Written by Firas Jadallah, Regional Director, Middle East, and Africa at Genetec

The retail industry has evolved dramatically over a relatively short period. Today, digital transformation has unlocked the creation of new innovative business models centered on frictionless, multi-channel shopping and e-commerce while simultaneously presenting new security challenges. In addition, it’s worth noting that digitization has also facilitated innovation in video surveillance technologies, creating new opportunities for retailers to use data from video management systems (VMS) in conjunction with data from access control systems (ACS), automatic license plate readers (ALPR), identity management systems (IMS), sensors, and more.

The key objectives are not only to reduce shrink but also to improve operational efficiency and the overall buyer experience. However, without a fully unified software solution, it is difficult to comprehend how these data puzzle pieces fit together and make sense. Only when retailers are able to consolidate data from multiple sources, can they gain a comprehensive understanding of their environment. A unified physical security platform that allows for the integration of devices and applications, will successfully create a connected store, which centralizes the management of the entire environment for improved visibility, operations, and data intelligence.

How Retailers Can Benefit from Unification:

Frictionless shopping
The introduction of frictionless shopping solutions such as curbside pickup and self-checkout has presented retail security teams with new challenges. Unified security platforms provide a variety of solutions to overcome these challenges. If theft is suspected, asset protection managers can easily review the video of self-checkout systems and share it with law enforcement as necessary. Unified security platforms also enable IT teams, to devote their time to higher-priority tasks and spend less time on software updates. Similarly, a comprehensive view of the connected store allows corporate security managers to work more effectively and efficiently.

E-commerce and logistics
In 2021, e-commerce sales in the UAE surpassed US$4.8 billion, up from US$2.6 billion in 2019, due to the pandemic-enabled acceleration of the global shift towards online shopping. According to an analysis by the Dubai Chamber of Commerce, the value of the UAE’s e-commerce market is expected to reach $9.2 billion by 2026. This exponential growth of the e-commerce market has given rise to new security concerns and a demand for inventory management logistics at distribution centers.

These centers are often frequented by a large number of non-regular employees, as coordinating the delivery of packages involves multiple parties. Here, ALPR technologies can play a crucial role in tracking who enters and exits distribution centers, and in retail locations, they can record who has received products from a curbside pickup station. ALPR solutions can also assist in identifying Organized Retail Crime (ORC) suspects by determining whether a vehicle has been involved in previous thefts.

Supply chain management is another area in which retail security technologies can play a focal role in overcoming challenges. Retailers can significantly reduce losses by utilizing article tags and video surveillance to monitor their environment and track individual products from suppliers to the warehouse, to the store.

Shrink
Shrink encompasses numerous forms of loss, but it is primarily caused by external theft, such as organized retail crime (ORC). A recent report by Sensormatic estimates that the annual global retail sales loss due to shrinkage amounts to US$99.56 billion. Aside from the loss of goods, in some cases, retailers are also having to contend with violent altercations with thieves. Retailers are implementing a variety of technologies to combat ORC, including artificial intelligence-based video analytics at point-of-sale (POS)/self-checkout, self-service locking cases, autonomous security robots, and automatic license plate recognition (ALPR), in addition to establishing specialized ORC teams.

Cybersecurity
Cybersecurity threats such as fraud, account takeovers, malware, ransomware, compromised business emails, and data breaches pose escalating risks for retailers today. Any device connected to a retailer’s network, be it a smart IoT thermostat, an access control sensor, or a computer, has the potential to serve as a gateway for cybercriminals to gain access to private data stored on servers connected to that network. Due to the interconnected nature of modern technology, data must be secured and monitored at every stage.

When multiple solutions that were not designed to work together are implemented, it can be challenging for teams to manage, maintain, and scale. A unified security platform designed with cybersecurity in mind enables retailers to secure their entire IT infrastructure and mitigate network intrusion risks through one of their security devices. A unified security platform designed with cybersecurity in mind enables retailers to secure their entire IT infrastructure and mitigate network intrusion risks through one of their security devices.

Advancing Video Surveillance
The vast improvement in video camera quality and cost reductions over the last year have made video surveillance an essential component of retail security solutions. Furthermore, the digitization and automation of video technologies have further improved their value by transferring mundane tasks from humans to machines. Although adding video surveillance can address some of the challenges posed by frictionless shopping, it can also introduce new ones.

These surveillance systems can accumulate vast volumes of footage, which retailers must then store while also making sense of it. A unified system enables retailers to manage data from all cameras, as well as data from access control and ALPR systems, sensors, smart devices, and maps, through a single, intuitive dashboard. In addition, cross-referencing video footage with additional analytic data can yield insightful results.

These tools can provide invaluable insights into the customer’s journey through the store and at checkout, thereby enabling retailers to enhance their customer’s shopping experience.

Hybrid Cloud Solutions
Cloud-based systems make it efficient for retailers to scale storage requirements as the business environment evolves. However, overhauling an entire IT system all at once is a daunting undertaking. As stores are upgraded or retrofitted, retailers can take advantage of new technologies and functionalities by connecting IoT devices. A hybrid cloud strategy enables retailers to continue operating on-premises systems that meet current requirements while integrating them with adaptable cloud technologies. For companies with a combination of new stores that utilize cloud-based systems and established locations with on-premises systems, support of a hybrid cloud approach through a unified platform enables them to manage the data from all of them in one place.

Insights and Efficiency
When physical security systems are siloed, it is challenging to extract the full value of the data collected by each system. By leveraging a unified, connected store, retailers can combine and display data from all of their security systems in a variety of formats, including customized dashboards, graphical maps, mobile applications, and web clients.

When data is centralized, new insights become apparent. Modern physical security systems allow retailers to personalize dashboards that display data that is most pertinent to specific users. Each department, from asset protection to marketing, will have a unique perspective on data and offer a variety of solutions. Here, interdepartmental collaboration can be essential to the development of new strategies. Moreover, unified security platforms enable retailers to scale, regardless of whether they are opening their first physical store or expanding their global brand to hundreds of locations.

Unified security platforms can be easily deployed and integrated with video surveillance, access control, ALPR, and more. Starting with an open, unified security platform allows retailers to maximize the value of the devices and equipment they already possess, utilizing data in novel ways to streamline operations and gain insights. They can deliver an optimal customer experience without sacrificing security or negatively impacting their bottom line. Everything begins with integration – a connected store for the omnichannel world.