Ok since sunday nights are boring because everything closes early I have decided to share some tip and tricks! I get a lot of asks and usually reply privatly but recently posted one publicly and some people found it super useful so I am going to make a semi-master list of things that work for me. Under a cut of course. This won’t be everything I use but, it will be helpful to people with questions on certain stores/new lifters or if you just are looking for new ways to conceal.
🌸 NUMBER ONE RULE EVER IS KNOW THE AREA of the store. I am not talking about the store layout, type of store, I am talking location of the property. Macy’s can be in shitholes with hella good security or be in snooty folk town with almost non-existent LP.
🌸 Rule 2 NEVER NEVER ASSUME THERE IS NO LP. As stated above even if its a snooty area, they will and can have lp. Example, A very very rich part of my city has a walking outdoor strip mall type thing ( I forget the word) Of literally just makeup stores,mac,sephora,ulta, bloomingdales and whathaveyou. They have a fuck ton of security. But in the higher middle class area its bare none. Always explore all options of places you want to lift and always count the Lp, some will be labeled while others wont, and some may be straight up police officers stationed in that store. This can be good and bad, because it means its a high shrink store so there are quite possibly very easy ways to steal from these locations as the police are mostly a scare tactic. It is up to you, as I have mentioned before I have lifted so much from stores like this its stupid. Use your own judgement.
🌸 Rule 3 ALWAYS no matter what carry your lifting tools on your fucking body. I don’t care if you'rer a dude or androgynouss or whatever you identify as. If you do ever get stopped it saves you automatic jail time and a felony. I keep my hook and mini magnets on my left bra cup and my big magnet on my right bra strap that wrapsaround my body. Exacto knifes and smallscissorss are okay to carry in a bag, pocket w/e because they are not considered to be under the category of intended theft. If you don’t wear a bra, use spanx, a back brace, shoulder braces, even your fucking shoes.This is just me but I also have a fucking lock pick (so extra) But half the good stuff is locked up and their locks are not good at all, you could prob do it with a bobby pin tbh.
🌸 Rule 4 ALWAYS ALWAYSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS WEAR A DISGUISES.I DONT GIVE A FUCK IF YOU ALREADY “blend in” GET A FUCKING DECENT WIG, GET 3, USE MAKEUP TO CHANGE YOUR FACE, GLASSES, CONTACTS, WHATEVER. I have 15 wigs. I use them all. If they ever for some reason tracks something back to you, this is your defense. Don’t confess, obvi. But this is your last line.
🌸 Rule 5 NEVER take more than 10 items from one store (unless its likeclairess or some shit) This will cause them to up their security and you don’t want that. I explained it in a previous post. You want to aim for 3-5 per store.
🌸 Rule 6 OTHER CUSTOMERS ARE YOUR WORST ENEMY I should not have to explain this just fucking never do anything in front of them, because it’s human nature their jealously kicks in and they want to tattle. NEVER. Thats the whole reason antis exist. “they get this I don’t and its wrong according to these old white men” whatever just don’t.
Now onto the details. The mini magnets are the small circular ones from home depot, they open any kind of hook blocker, like at sallys on hair extensions or at walmart on some electronics, and you can make yourself a bracelet that either holds them or they cling to for easy access and to not look sus while “examining” the price tag, you and use anywhere between 4 or 6 and be fine. The big magnet I use for clothing tags, bags, anything else magnetic is 15000gs golf detacher I bought online, just google it. Same for the hook. Same for the lock pick if you wana go hard(but please practice first I have had to do this for like 4 years before so yeah). Go to michaels or A.C Moore and get yourself the exacto knife and small scissors. And get a pack of rubber bands, they are a game changer. Bit tall boots, you can drop things in, panties, makeup, accessories, whatever as you go! Please wear thick socks tho or else your feet will hurt. You can take them out in the bathrooms. SPANX! Use to conceal palettes, brushes, even clothing literally almost anything really, HUGE game changer.
