SHOPPING
WHILE BLACK
neys, according to the handbook.
Security expert J.R. Roberts, who
is a consultant for law enforcement,
businesses and attorneys on the
topic, told HuffPost that racial profiling ends up aiding criminals more
than it deters them. By focusing security efforts on minority customers, Roberts said, retailers concentrate on watching the wrong people
at the wrong time. They should be
keeping track of customers’ behavior — not the pigment of their skin.
“Not only are African-Americans
being disproportionately targeted,
but the retailers are being stupid because millions of dollars are
walking out the door between a
little old lady’s legs,” he said.
Much of the time, it comes down
to sheer “laziness” on the part of
the retailer, Roberts said. Either
the employees don’t have adequate
training, or managers ignore signs
that a particular employee may be
racially profiling customers, he said.
Chris McGoey, a security and
retail loss prevention expert, said
it’s critical to look at the behavior
of customers and leave age, gender
and race entirely out of the equation. While he stressed the importance of firing plainly bigoted employees, McGoey noted that despite
all the policies and training, some
HUFFINGTON
12.08.13
bad employees are bound to slip
through the cracks. The alleged discrimination could be hurting Barneys in another way: by alienating
potential new customers, including
entrepreneurs who are younger and
more multicultural.
Neiman Marcus Group, which
owns luxury retailer Bergdorf Goodman along with its namesake chain,
was looking to buy Barneys in 2004
and 2007, according to former Neiman Marcus executive Dennis. But
executives didn’t believe the company could expand enough to justify
the price, Dennis said.
“If they really want to grow, they
have to become more accessible
in order to address a wider market,” Dennis said. “I don’t think
the world really needs yet another
place to buy expensive,
fashionable clothing.”
Kim Bhasin is a senior retail reporter
and Julee Wilson is the style & beauty
editor at The Huffington Post.
Former Wall
Street Journal
reporter
Johnnie
Roberts
explains his
brush with
racial profiling
at Barneys
23 years ago.
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