Most of the threatening and abusive incidents towards shop staff are triggered by a refusal of sale or requests for identity, such as when youths try to buy alcohol or cigarettes. That’s according to a survey by the Scottish Grocers Federation (SGF). It was launched at a crime seminar, at Police Scotland College at Tulliallan Castle, Kincardine, Fife, on Wednesday, February 15.
The SGF trade association covers the convenience store industry in Scotland. The SGF’s survey was developed with the Scottish Business Resilience Centre. Peter Cheema, SGF chief executive, said the implications of retail crime are far reaching, affecting the store owner, their staff and the communities they serve. “The SGF Crime Report 2017 provides a snapshot of incidents of recorded crime from retailers across Scotland. The survey covers a wide variety of incidents faced by convenience store retailers such as theft, robbery, burglary, violence and verbal abuse. Shop theft is the biggest challenge that convenience retailers in Scotland encounter.”
In the report, Scotmid trainer and profit protection manager Greg Ferguson covers the Co-op’s refusal to sell age-related products: ‘we found that if there was going to be any escalation into violence this would happen not at the initial refusal but the point where further conversation took place around the reason for refusal. To combat this we introduced small customer information cards which our colleagues would hand out to customers who had been refused the sale of an age restricted product. The card explained the reason for the refusal and gave the customer a number they could contact at head office if they wished to discuss the refusal further. This helped defuse the situation at the crucial point and has proven very popular with both customers and colleagues.’
According to the survey, the average convenience store in Scotland spent £2500 on security in 2016. The report also covers sale of illicit tobacco (about two-thirds of Scottish smokers admit to buying some non-shop tobacco); and crime prevention methods; and cyber.
To read the survey, visit the SGF website.
Picture by Mark Rowe; the Semichem chemist’s store in Rothesay, Bute.