SEPHORA- I went into a pretty detailed explanation for sephora last post, so I will just copy paste that and put in a few more tips For sephora it’s completely dependent on the location. Similar to ulta, in the poor parts of town they usually have beefed up security so try to go for richer, snooty or middle class stores. If your sephora is in a mall, leave it for last as in your last lifting stop before you leave. If it’s a stand alone sometimes you can get away with just walking out with a bag (like the tote I have done this 4 times) if it’s busy. In every sephora I have been to they have a big slanted display for the sephora brand products and at least 3 big ass pillars with mirrors on them. Usually only one side of the slanted display is covered by cameras ( I can think of 3 locations like this off the top of my head), And you can do the walk and conceal method when passing by a pillar that is blocking you from view ( This is my favorite ) just make sure your not on the mirror side doing this lmao. Do this as you are browsing, and try to make sure no SA’s see you with said item. Example: Find a palette, grab it look at price, swatch, walk to blind spot drop in bag and keep walking to next target item. Lastly you can always find blind spots in regular makeup aisles, every sephora I go to has at least 2-3 blind spots just in general. Your biggest problem in sephora are the SAs. They will make or break your trip, I swear to god sometimes they can be the most annoying racist shits ever. I am white passing, but I am latina and if you try hard enough you can tell and I swear to god I was at this uppity sephora and the manager and 2 sa’s followed me around, legit isle to isle just staring with their arms crossed. If this happens, don’t even try I think I only got some lipsticks on that trip it was horrible. But do not ever be rude to them, that will make you memorable and you do not want that. If you are approached be nice, if asked if you need help, say I am looking for -insert vague item here- and I think I found it I am just comparing, or No thank you I am gift shopping and know what they want, ect. Do not ever say anything that will make them want to help you because they will just drag you around forever and waste not only your time, but if you already looked at a product because they showed you then go back to it later its weird. Also I know everyone says “If they offer you a basket they are on to you” but thats just not true all the time. It is literally part of their job to be helpful and that is considered being helpful. Pay attention to their tone and body language if they do hand you one, but most of all watch to see if any other SA’s are watching you. The little shopping totes can be quite useful at times too, for having decoys on top and whatnot. If you are ever recognized and you are in a different disguise, Immediately play dumb and leave like 5 mins later and don’t go back for at least 3 months. It happens, it is fine and no reason to freak out. Sephoras inside a JCP are not impenetrable, but please use this as a last resort. Wear long sleeves, in trend. I have a long black sweater with ties around the wrist and the sweater hangs over my hands, this is perfect for this kind of store. Hold your phone in one hand, and find an item, hold it with your phone, and detag the rfid strips with your thumb, but don’t look like an idiot just standing there fidgeting, keep browsing, testing products, moving around. Moving around make it harder for any lp to follow you or see what you are doing. act calm, act natural.
ULTA - This is pretty tricky. Pay attention to your state laws first and foremost. Ulta will ignore policey and chase you/grab you/ get your plate/ block your car if they know you stole or REMEMBER you from a previous visit. Park FAR FAR away. The LM boxes ( white boxes that are light sensitive) are basically just stickers. Unless you have an inside person at an ulta, the only 2 ways around these are taking the item out of the box that the LM is on and putting the empty box back, or coming on shipment day before they are all tagged and everything is out in carts. Ulta’s difficulty can range from location to location, some don’t use LM on every palette, some do, some only use them on perfume. The RFID’s that are found on most other makeup product can be either peeled off or cut with your exacto knife. hair care and skin care have never had tags in my experience, but always check. Ulta has pretty shitt cams but still try not to conceal on them, they do have a million blind spots, use them. Always have decoys. This is different than my sephora technique because I conceal all at once and usually leave, so I get decoys to make it seem like I am still carry the items. I honestly hate going to ulta, but I have figured out the safest times to go is ( for me, this might not be for everyone) either Sundays around 4:30-5, shipping days, or fridays from 6-7. Ulta rearranges their stores quite frequently, if you happen to go on a day like this you are in luck! lots on blindspots and boxes stack high and random shelving units.
Starbucks- Usually only one or 2 cameras, sometimes none. I have 3 that have none that i frequent for snacks and cups. Just make sure a customer doesn’t see you and its easy as shit.
