Associates Stealing, No Prolem

As I may have mentioned in previous posts there is a substantial problem with 'testers' and 'samples' being sold on eBay. I have long been suspicious of theses items coming from the most logical source . . . Sales Associates / Product Specialists. This has now been confirmed as recently an Associate was found to have approx. 20 product samples hidden in their lunch box. Both Loss Prevention and Human Resources were on hand to observe and confiscate these samples. The Associate was clearly trying to conceal these items as they were not only inside her lunch box, but wrapped in tinfoil as well. The Department Manager was notified of this. The outcome, as you may have guessed . . . a warning, nothing more. This minor reprimand implicates the Department Manger as well and is a signal that just about any behavior will be tolerated by Neiman Marcus. What a great signal to send to the ethical Sales Associates / Product Specialists who are losing sales due to the fact that individuals may purchase a number of high end product samples and testers online at reduced prices. This has a negative impact on Associates, Specialists, product lines and the revenue of Neiman Marcus.