Shoplifting: Shop owners take security measures as thefts rise

Tying down products and stopping selling high-end items are among the measures one shop owner has taken amid a rise in shoplifting.

Julie Ruscitto had two hampers worth £50, containing prosecco, stolen from the counter of her Swansea shop in April.

It was captured on CCTV and shared across social media, and the thief was ordered to pay a fine and compensation to the business.

Official figures show shoplifting in Wales has increased by 34% over the past year, with one trade union saying Wales faces an “epidemic” of retail crime.

Julie, who has been running her gift store The Chocolate Box in Ravenhill for eight years, said the thief entered her shop on a Saturday afternoon, said “alright, love” then grabbed a hamper.

“Then [he] calmly walked out the front door, closed the door behind him and then ran. I was in shock that he could just do that just so easily.”

Julie and her colleagues have put measures in place to protect items from being stolen, including tying certain items to the counter and not selling high-end products.

“We’ve had to put doors on the candle cupboard because people were pinching candles, CCTV, the front door opens with an alarm to let us know when someone’s in the shop and we’ve got mirrors.

“You’ve worked so hard to try and build a business up, what gives them the right to walk in and take something?

“Whether you steal something worth £1 or something worth £100 it’s still stealing at the end of the day.”

The largest increase in shoplifting was in south Wales, which nearly doubled with a 45% increase in the past year, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

The ONS added that figures were now at a 20-year high across England and Wales.

Jayne Keeley has run a baby clothes shop, Rainbow, in the Uplands area of Swansea for 37 years.

She said she has a defensive approach when it came to shoplifting, by having shutters and a buzzer entry door.

“Some customers said at first ‘it’s like going to a jewellers in London’, but it’s what I’ve got to do. It’s my choice to keep me and my staff safe,” she said.

Jayne and other shop owners across Uplands have a WhatsApp group to notify each other of any suspicious behaviour.

“There’s not a lot of people [staff] in these little shops, it’s safety in numbers. We all look out for each other,” she said.

Fflur Elin from the Federation of Small Businesses said these extra security measures cost money.

“Businesses have experienced a long period of difficult economic headways from the pandemic to the cost-of-living crisis,” she said.

“We’re hearing a lot of emphasis on growth but what we have to emphasise is that the impact of crime is financial. It also stops businesses from developing and being innovative.”

Under the law, any goods stolen worth less than £200 is a “summary only offence”, meaning these cases are unlikely to be tried in crown court.

Ms Keeley said: “We absolutely need tough regulation. People shoplift thinking they can get away with it.”

In the King’s Speech, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer unveiled a new crime bill to target people who steal goods worth less than £200.

Paddy Lillis of trade union Usdaw welcomed the bill.

“This 34% increase in shoplifting across Wales is further evidence that we are facing an epidemic of retail crime, which is hugely concerning.”