Planning the shop fittings of a new retail business is your chance to work out how best to show off your stock. For most people, this is where the planning is concentrated, since you want customers to have an easy time entering and navigating your shop, with goods presented in a logical manner that encourages buying.

There's another piece of the profit-making puzzle that shouldn't be forgotten, however: security. Unfortunately, any retailer needs to face the fact that there are likely to be thefts from time to time. A good security system including CCTV goes a long way towards preventing thefts and catching criminals after the act, but the right shopfitting plans can be enormously helpful.

Layout

Once you've worked out a layout that helps customers find their way around the shop, you should spend some time thinking about how easy it is for people to steal goods should they want to.

Ideally, you should be able to see as much of the shop as possible from the checkout area, but this isn't always practical. It's important to minimise hiding places or anywhere someone could crouch out of sight to stash stock in bags or pockets.

At the very least, you should try to include ample shelving directly opposite the till point where you can keep some of your more valuable items.

Shelving

Keep shelving as low as possible to offer an unobstructed view of the whole shop. Use wall space where you can, as this makes it more difficult for thieves to hide what they're doing than free-standing shelves do.

Shop shelving often has signs above it or fixed to the top. Make sure you factor this in when you're planning the height of your displays, as it can block your view once you're fully set up.

Mirrors

Placing convex mirrors around the shop in corners helps you to keep an eye on what customers are doing. This is particularly useful if you'll be manning the business on your own, as people sometimes take advantage of this and assume they're not being watched.

Even if you have cameras, placing a few mirrors can make a great deterrent, or help you catch dishonest people before they have the chance to leave.

Storing high-value stock

Include some shelves behind the counter so you can keep particularly valuable items out of reach. Customers don't mind asking for things they want to buy, and it completely prevents theft of your most expensive stock.

Even if you aren't going to be stocking anything particularly expensive, remember that items like alcohol and cigarettes are also common targets for thieves.