Sweeping is when a shoplifter clears every item off a peg hook in one motion. It takes a second, and it empties the hook of exactly the products that are easiest to resell: batteries, phone accessories, tools and other small packaged goods. These are the practical ways retailers stop it.
1. Limit what can come off the hook at once
A StopLock slides onto the hook you already have. Leave one or two items in front of it and keep the rest behind it. A customer can still buy the product; a thief can take only what is in front. Staff restock from behind the lock with a magnetic key.
This is the lowest-effort fix because nothing about the display changes. See what a StopLock is and how it works.
2. Lock the whole hook
A locking hook replaces the display hook and locks all of the merchandise on it. Nothing comes off until staff open it with the key. Our HandKey-style hooks are made for slatwall and also lock to the display so the hook itself cannot be lifted off. Use these for the items you never want taken without help.
3. Make the security visible
A lock that customers can see does part of its work before anyone touches it. The red stop-sign StopLock is visible down the aisle and tells customers to ask for help with locked stock.
4. Keep less stock on each hook
Whatever you use, the stock in front of the lock is what is at risk. Putting out one or two items at a time and restocking more often limits the loss from any single visit.
5. Use cables for things that do not hang on hooks
Coats, handbags and other apparel can be secured to a rack with a mechanical cable kit: a lock box with steel cables that run through the merchandise.
Choosing between them
- Keep your hooks and let customers self-serve one item: StopLocks.
- Lock every item on a slatwall hook: locking hooks.
- Apparel and bags: cable kits.
Start by measuring your hooks with the size and key chart.
Questions about fit or quantity? Request samples or contact us with your hook measurement and a photo of the hook.