Two years ago, Isabella Day set up her jewellery store, The Remarkable Goldsmiths, in Dartmouth. Unfortunately, approximately £3,000 worth of items have been taken since then.
"It's a hard spot we're in," she remarked. "My companion is unwell. We are a family-owned-and-operated business, a small one at that. Everything we make for the shop must be bought before we are paid for it. Therefore, we are severely impacted when anything is taken."
We create everything from the ground up. All of our gold amalgams are self-crafted, available in a palette of 28 shades - including grey, gold, green-gold, and peach.
Ms Day is hesitant to bar entry to customers, even though she has items of considerable worth.
"I have this goal of making it a more inviting space," she explains. "I don't aspire to be the kind of jewellery shop that requires people to be buzzed in to enter. That can really deter people from visiting."
During the summer, Dartmouth is visited by many tourists, which is when Ms Day's store is particularly full of customers.
She states that customers don't enter the shop specifically to make a purchase, but instead to admire the items, at which point they sometimes accidentally end up becoming buyers. According to her, if one had to use a buzzer to enter, such people would be unlikely to come in.
Ms Day stores her products in cabinets and a shop window, displaying a few choice items for customers to purchase. In response to the first theft, they installed an alarm system that included a panic button that calls the security and police services, as well as cameras with signs posted to notify that CCTV is present.
"She also affixed a clanging bell to the entrance!"
She says the most advantageous technical acquisition they've made is a doorbell-style camera situated on the counter.
She states that the footage is of great quality and captures the entire store.
The police tracked down the thief responsible for stealing a necklace valued at £685 using footage from the doorbell camera, resulting in their arrest.
In the twelve months up to June 2023, England and Wales saw a 25% rise in shoplifting, with a UK-wide cost of retail theft estimated at £953m. This comes in spite of the fact that retailers have invested some £700m in crime-prevention measures.
Retail crime in the US had an estimated cost of over $112bn (£92bn) to the industry in 2022, with these losses increasing retailers' operating costs, resulting in higher prices for customers.
Retailers are engaging in numerous tactics to discourage shoplifting, such as supporting a police surveillance initiative, employing undercover security personnel to monitor store premises, and inviting police officers for complimentary beverages in order to tempt them to visit their shop.
Tina McKenzie, Policy Chair of the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), acknowledges businesses utilizing facial recognition to deter retail crimes, yet to most independent shopkeepers, this might appear to be a frippery - primarily with prices rising significantly and high interest rates.
Small businesses are commonly targeted by criminal activity, she adds, with such offenses commonly taking precedence over other forms of illegal behavior.
She states that numerous individuals do not go to the authorities due to their lack of faith that offenders will be identified and punished in the court system which, eventually, has a negative effect on the overall economy.
It is essential for the success of small businesses that their environment is both secure and stable. We would like to see a firmer stance taken on organised shoplifting and anti-social activities, so that both the personnel and customers of High Streets can feel secure in their day-to-day goings-on.
According to a Co-op commissioned report, less than 30% of reported serious retail crimes were acted upon by the authorities.
The study found that criminals had an "opportunity to pillage" in the face of an "unchecked" scenario.
Steven Logue, the Co-op's head of operations, declares that the culprits are not concerned about punishment or retaliation.
Mr. Logue argues that this absence of consequences is probably the cause of the "staggering" increase in break-ins seen in the last twelve months.
He states that the annual loss of stock amounts to approximately £80m, though they are only revealing a part of what has been taken. To put it frankly, the reaction to the issue over the past few years has not been satisfactory. Thus, the figures provided are just the mere beginning of the problem.
Mr Logue has reported that the Co-op has already documented 250,000 cases involving physical attacks this year, and that this is not a problem without victims.
Mr Logue observes that his colleagues are "confined to kiosks" while criminals are taking "advantage of [stealing] cigarettes and alcohol". He expresses his concern, pointing out that these are the same people's "mothers, daughters, brothers". should be used
Businesses should make greater use of technology.
In October, the Home Office declared that shoplifting will be approached similarly to organised crime as part of a strategy to enable police to suppress theft.
Mr Logue states that the police and Downing Street are currently providing positive indications, which marks a shift in the narrative.
To discourage shoplifting, the Co-op has implemented more stringent security measures, such as "risers" at the front of shelves to hinder access to products, CCTV, remote monitoring, panic buttons, Smartwater, GPS-tracked security cases, body-cams and communication headsets, as well as covert security guards. They are now looking into installing secure kiosks and digital doors, so that even high-value products can only be accessed with the help of a member of staff.
The Co-op has also been experimenting with using dummy packaging for more pricey items, including coffee, chocolates, and washing powder. Customers take the dummy display case while at the store, and then can swap it out for the actual product when they reach checkout.
Mr Logue expresses that dummy packaging can have a negative impact on sales.
He states that their findings suggest that the security measure has the same negative effect on the customer as it does on the shoplifter, who simply shifts their activity to another area of the store.
Mr Logue believes that no single approach will suffice. He states, "Physical guarding is the most likely to prevent impulsive theft, however it may not be as successful when dealing with criminals who commit offences repeatedly."
Over the last few years, the Co-op has spend a total of £200 million in an effort to combat criminal behaviour.
Mr Logue envisages AI playing a major part in curtailing retail crime in the years ahead.
We are very eager to examine how AI might be capable of keeping track of people who do not scan items at the self-service kiosks, or the hiding of products in the aisles. This could give us the opportunity to respond faster in the moment and contact the police.
At Dartmouth, the individual who pilfered from Ms Day's store was given a suspended conviction.
She expresses her sentiment that the offender had a gambling problem and is glad the police were able to apprehend him, but points out that it was not a good result for anyone involved.
I'm filled with despair about the situation. I would love to live in a world where I can leave my door open and let people admire what we have without worrying about them taking anything away.
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