Rikki Cook

Experience

• 

  Gap Inc.

  Aug 2005 - Sept 2006

  Fitting Room Supervisor

  As Fitting Room Supervisor, my role was to act as the front of house for the Womens Fitting Rooms. I would be on hand to assist customers, and would often be required to delegate work amongst colleagues.I was responsible for planning my team for the weekend and ensuring I had ample cover. As well as being in the fitting room, I was very used to assisting customers on the shop floor and processing transactions on the tills.However, my main role was in the fitting rooms, where I excelled in each of the different jobs, such as running stock back out, assisting customers, leading the team and getting other garments. Although these sound like fairly easy tasks, the store in question was the Flagship store on Oxford Street, London and would often have a very high footfall. Show less

• 

  HMV

  Sept 2006 - Oct 2011

  I was responsible for the day to day running of the store, including opening and closing the tills; signing stock in and out of the store; maintaining and looking after the office, along with it's stationary supplies; keeping the stock room tidy and processing stock.As the Loss Prevention Specialist my role was to measure and check high value goods; deal with the stores cash office on a daily basis and complete the banking; check for any discrepancies and investigate accordingly and liaise with security to ensure a smooth running of the store.I also had a role in training colleagues and conversing with other management and HR representatives on any staff issues. Show less

  • Loss Prevention Specialist

    Jan 2011 - Oct 2011

  • Senior Sales Assistant

    Sept 2006 - Dec 2010
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  Island Companies Ltd.

  Mar 2012 - Sept 2016

  I was responsible for just under $15m of inventory and stock in the company across all 14 of its locations, comprised of both retail and warehouse spaces. I investigated any discrepancies or stock losses that occurred. I completed the annual stock counts for the company with my team and then analysed the results, again investigating any issues. As well as these counts, I also completed weekly cycle counts based on brands, essentially completing a mini stock count on high end and fast moving goods to ensure all on hands were correct. In the three years I held this position, I was responsible for cutting the company losses and write offs by over 95%, setting company records year on year.I had keys and alarms for most locations and was on call alongside the Security Manager to deal with any alarms or potential break-ins our stores may have faced. I dealt with the investigations following both internal and external thefts, analysing information to provide both a detailed breakdown of losses, as well as evidence against the perpetrators. I also managed 2 Floor Operations Assistants, monitoring their performance on a weekly basis. I provided them with training when needed and I was responsible for their yearly reviews.To help with my job I used Microsoft Excel quite extensively, as well as both Microsoft Great Plains and Microsoft Retail Management System. Alongside these, I managed a custom Case Count software specifically made and integrated into our system. I also helped to manage the replication and polling of our stores to HQ so that all information (sales, prices etc) was up to date. Show less I was responsible for the inventory of 3 stores located together in the Flagship Building. My main task was counting the stock in each store daily and entering it into our system using a customised Case Count software. I would investigate any discrepancies and find the reason why it was not counted. Once I had either found the missing item or established the reason it was missing, I would download and send a report of cases counted for the day for each of the 3 stores to senior management.I was also responsible for allocating items to their electronic locations and transferring items in and out of my stores to other stores within the company. This was a sales support role, freeing the sales team up from doing reports and managing stock. This also involved opening and closing the store on a daily basis by cashing up the till and taking care of the floats, sending them up to our finance department. Show less

  • Inventory Control Supervisor

    Dec 2013 - Sept 2016

  • Floor Operations Assistant

    Mar 2012 - Nov 2013
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  Cayman Distributor's Group

  Oct 2015 - Sept 2016

  Inventory Control Supervisor

  I was responsible for over $2m of inventory on the retail side of the business, which is comprised of 15 stores. I led a team in completing store stock counts on a quarterly basis. I setup the counts, dealt with the variance and then posted the results the following morning. As well as full store counts, I also completed weekly Cycle Counts focusing on specific items. Although only with the company for one year, I was still able to cut losses by over 60%.If there were any discrepancies or concerns, I would head up an investigation to establish why items were missing or over. This involves looking at sales; adjustments; receivers; RTVs and transfers. I also dealt with store thefts committed by both internal and external offenders, providing information and evidence to the Security Manager.I mainly dealt with the software Counterpoint, but also used Excel quite often to present and analyse information. Show less

