Years ago, a textile services company asked Sam Garofalo to help resolve an issue with one of its clients—a new resort on the Las Vegas Strip that was losing many of its posh towels.

“Most towels at resorts get stolen because they’re nice, plush or branded,” says Garofalo, owner of Technical Consulting Associates, a laundry consulting firm in Mooresville, NC. “I’d say between 75 and 80% of the cost of all linen replacement industrywide is due to theft. But this resort said its towels weren’t being stolen.”

Little did Garofalo realize that he would soon catch two of the resort’s ...