Sandy's Cookies and Bagels didn't think anything usual about their inventory supplies not adding up at the end of September. However, when the inventory supplies didn't add up at the end of October this small town bakery knew something was amiss.
(prHWY.com) December 19, 2012 - Seattle, WA -- Sandy's Cookies and Bagels didn't think anything usual about their inventory supplies not adding up at the end of September. However, when the inventory supplies didn't add up at the end of October this small town bakery knew something was amiss.
"All our employees are really good about keeping track of our inventory", explained Sandy Rodgers, owner of the bakery. "Everyone keeps track of what they use and what they don't use, and I have honestly never had a situation where inventory went missing."
In an effort to keep track of her inventory and see where the items were going Sandy installed a new online inventory management software program on the company's computers. This program allowed Sandy to keep track of her inventory in real time.
"I thought that if I installed the online
inventory management program I would be able to trace where the inventory was going", explained Rodgers. "If I couldn't see where it was going I thought I might be able to see who was taking it."
After three months of monitoring the online inventory management program, Sandy Rodgers noticed something that was odd. It appeared that every time inventory went missing it was after hours. The store was monitored by a security system and no one entered of left.
"I thought that maybe the security company was at fault, until I installed night time cameras in the store", explained Rodgers. "That was when the oddest thing happened. I honestly wouldn't believe it if I hadn't had it on film."
Sandy Rodgers filmed the supply shelves in the evening. The cameras caught the most unusual sight - a raccoon gathering items and taking them back to its nest.
"I saw this raccoon enter from the vents and take the items that were missing", explained Rodgers. "I looked on the software program and sure enough, that was what was being reported as missing."
The bakery has since taken the measures to prevent the raccoon from returning, but it has definitely turned into a story that the employees and bakery owner will share for a long time.
"We now have a small stuffed animal that resembles a raccoon sitting on our cash register", said Molly Landon, an employee at the bakery. "We just think it is a funny little story and all the customers laugh whenever we tell them what happened. It's just a fun little tradition and part of the bakery's history that I hope lives on for a while."
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