Mozart lives on in hundreds of Co-op stores. And so does Bach and Liszt.
It’s an alternative to the Mosquito product, the audience heard at the Retail Fraud 08 conference in London on May 1.<br><br>It was significant that Andrew Pope, Manchester-based national business crime partnership manager at The Co-operative Group, began by setting out what the co-operative movement stands for. In short, being ethical. He also took time to lay out what the retailer seeks to achieve – tackling crime, but also things of wider use to society, like reducing youth crime in general, and bringing about social inclusion. And then on to Mozart. Classical music was piloted in the front of nine stores, in 2004; there was an on-off control. The reason: outside convenience stores, and not only those belonging to the Co-op, youths may gather. Even if they do not do any crimes, just by congregating there, shoppers may feel intimidated. Byplaying the music through external speakers, a shop becomes less cool as a place for youngsters to hang out. <br><br>Customers and staff were happy; the young people hated it, and moved on. The retailer, plainly, was happy; footfall and sales increased. The idea was rolled out to 215 stores. For you music buffs, the tunes Andrew listed were: The Preludes by Liszt, a scene (moderato) from Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake; his Little Red Riding Hood and the Wolf from Sleeping Beauty, and a nocturne by that Russian composer; Concerto number 8 in A minor (third movement), and the first movement of Winter from the Four Seasons, by Vivaldi; the molto allegro part of Mozart’s symphony number 40 (in G minor); Rossini’s Figaro; Casta Diva, by Bellini; and a violin concerto in E (adagio) by Bach. Speaking to Professional Security afterwards, he added: "It was just classical in general that did the trick." <br><br>In June and July 2007, the retailer did a third survey of how and whether the music reduced youth misbehaviour in and outside stores, and if there were changes over the week or during the shopping day. In a word, it was still, largely, working. Besides, for a spend of £79k between 2004 and 2006, the Co-op reckoned that it got its name in the media, favourably, to the value of more than £1m. <br><br>While Andrew Pope did not go into so much detail about the Mosquito ultrasonic device, and the makers of the Mosquito product have insisted it is safe and legal to use, and users of the Mosquito hav e included councils and the police, the product has found itself more controversial than classical music. As reported in Professional Security in March, civil rights campaigners singled out the device for criticism. Shami Chakrabarti, director of Liberty, said: “What type of society uses a low-level sonic weapon on its children?” The makers of the product say it gives out a high frequency that only the young can hear; they find it irritating, and move away. The Co-op however could ask itself whether it wanted to use such a product that in effect told all youngsters they were not welcome, when co-operation is about treating youths, too, as part of the community (and indeed, maybe customers too).
