fashion retailers.”
Marchese stresses that Dural is there primarily to complement existing EAS solutions rather than replace estate investment.
“The Dural Tag is not designed as an expensive replacement to existing EAS hard tags, but rather as an extra deterrent for retailers with ‘hot’ stores where return on investment is expected to be high during the trials.”
Powerful branding opportunities
The 100% recyclable Dural Tag comes with additional benefits including the small lightweight design and powerful store branding and merchandising opportunities on the button-style surface because the logo and size can be readily displayed to assist availability and sales.
The new, longer pins also reduce damage to garment threads which further assists a given store’s profit protection strategy.
There are also significant Health and Safety advantages through the patented ‘clip and keep’ system for safe storage of pins at the store. Once detached, the tag is simply clicked into a storage hole and stored and staff are not exposed to potential naked pin injuries caused by any careless storage.
There is also no need to unfold garments to apply the Dural in store which frees up more shop floor staff time.
“In simple terms we have listened to a lot of the customer issues surrounding the limitations of existing hard tag EAS technology, and that thought process has manifested itself in the Dural,” said Marchese.
“It is simply designed particularly for challenging city centre stores to make the criminal’s task harder and the staff’s jobs easier.”
This tag sounds really impressive. I’m sure that it will appeal to many in the retail industry. After all, any retail industry wants to protect the products they sell.
Walter Kowalski | http://www.sensortags.com/product-category/security-tags/