Criminals often choose pawn shops as targets for smash and grab robberies. A smash and grab robbery is a crime where a criminal breaks through the doors or windows of a business and steals whatever he or she can in a very short amount of time.
Pawn shops are often targets for these crimes because the stores contain a variety of different types of valuable merchandise, from jewellery and electronics to musical instruments and sporting goods. These items can be grabbed quickly and easily carried from the store. Most smash and grab robberies last only a few minutes. Some are over in a matter of seconds.
These crimes take place in pawn shops and other storefronts across the country, but they happen more frequently in large urban centers such as Dallas, Houston, Atlanta, Phoenix and other large cities. Therefore, it’s important that pawn shop owners take steps to protect their properties from criminals and smash and grab robberies.
Many stores have security measures in place already. However, not all security methods are effective at preventing smash and grab robberies. For example, an alarm system may be installed at your location and it may sound when a crime takes place. It may even be monitored by a central station. However, smash and grab robbers move fast. Sometimes it takes just seconds for criminals to get in, rob the store and get out. The speed of these crimes means that police, security guards and other authorities simply can’t respond quickly enough to catch the criminals in the act. The crooks will have left the scene of the crime with your valuables a long time before anyone can react.
A video surveillance camera may be able to capture footage of the crime in progress, but this information is mostly only valuable after the fact. Once your property has already been hit by a smash and grab robber, there has already likely been significant property damage. Doors and windows will probably be smashed, store display cases will be damaged and large amounts of merchandise will have been stolen. You’ll then need to spend time speaking with repair people, security professionals, police officers and insurance companies. You may even have to close down the store in order to get the repairs done, to improve security or as a part of a criminal investigation. These expenses and hassles aren’t prevented by security cameras.
Plus, more and more criminals are aware of security cameras these days, so they often cover their faces with hoods, scarves or masks, making it tough to identify them.
All of these factors make it clear that, in order to stop smash and grab robberies and secure your pawn shop, you will need to have a layered security set-up in place. This set-up must include physical security tools in order to be effective.
Pawn Shops and Physical Security Gates
In order to equip your pawn shop with a level of security needed to prevent smash and grab robberies, physical security gates are a must. These tools put a physical barrier between criminals and your property. When criminals see security gates, they know that it will be much more difficult for them to break into your pawn shop. They also know that the crime will take much longer and be much more complicated. This greatly increases their risk of being caught. For this reason, many criminals avoid properties that have security gates installed.
In addition to being a physical tool, security gates also work as a visual deterrent. When criminals see gates, they instantly know that the property in question won’t be an easy target. This is significant advantage that security gates hold over other security tools such as window film. While this security film also makes it more difficult to break through a window, it isn’t visible to the outside world. That means criminals won’t be scared away and they’ll likely try to smash their way into your property anyway, causing damage to your location.
However, you don’t have to worry about security gates detracting from the appearance of your store. While they serve as a visual deterrent while your pawn shop is closed, pawn shop security gates can quickly and easily be rolled or slid out of the way during business hours. This means that you won’t have to worry about the gates scaring away customers. This is a key advantage of choosing security gates instead of fixed security bars that cannot be moved.
Trust Quantum Security Gates
Quantum Security has been a trusted provider and distributor of high quality security gates since 1997. Our dedication to customer service and our keen focus on after sales support make us the right choice for your security needs. In addition to providing pawn shop security, we work with a variety of businesses of all types and sizes to provide superior security solutions that keep properties safe.
You can trust Quantum to deliver a quality product that is reliable, durable and cost-effective. For more information about our security products and services or to speak with a member of our team regarding your unique security solution, please feel free to contact us today.
