Open Display Security: Protecting Stock Customers Need to Touch

A security tether attaches a product to the display fixture so customers can pick it up and handle it, but can't walk away with it. One end anchors to the shelf, table or stand, the other attaches to the product.

Bungy tethers are coiled and lightweight. They suit eyewear, accessories and smaller items where a tidy, low-profile look matters. Magnetic versions with a slim or gripper end make it quick for staff to reset a display.

Heavy duty tethers use a stronger steel cable core. They suit power tools, handbags and anything heavy or high-value enough to attract someone with cutters.

Pull box recoilers retract the product back to its home position when the customer lets go, so the display stays tidy without staff constantly resetting it.

Alarming tethers, such as the Squid range, add an alarm that sounds if the cable is cut or the product is removed. The padlock end version suits larger items like vacuum cleaners. A remote control lets staff arm and disarm the alarm.

Getting the length right

A tether should be long enough for natural handling at the display and no longer. Too short and customers feel restricted. Too long and the product can reach a fitting room, a blind aisle or the inside of a bag. Measure from the anchor point before you order.

Attachment

Adhesive plates suit clean, flat, smooth surfaces. Loop ends suit handles, straps and cables. For higher-risk stock, fix the anchor end mechanically to the fixture rather than relying on adhesive. Browse the full tether range.

The clasp decides how quickly staff can release a product at the point of sale, and how hard it is for anyone else to do the same. Choose it around your staff workflow, not just the security level.

Magnetic padlock clasp

Released with a magnetic detacher, so it can't be opened by hand. It suits power tools, premium handbags and other high-value stock where security comes first. The trade-off is speed: staff need the detacher to hand every time, and on a busy floor that adds up.

Metal plate with quick release clasp

Faster for staff to release, so it suits high-turnover accessories and products that are handed to customers often. It gives less protection against a determined thief, so pair it with an alarm or good sightlines.

Test it at pace

Before you roll a clasp out across a store, have staff release and re-attach it during a busy period. If it slows them down, they'll start leaving products unclipped, and the security disappears.

Alarming display stands hold phones, tablets, smartwatches, laptops and headphones on open display, and sound an alarm if a device is lifted, tampered with or its cable is cut. They use motion sensors, tension triggers or contact alarms, depending on the model.

Charging while secured

Demo devices need to stay charged all day. Most stands route a charging cable to the device through integrated cable management. Plan power to every position before the fixture goes in. A demo phone with a flat battery is a dead display.

Questions to ask before you buy

• What happens when the power drops? Does the alarm stay armed, and does it re-arm on its own?
• Can staff tell which position triggered?
• How do staff release a device for a customer, and how long does it take?
• Will the stand fit the next generation of devices, or will it need replacing?

Stands come in countertop, wall-mounted and freestanding versions, and most can be moved for store refreshes and seasonal resets. See the alarming display stand range.

Anti-sweep hardware stops someone clearing an entire peg or shelf in one movement. It targets organised theft, where a group can empty a display of phones, electronics or cosmetics in seconds.

Anti-sweep locks and stop locks fit to existing peg hooks on pegboard and slatwall. They limit how much stock can be taken from a hook at once, so a sweep becomes a slow, one-at-a-time job. Anti-sweep locks

Locking display hooks build the lock into the hook itself, which suits new fit-outs. Display hooks

Hangsell tags take a different approach. Instead of locking the hook, they protect the product itself, so stock stays secure even if it's taken off the display. Many retailers are now moving from anti-sweep locks to hangsell tags. Our article on why retailers are moving from anti-sweep locks to hangsell tags covers the reasons.

For premium devices in high-risk stores, a high-security holder gives more physical protection than a standard alarming stand, without taking the device out of the customer's hands.

The Fort Knox range by Shopguard uses robust metal construction and secure key management. Selected phone, tablet and watch holders are available with mechanical or electronic locking, and authorised staff can release a device in around three seconds for a demonstration.

The brackets are adjustable or interchangeable, so the same holder can be reused when the devices on display change. The range also includes laptop security for screen widths from 260mm to 438mm, and a guard that secures an iPad and its keyboard together as one unit.

Read more in Security you can hand to a customer: why Fort Knox changes retail display.

Display security protects the product at the fixture. EAS protects the door. They solve different problems and work best together.

A tether or alarming stand stops a demo device leaving the display. It does nothing for boxed stock on the shelf below, or for a product that has been released and then not paid for. EAS tags and labels cover that gap by triggering the gates if an item leaves the store without being deactivated.

Spider wraps and safers can carry EAS labels or integrated tags, so boxed goods are protected at the shelf and at the exit. Check whether your gates run on AM 58 kHz or RF 8.2 MHz before ordering, as tags must match the system. Our EAS gates guide explains the difference.