MALLS- This is probably where most everyone does lifting, so I am going to make a post about rules for malls. ALL MY OTHER RULES APPLY STILL. Go to the bathroom 2 or 3 times during your visit. Never take anything out of the packaging. If you beep, keep walking at a normal pace. Always carry a reusable shopping bag ( even 2 if you plan to lift a lot ) it is not suspicious and is an easy access quick conceal. If you don’t have one, go to some store like hot topic, box lunch, forever 21, aerie, and just ask for a bag. Make sure its not see through and big enough to carry what you want but not obnoxious. As for the whole in the side of the bag concealing method, cut a hole in the side of paper bags to slide things in, while this is a great tip PLEASE use your exacto knife to cut the slit, and make sure whatever bag you are using is not white. If you try to use scissors, the cut will be way to noticeable. Cut exactly where the crease is naturally in the bag. Only use this for small items, like lipsticks, hair pieces, jewelry, ect or you can risk ripping your bag and then you are fucked. Make the cut towards to top of the bag, so when you hold it closed its virtually unnoticeable and the weight of the items in your bag won’t cause continuous ripping of your slit. ALWAYS be friendly to SA’s. I legit just make small talk about how their day is and retail sucks and share a bit about myself, it makes you WAY less suspicious because you come off as an honest, nice person. This is KEY in smaller stores, IE zumies, HT, Aerie, whatever. BE NICE. RELATE. ALL SA’s ARE DOING IS THEIR JOB DON’T BE A DICK. I also sometimes have one earbud in listening to music and lightly singing it helps deter the SA approach.
HOT TOPIC- Literally the easiest thing in the world. you can pick up items you want, if they have a tag hold them under your arm (the one with the magnet) while continuing to look at other things and hide the magnet in whatever you were looking at. Rinse and repeat.
ZUMIES- Tbh I stopped going here and like, cosmic and tilly’s when I was like 16 so I can’t really give too much info besides I believe the one I did go into had massive blind spots, you don’t need the fitting rooms to conceal if you are kind to the SA. They will leave you alone after that.
ClAIRE’S/ICING- like, idk this is so dumb just dump whatever you want in your bag avoid mirrors and pay attention to the SA. If they are giving a piercing its a free for all. Overall SA’s here really do not care and are either swamped with paperwork or overwhelmed because its only them in the store with 16 kids or 15 teenagers. I feel for them.
VS/PINK- OK long awaited post about this shit company. I feel zero regret stealing from them. I am going to copy paste my previous reply with added detail. For VS, you have to see if its busy or slow. If it’s busy, I usually get a tote and get about 7 items (not including panties) but only steal 3 and only some undies in the fitting rooms and listen for no SA to be outside when you exit and just leave the tote in the little tote/rack thing. If its slow you can find blind spots in the store and remove the pencil tags easily if you carry your magnet like I do (in your bra strap that goes around your body) just holding it under your arm while looking at another item or w/e and just hide the tags as you go, or as always throw them away in the trash cans in the fitting rooms. Trash cans can also be found in the store, so use them as well. If you want something with a hanger, either take the hanger with you and ditch it somewhere else (or keep it like I do they are so soft) or find something to switch it out with. Most of the time they will have hanging items, and folded items of the same design and I tend to grab those. 2 I got today didn’t even have tags on them. VS and PINK are both a giant question mark until you get to the store on how much you can get away with or if you can get anything. This store is where the reusable totes come in most handy, and use your rubber bangs to make bulky clothing less bulky. If you are using a tote they provide, you can put perfumes/makeup/socks/sandals/ w/e in them and hide hem under clothes if you want them. a good bulky distracting item to get is a robe ( even the velvet/satin ones in the VS section are good), because it covers SO much and most sa’s assume that plus like 1 or 2 things is all you have. Also vs and pink all have blind spots in the store, the legging racks, VS sport, and the little walkways between sections are ones I have noticed. Good places to conceal if you don’t want to rick fitting rooms because if the SA is in a super duper mood fitting rooms can be somewhat difficult.
BEST BUY- So its not impenetrable but it is hard. The person at the front is the “main” AP (asset protection) and they have monitors that cover most of the store. Be nice to them, seem normal, and it will make it easier. I have someone in bb so its easier for me to get things but either way its not impossible since I have lifted from them before I knew my guy. Least monitored sections are housewares, and believe it or not TVS. I am going off my stores so take all this with a grain of salt. Best buy marks up ALL their products ridiculous amounts (1 year rosetta stone is bought for $15 and sold for $120) so yeah they are kinda dicks. If you DO chance it with best buy, so for small items, grab a distraction, shop around for a blind spot, conceal the small item, and go back to where you got your big item and compare again. Do not leave asap, shop around, then always say have a nice day on your way out. Be careful each store is different. here is a story : there is a best buy near me that used to have a HUGE shrink rate, for ALL kinds of theft, orc, employee, petty, you name it and it happened there. UNTIL a new GM was hired and he was like no this is not happening and installed a completely new camera system, it was very very expensive but guess what, they now catch everyone who tries to steal and have the lowest shrink rate in the state. If you abuse your spots, they will fight back so don’t ever ever ever take some memorable amount or this will happen.
