Stop thief! Small and costly, batteries are all too vulnerable to thieves. How can retailers protect stock without putting people off buying them? Defensive merchandising might seem like a contradiction in terms ­ after all, marketing is all about making a product easy to buy. But there's also a need to protect valuable stock in the marketplace, as every retailer knows to his cost. As easy to slip into the pocket as a packet of sweets but worth considerably more, battery packs have long been a target for everyone from the light-fingered warehouseman to the casual store pilferer. "The size and relatively high value of batteries means they're prone to theft," stresses Panasonic marketing and communications manager Tim Clark. David Cautley, marketing manager UK and Ireland for Energizer, draws a parallel with cosmetics. "Batteries are an item with a high perceived value and are pilfered in much the same way as, say, lipsticks," he points out. The large multiples have a raft of defensive measures in place to prevent theft of any of their products, from close-circuit TV to store detectives. But high street grocers and convenience stores usually have to rely on clever stock placing and their own vigilance. What can battery manufacturers do to help make all retailers' jobs easier and minimise shrinkage? Much can be done through tight controls on how stock is packaged and displayed. Panasonic has introduced a seal on its hanging 12-packs which show when a product has been tampered with, while both Duracell's and Sony Energy's display units are designed so the customer cannot remove more than one pack at a time. "If it becomes necessary, we'll work with retailers to tag battery packs in the same way we do CDs", says Sony Energy's trade marketing manager Michael Cox-Hill. "The store alarms will go off if someone tries to walk out with a pocketful that hasn't been scanned." Duracell's senior marketing manager Suren Raymond agrees that the situation sometimes demands stringent action. "Some supermarkets actually keep their battery stock in a locked cupboard and only put on display the amount they know they can sell in one day," he says. Energizer takes a different approach. "We don't want to make point of sale fixtures difficult for the majority of customers to use," says Cautley. Instead, Energizer prefers to deter crime in a more positive way ­ encouraging upweighted purchase at the same time. "We try to offer larger pack sizes, such as an eight-pack, which don't fit easily into a pocket!" However, 5.8% of battery purchases are made from the premises of independent grocery retailers ­ high street grocers, village shops and convenience stores around the country. [TNS Impulse year to July 23 2001]. Without the range of resources and defences available to a large multiple, how can they best stop their valuable battery stock from going missing? TDK's marketing executive Neil Berry has one answer. "We sell most of our batteries through small, independent retailers. Batteries are easy to pilfer, so we advise staff to keep them behind the counter ­ near the till, but in sight of customers. "Batteries tend to be an impulse purchase, so it's not a good idea to hide them away under the counter and hope customers will ask for what they want." Tim Clark of Panasonic agrees. "It's advisable that battery displays are placed near to counters and other high traffic areas to maximise sales­ placing displays in visible areas dramatically reduces risk of theft." This holds true even in the supermarkets. "In major multiples," says Varta's John Dickinson, "battery centres are usually situated close to service personnel, or at the checkouts." The problem isn't limited to instore pilfering by customers, however. "Lots of shrinkage happens before the merchandise even gets into the shop," says Duracell's Suren Raymond. "It's not fair to focus on customers or store staff­batteries are vulnerable to pilfering as soon as they leave the factory. The whole supply chain really has to be monitored." Perhaps batteries' popularity as a target for opportunistic theft is linked to their identity as essentially a distress or grudge purchase rather than an aspirational one. Although premium batteries are becoming increasingly linked to high-status products such as the latest CD Walkman or MP3 player, and manufacturers like Sony are looking to launch them as part of an integrated "lifestyle", many people still feel they're a necessity rather than a pleasure to buy. A sexier brand image linked to the products they're designed to power may change customer attitudes in the future. {{FOCUS SPECIALS }}