This article will discuss in more depth about last week's newsletter regarding Laundromat Loss Prevention. I hope every Laundromat owner has an operating DVR Video Surveillance system. If it does not record then it is absolutely worthless.  Please get an operating system ASAP. Video Surveillance is inexpensive, it has tremendous benefits & uses with No downside. No employee will watch your store 24/7/365 with 16 different perspectives and be able to provide "documented" proof.

I purchased my first video surveillance system back in the late 1980's when we were using VHS tapes. My first system cost about $1000 per camera or about $4000 for a very simple 4 camera system.  I also purchased the LaundrySpy system for about the same amount of money.  Now-a-days you can purchase a very nice 16 camera system for under $1500. The technology for video surveillance system has gotten very inexpensive due to digital camera technology and the dropping cost of microprocessors. Now every business should be equipped with a video surveillance system. Every Business !!!

What do you look for in a surveillance system? The question is what do you want to see? Do you want to catch and prosecute "bad guys" or do you just want to be able to observe your Laundromat when you are way from the store. Do you want to monitor your employees to reduce or eliminate employee theft? Do you want to create a feeling of safety & security in your Laundromat? With the inexpensive cost of surveillance hardware you can now do it all, but it takes some thinking and planning.

How do you start? First, you need to get a handle on the number of cameras, the capacity of your DVR and the resolution and quality you want to record. Let's start with the number of cameras.   Generally you want to target 3-4 different target areas with cameras. Primarily you want an overview of the entire Laundromat and all the customer areas. This should also include outside your store and cover your parking lot too. The second area is around your bill changers or card system. You want to try to get a good picture of the customer using the bill changers. The most important area is to get a good "mug shot". You want to get a good "mug shot" picture of everyone entering your Laundromat. That means covering every door with a good high resolution shot. The last area of camera coverage is employee coverage. This can be as simple as a camera behind the WDF counter or as elaborate as monitoring every cash register transaction. The employee coverage is great in reducing inventory shortages and missing money.

Make a list of each target area and the number of cameras needed to cover that area. Remember not to skimp on the number of cameras. There are cheap. Once you have a list of each camera shot and the "target area" and the type of camera (outdoor, high resolution, wide angle etc...). Now you need to think about the DVR and you also have to wait for my next newsletter installment.