Academy Sports Looks for a Solution to Combat Organized Retail Crime

Academy Sports, one of the leading full-line sporting goods and outdoor recreation retailers in the U.S., knew they needed to level up their existing security solution. Like many retailers across the country, they had been impacted by a rise in organized retail crime (ORC). Frank Sorgie, a senior manager of Loss Prevention at Academy Sports in Texas, said Flock Safety first caught his attention when he saw numerous social media posts about the Flock Safety solved stories. He was particularly intrigued by the partnership and sharing capabilities with law enforcement and having vehicle data that is a part of the NCIS database.

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“Everyone in retail today we’re all competing to get in front of law enforcement to get the support that we need. And this is a tool that we’re absolutely able to grab on to first. And it worked out well in that relationship. And then from there we saw the other benefits once we had it.” - Frank Sorgie, Senior Manager of Loss Prevention at Academy Sports

Academy Sports Combats Organized Retail Crime Through Flock Safety

Academy Sports decided to implement Flock Safety cameras to create a virtual security perimeter around their stores. Sorgie said the Flock Safety cameras work synonymous with their existing cameras. He said the hot list feature has been instrumental in solving theft at their stores by helping their security team provide license plate and vehicle details to make arrests.

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“We had someone steal a product from our store. One of my market managers happened to be in the store, identified it. Our rule is you have to have a confirmed theft before anyone is ever added to a hot list. That’s a hard fast rule, there’s no negotiation on that. The market manager puts it in. Well probably about 20 minutes later, they show up at another store. A Flock alert hits, our person happens to be in the store, identifies him, and the police arrest him. And it was literally a 20- minute span” - Frank Sorgie, Senior Manager of Loss Prevention at Academy Sports

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Sorgie said that Flock Safety’s success, which they’ve measured by number of apprehensions, deterrences, and solved incidents, has been so evident that their local police departments have mentioned Flock Safety as the most important tool to make their jobs easier.

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“Every police department you talk to, my boss has done it, I’ve done it.  We always ask ‘hey what can we do to help you? What would make our relationship better and make your job easier?’  They call it by name, Flock. I have letters and emails all the time. They absolutely love this tool, because it wraps it in a bow for them.” 

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He credits being able to share camera’s data with law enforcement as an instrumental tool to solve numerous cases they’ve had.

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“We’ve always reaped the benefits of great relationships, but I think this has absolutely helped it. For sure. We saw more productivity and turnaround and case closures, by leveraging Flock.”  Frank Sorgie, Senior Manager of Loss Prevention at Academy Sports

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Sorgie said that the case closures are not just for brick and mortar businesses but Flock Safety is benefiting retailers in the ecommerce, BOPIS, and curbside space. But what he is most particularly proud of, is how Flock Safety is helping to keep employees safe.

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Academy Sports will be expanding their coverage from license plate recognition to solar powered Condor, which is live and recorded video.