A rash of jewelry store
robberies has all kinds of
retailers taking precautions.

PAUL HARRIS SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

ack's Place owner Ira
Kappy has a simple
philosophy on security
at his Southfield men's
,\\' clothing store:
"Be aware of who's
in the store at all times
and service the cus-
tomers," he said. "Your
best protection is your eyes."
That sounds like a good poli-
cy, but the recent rash of jewelry
store robberies in Oakland Coun-
ty has made the subject of pro-
tecting their assets a hot topic
among area retailers. Two of the
stores burglarized by the smash-
and-dash method were Tapper's
Jewelry in West Bloomfield and
Darakjian Jewelers in Southfield.
But, according to Southfield
Police crime prevention officer
Jack Albert, that's not the most
popular method of robbing jew-
elers. "The biggest thing in jew-
elry store robberies is flim-flam,"
said Officer Albert.
"Somebody will come in and
ask to see many items and some-
one will come in and distract the
clerk and the other person will
then run out with those jewels."
David Drew, the floor manag-
er of Jacks Place, echoes Kappy's
simple approach. "The way you
set your store up [is important].
Don't have too many obstruc-
tions, so you can see everything,"
said Mr. Drew. "Try not to have
merchandise close to the dress-
ing rooms and have the dressing
rooms where they can be seen.
And make sure that high-cost
stuff is in a high visibility area."
cr) And believe it or not David
Efros, co-owner of Efros Drugs in
West Bloomfield, has an even
cr) simpler approach to prevent cash
— burglaries.
LU
`There's two philosophies," he
1— said. "The first is, if its not there
— they can't steal it. We don't keep
r a lot of cash in the cash registers.
We pull it out regularly, about
° every two hours.
11 `The second is, everything can
be replaced but your life. If they
come in and ask for something,

g4

give it to them."

However, along with common

sense, technology has become a
big part of security. Both Jack's
Place and Efros Drugs are cus-
tomers of Guardian Alarm in
Southfield. According to Mr. Kap-
py, Jacks Place has. 14 video cam-
eras, each with its own monitor.
Mr. Efros said his store also has
cameras and alarms but wouldn't
specify how many or what type.
But while many retailers like
Mr. Kappy and Mr. Efros still de-
pend on alarm companies like
Guardian, most security business
these days comes from home-
owners who want to protect their
homes.
That's according to Karen
Majeske, branch manager of
Guardian's Southfield office.
"Anyone can afford a system
now, they're much more afford-
able," said Ms. Majeske. About
60 percent of Guardian's business
is residential and the other 40
percent commercial.
Even though many homeown-
ers have indeed installed alarm
systems, Southfield's Officer Al-
bert says the best home securi-
ty wags its tail and raises a
ruckus when someone unfamil-
iar approaches the house. "A dog
is the No. 1 deterrent from some-
one breaking into your home," he
said. "A loud dog. No matter what
size it is, make sure its loud."
One Southfield resident who
took Officer Albert's advice relies
on two big, loud canines. "The
dogs are very sensitive to some-
one approaching their own en-
vironment as well as the
environment of me and my wife,"
said the Southfield resident.
"Sometimes they let me know
that someone is approaching the
door before the bell rings. Be-
cause of that, I've been lax in get-
ting any electronic security. Right
now they're just as good and
they're cheaper."
"I feel good when my wife is
alone in the house," he said. "I re-
alize that they'll fight to protect
her."
The latest trend for business-
es is running two or three shifts

and wanting to allow employees
into one part of a building while

Above:
David Drew keeps his eyes open at
Jack's Place.

Right:
The Spy Shack sells video cameras that
look like smoke detectors, thermostats
and clock radios.

keeping another part secured.
Guardian's Ms. Majeske said,
"They're trying to control the flow
of employees. A lot of television
monitors are used. And they're
more interested in employee safe-
ty. A lot of businesses are run-
ning 24-hour shifts. Employees
come in at 2 a.m. and want to feel
safe. They use a lot of access
cards to get in one part of the
building."
Surveillance is becoming in-
creasingly important in security
and that's the only kind of equip-
ment the Spy Shack, located in
Southfield, sells.
But even with his high-tech

stock, co-owner Roger Felsner
still has some common-sense
ideas for retailers.
"We tell them not to put the
cash register by the door. Don't
put expensive merchandise near

the door," said Mr. Felsner.
"Don't put expensive merchan-
dise in display cases in the win-
dows."
He has the same kind of advice
for homeowners. 'The No. 1 thing