Loss Prevention and Asset Protection Leaders to be Honored at NRF PROTECT 2026

WASHINGTON – The National Retail Federation today announced the 2026 recipients of the Ring of Excellence Award, the pinnacle of recognition for those who champion retail safety in loss prevention and asset protection. The four loss prevention leaders will be recognized on June 9 at the NRF PROTECT 2026 awards ceremony in Grapevine, Texas.

“We are proud to recognize this year’s NRF PROTECT award recipients for their extraordinary commitment to advancing loss prevention and asset protection,” NRF Vice President of Asset Protection and Retail Operations David Johnston said. “Each honoree has made a lasting impact on the industry and exemplifies the leadership, innovation and dedication that continue to move the profession forward.”

The Ring of Excellence Award honors exemplary leaders in asset protection and loss prevention who have left a lasting impact on the retail industry. The 2026 recipients are:

• Cheryl Blake, who retired in 2024 from Appriss Retail, where she served as vice president of loss prevention. Blake’s career spanned more than four decades, during which she became a widely respected and influential leader in loss prevention. She helped drive the evolution of the profession from a narrow focus on security and shoplifting to a comprehensive, integrated approach centered on loss prevention and profit protection. Beginning her career as a store detective at E.J. Korvette, Blake went on to pioneer prevention-focused strategies at Lord & Taylor, developed employee training and internal theft detection programs at Toys “R” Us and established methods to make telephone interviews an effective investigative tool at FuncoLand and GameStop. As a service provider, she was among the first to adopt a true partnership model with retailers, helping to establish best practices in areas such as exception-based reporting and gift card controls.

• Dan Faketty, who retired from Southeastern Grocers in 2025 as vice president of asset protection. With over 44 years of experience, Faketty is a highly accomplished and respected leader and visionary in the field of asset protection and safety. Over the course of his career, he worked at four major retailers, most recently spending 20 years with SEG. While at SEG, he oversaw asset protection and safety across 850 stores and four banners, leading a comprehensive “total loss” strategy that expanded beyond traditional functions. In 2012, he also developed a remote video operations center that continues to reduce losses and improve profitability. He also led groundbreaking initiatives to integrate innovative technology into pre-employment screening, combining traditional and psychology-informed loss prevention methods to keep the company at the forefront of industry best practices. Faketty is the former chairman of both the NRF and FMI Loss Prevention Councils, serving six years each after.

• L. Wayne Hoover, CFI, chairman of the International Association of Interviewers and former owner and senior partner at Wicklander-Zulawski & Associates Inc. Since beginning his career with WZ in 1991, Hoover has conducted hundreds of investigations across the public and private sectors and has led more than 2,000 domestic and international seminars on investigative interviewing and interrogation techniques. He was instrumental in creating the Certified Forensic Interviewer designation in 2003 and founded the International Association of Interviewers in 2011, serving in executive leadership roles for more than two decades. He previously served as editor-in-chief for the CFInsider Journal and was a member of the International Supply Chain Protection Organization board. Since the sale of WZ, Hoover has served on the IAI Advisory Board and remains as a part-time instructor for the organization.

• Eric Ives, chief of external oversight for the Office of Inspector General at the U.S. Department of War. An industry expert with more than four decades of experience, he previously served as senior director of asset protection for EssilorLuxottica, following a distinguished career that included leadership roles at the FBI, Target and JCPenney. While at the FBI, Ives led the Bureau’s efforts against organized retail crime as chief of the Major Theft Unit, working closely with the National Retail Federation to educate the public on ORC as a global crime problem, develop national strategies to combat it and help create LERPNet, the first congressionally supported national database for ORC. A recognized leader in the fight against ORC, Ives has briefed congressional staff on the evolving threat and has been instrumental in advancing innovative programs and strengthening public-private partnerships between federal law enforcement and the retail industry, including creating the FBI’s Transnational Organized Crime - Threat Financing Program to combat complex ORC schemes, cargo theft and broader financial crime threats.

As the leading authority and voice for the retail industry, NRF will present these awards with retail security executives and leaders from across the country at NRF PROTECT, June 8 – 10 at the Gaylord Texan Resort in Grapevine, Texas.

About NRF
The National Retail Federation passionately advocates for the people, brands, policies and ideas that help retail succeed. From its headquarters in Washington, D.C., NRF empowers the industry that powers the economy. Retail is the nation’s largest private-sector employer, contributing $5.3 trillion to annual GDP and supporting more than one in four U.S. jobs — 55 million working Americans. For over a century, NRF has been a voice for every retailer and every retail job, educating, inspiring and communicating the powerful impact retail has on local communities and global economies. nrf.com