It could be laundry tablets, lipstick or even baby milk. According to shopkeepers in the UK the number of thefts is rising. The British Retail Consortium said there were 8m instances of theft from shops last year, which cost businesses nearly £1bn. The Office for National Statistics reports a 22% rise.
For shop assistants and managers it is a daily struggle, which can be costly and infuriating – but what’s behind it? The Guardian’s North of England editor, Helen Pidd, spoke to shopkeepers on one Manchester street to see how they were coping, and spent the day in a magistrates court to find out what happens when a shoplifter is caught. She explains how organised crime may be a factor behind the rise.
Jamie Barnes from Fresh Start, a charity run by ex-offenders, tells Nosheen Iqbal more about what motivates shoplifters and what part the cost of living crisis is playing. While retail workers in London explain why they are at their wits’ end.
Photograph: Murdo Macleod/The Guardian
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