Target- I rarely fuck with target because its where I get my medications so I can’t really help you here.
Aerie- On floor concealing is best, lots of displays to hide behind. no cameras ( at least at my location) Always be aware of SA’s.They change their clothing often so if you see something you love I suggest getting it before its gone for good.
Forever 21- Honestly I rarely lift from here anymore. Most of it rips or falls apart, that includes clothing and accessories. I don’t recommend them at all. If you MUST fitting room is best option, there are decent blind spots but it is usually too crowded to use them. Honestly I hate this company and everything about them so even stealing from them feel so so wrong. Sorry I can’t be of more help.
BOX LUNCH - MY FAVORITE! I actually try to buy here when I can, they have great bags for the slit method, and their products are AMAZING. They actually sell nendoroids like omg. Best store ever, no cameras, but SA’s can be aggressive, just be nice, relate, and they will move on. Not much is tagged, and if it is just use the method mention for HT.
CVS/WALGREENS- Easy as pie. I always go here for drinks, shipping supplies, food, whatever. Their cameras are extremely shitty except for the ones up front.You can use your body to block is necessary. Both stores have MASSIVE blind spots, in seasonal, grocery, drinks, toiletries. Like is so easy to get vitamins and shit please get some be healthy.
PACSUN- I don’t really like much here, but sometimes they have golden pieces. I always use fitting rooms, bring 4 items and leave 3. they are just such a bare store I cant feel good going in with a ton and leaving with a little. You will need rubber bands and to detag while the music plays.
BnN/BAM!- AMAZING novelty items and books are easy, just find blind spots. I adore these stores because of the increase of certified japanese figure imports ( BTW I COLLECT PLASTIC BUTTS AMIAMI LOVE ME)
Container Store- Cake, usually only 4 cameras, both of the ones I go to don’t have cameras in the bath storage.makeup storage isles so, literal ffa.
Hallmark- No cameras, or one near the toys. Ffa.
DSW/PAYLESS- For dsw, I grab 4 or 5 boxes, 2 of which I want, go to an isle about 2 over from the closets camera, and make a huge mess sitting on one of the mirror chairs. I slide the shoes I want into my purse also sitting on the opposite side on the bench thing using other boxes to block the back angle and put all the paper back and all the boxes except ONE with the shoes in it back, walk around a bit more, then decide not to get them and leave them somewhere. never conceal in clearance, but feel free to look. For payless, just pick an isle without a camera, or if they all have cameras sit on the thing with your back to the camera, stack boxes between your seat and the self to block its view, detag, move into purse.bag. and put lid on box and put box back.
IKEA- So this is gonna be kinda sketchy. I have only done this twice, and I had a partner. So you shop like usual, pick little knick knacks for your cart and write item numbers down. now while your in the actual storage part, you can conceal some of the smaller items you picked out while looking for your right color item or whatever leaning in. To get the big items out, we walked to line, waited for a good 5 mins, then acted like we saw an open register further down. He went to get the car and I push the cart and just push it through the sales point and out the door, smiling at the receipt check holding a safeway receipt lmao. Honestly I have no full proof way for ikea but I do know they are more concerned with ORC and internal theft so thats where most the cameras are. I just really wanted my two alex drawers for my makeup vanity so I took a risk and it paid off.
WIGS STORES- if you do not live in a large city, I Highly suggest ordering a high quality lace front wig online. If you live in a city with good chain wig stores, bring a big bag, and just stuff that mother fucker in there in a blind spot. the main thing with wigs is care, so you will want to get wig care stuff, cleansers brushes, ect. specifically made for wigs.
🌸 For anything designer ( Kate spade, MK, Calvin klein) Go to outlets if possible, if not try to find a macy’s/bloomingdales.lord&taylor/whatever that doesn’t do that stupid string lock bullshit. bring a magnet.
Any more questions just lmk. Thanks for reading and have fun and be SAFEEEEEEEEE!!
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