• 

  Selfridges

  Nov 2016 - Oct 2023

  In my role as Loss Prevention Manager, I managed a team of four Loss Prevention Specialists across each retail destination: Birmingham, Manchester Trafford, Manchester Exchange, and our flagship store on Oxford Street. Although based in London, the role required regular travel to each of our Regional stores to work closer with my direct reports and to engage with stakeholders.As well as leading my team, I was also part of the Loss Prevention & Security Leadership Team, and was jointly responsible for building and driving our function-based initiatives and activities across weekly Team Calls, monthly Business Reviews, and bi-annual Team Days for our team of 40+ people. My role here involved not only leading by example but also influencing the direction of our Loss Prevention strategies and ensuring alignment with the overall business objectives.Day to day, I was responsible for the creation and delivery of top-level action plans and strategic planning alongside the Senior Store Management in each store. This included creating training calendars, managing both our compliance programme and product protection strategy, setting the expectations of my team, as well as deciding how we measure the success of these initiatives. Under my management, we introduced a RAG (Red, Amber, Green) system where more focus was put on our top 10 high loss departments, as this made up 40% of our total loss. I also supported the Oxford Street store as Security Lead when needed, which involved working more closely with our Security Operations Center (SOC), our Security Officers, and on occasion, the Police. As well as, I was able to build stronger relationships with external companies whilst working on our Product Protection Strategy. Overall, this role required strong influencing skills to collaborate with various teams, guide strategic decisions, and drive compliance, loss prevention and security initiatives across multiple locations to help us in achieving our goals. Show less Across the two years in my role as Loss Prevention Specialist, I worked with and supported all 8 Retail Divisions: Menswear, Womens Galleries, Womens Studios, Childrenswear, Accessories, Beauty, Food & Home. My day to day role was very hands on, focusing on time spent on both the shop floor and in the stock room/back of house areas of the relevant departments I looked after to identify risks to the business that could lead to stock loss. To support this, I completed regular compliance audits and reported on a number of things that gave a snap shot of various retail risks, such as Fitting Room Controls, Loss Prevention Awareness & Service, Product Protection and Stock Room Standards.With each division posing it's own set of challenges, it was important to adapt my way of working to ensure I not only provided the right level of support to the department, but also go the best out of the teams I worked with to ensure they were doing everything they could to drive down their stock loss and drive up their profitability. This would include me leading a number of shop floor training sessions and classroom workshops on the subject of Loss Prevention.Finally, there was a large focus on investigating and scrutinising intelligence our function both received and generated to establish root causes of loss, whether it be External, Internal or Process. I would support Department Managers in building a rigorous action plan for them to deliver, and would regularly review the progress of this to hold them accountable for anything not being completed. I would also complete internal investigations into dishonest Team Members and support on interviews when needed. Show less In this role my primary responsibility involved overseeing the stock counting process for all departments in store, conducted biannually. This multifaceted role involved the following key activities:Preparation and CoordinationI initiated the stock counting process by conducting pre-audit meetings with the respective Department Managers to ensure that each department was adequately prepared for the count.System ConfigurationI prepared and managed the stock count within two critical systems, Retek (Retail Management System) and Athena (Stock Counting Software).Facilitation and OversightI assumed the pivotal role in facilitating and overseeing the actual stock count, ensuring the comprehensive examination of all relevant inventory items. Double counting by the Retail team was enforced to minimise discrepancies.Variance ResolutionFollowing the conclusion of the stock count, I led systemic investigations into any discrepancies, implementing corrective measures as needed. Review of all adjustments in the audit period were also completed.Record Maintenance & ReportingOnce the investigation was finalised, I was responsible for updating our stock file to maintain its accuracy and generating comprehensive reports on the final results, which were subsequently provided to our Retail team.Beyond the store-wide stock counts, I proactively managed the accuracy of our stock file by conducting thorough investigations through paper-based 'Mini Audits.' I also provided training to staff members, equipping them with the skills necessary to effectively manage their stock files. In addition, I managed our Audit Schedule, ensuring that all departments were scheduled for stock counts in both the first and second halves of the year.Overall, my role as an Inventory Specialist involved a dynamic blend of inventory management, system proficiency, teamwork coordination, and a commitment to data accuracy. Show less I joined the Womens Accessories department within Selfridges as they were getting ready to launch the first phase of their multi-million pound Duke Street Project. I successfully supported the launch of this project with the retail team and set them up to continue with the remaining phases.Day to day, I was responsible for over 30 designer brands in the department. I worked closely with the Brand Specialists for some of these brands and helped to manage and maintain each of their stock files, ensuring 'mini audits' were printed and completed daily and weekly across the department. I would support with the investigation of any discrepancies from these weekly counts. I managed multiple stock rooms across the division, ensuring they were kept to the highest standard. I also supported with the processing of deliveries and replenishment of stock across multiple areas. Although only in the department for 6 months, I headed up a period where even though our stock on hand numbers nearly tripled, our stock loss was at a record low. Show less

  • Loss Prevention Manager

    Feb 2022 - Oct 2023

  • Loss Prevention Specialist

    Nov 2019 - Feb 2022

  • Inventory Specialist

    Apr 2017 - Nov 2019

  • Stock Controller

    Nov 2016 - Apr 2017
• 

  Amazon

  Nov 2023 - now

  Loss Prevention Manager