Most cannabis retailers invest in a video surveillance solution to improve security.
Many also use it as an investigation tool to help resolve customer disputes, liability claims and reduce losses from theft and fraud. While security and compliance were both top priorities for Shawn Sequeira, Manager at Century Cannabis, finding a video solution that would also help him run this business more efficiently — and profitably — was also important. That’s why he chose the Solink platform.
See how Solink helps your cannabis business.
The Solink platform enables Shawn and his team to proactively identify and review suspect transactions using integrated video and transaction data pulled from the dispensary’s POS system. It provides them with an easy-to-use loss prevention tool that reduces the time it takes to investigate incidents from hours to minutes. It also arms them with strong video and data evidence to support employee training issues.
A key issue for Shawn and his employers was the ability to track employee discounts. Both employee errors and discount abuse are issues that can affect their bottom line.
According to Shawn:
“We chose Solink as our video surveillance platform because we liked the idea that we can track every sales receipt with the matching video surveillance footage. Discounts at the point of sale are what I look at. I have a Solink widget set up on my phone so when I receive the daily information, I just click and can see how many sales had over a 10 % discount. I'm always checking up on those receipts with discounts because I want to be aware of what discounts are over 10 %. Solink makes it easy to do, even if I am not at my desk.”
Shawn has had several occasions to search for recorded video. Solink makes locating video fast and easy. This saves him hours of watching video footage looking for problems.
“Monitoring video cameras is not fun but I use Solink almost every day because it lets me zero in on the transactions that are important to me. I check video receipts to make sure that our employees are not making mistakes with discounts. If I do see an issue, I can quickly replay the corresponding video. It’s able to let me know, and let my employees know, that I am checking all the receipts even though I am not there. It keeps me on my toes. It keeps our employees on their toes. Solink is a great tool for us.”
Shawn knows that it isn’t always intentional theft that can cause losses. Errors and lack of attention to detail can also be a problem. But letting his employees know that he’s checking the Solink data daily makes them more accountable.
“Let’s say there’s an 11 % discount on a transaction, it could be a mistake. But what if it’s 15 %? That could be an error or it could be employee theft. Letting all the employees know that I check the receipts every single day has helped reduce employee errors.”
Shawn also appreciates how Solink has provided information to help him and his employers make informed decisions on opening and closing hours. Using Solink on his smartphone, Shawn is able to view video from the dispensary from just about anywhere.
“I have a Solink widget on my phone that allows me to see what sales are between 9 AM and 10 AM. We were thinking of opening up at 10 AM but the sales data from the Solink platform showed us that opening at 9 AM was good. We were thinking of closing an hour early during winter hours. Again, it turned out I was wrong because our Solink platform showed us the sales between that time period. This is another way that Solink has proven to be beneficial.”
Solink has been really helpful to Shawn and the team at Century Cannabis in other ways. Solink worked with him to ensure his camera angles were optimized, something many vendors don’t take the time to do.
“I didn’t like the camera angles in the secured room where all the inventory is. Every week, we were missing a little bit of inventory. It wasn’t a huge amount and not big items but there were consistently small inventory shortages. And the team from Solink recommended we move the cameras to get better angles and that was so helpful.”
Solink also provided Shawn with audit reports to help with an internal investigation. The result, is peace of mind.
“The audit reports have given me peace of mind. We had some shortages in the till. Solink’s audit team went through our camera footage and confirmed that nothing irregular happened. That gives me peace of mind. And because our employees know that we have the ability to get these audits, it makes them more accountable and more careful. This tells them they have to put in the right discount and pay attention to minimize errors.”
Aside from the many benefits his video solution delivers, Shawn likes the support he receives from Solink.
“I think customer service is critical to success. It’s all about making a connection… being able to help, being friendly. People want to do business with people that they like, right? Solink has been extremely accommodating and provided an ideal security plan for us,” said Shawn. “And every level at Solink, including its sales and customer success teams, has been great. I definitely made the right decision.”
