Greggs are making big changes. The high street chain is removing items from self-service fridges in order to clamp down on shoplifting.
The High Street bakery has suffered from a spate of incidents in recent months, including thefts and anti-social behaviour. As a result, shoppers in some stores are now unable to pick up items like sandwiches and bottled drinks.
Instead, fridges previously accessed easily before paying are to be stored behind the counter. At least five Greggs branches are affected by the changes, including Greggs in Whitechapel, as the chain trials a new store layout in an attempt to combat rising theft numbers.
Customers may also see increased security at the shops, including upgraded CCTV and more security officers in-branch. The move is part of a wider retail industry crackdown on shoplifting and anti-social behaviour.
The affected stores are all in locations where there have been higher incidents of anti-social behaviour. However, there are no current plans for the changes to be implemented in the rest of Greggs’ 2,600 shops across the UK.
A Greggs spokesperson said: “This is one of a number of initiatives we are trialling across a handful of shops which are exposed to higher levels of anti-social behaviour. Customers can expect to see our full range of great value and tasty Greggs favourites available from behind the counter.
“The safety of our colleagues and customers remains our number one priority.” The move comes after staff at another London branch resorted to fastening fridge doors with bicycle locks in an effort to thwart shoplifters.
Workers at the West Norwood outlet were on hand ready to unlock the fridge for customers intending to purchase items, reports the Express. The lock, which was attached to a fridge brimming with soft drinks and water at the South London site, represents the staff’s strategy to shield their stock from the rampant theft plaguing other branches and the wider UK in recent times.
On April 12, a thief entered the Greggs shop in Upminster, East London, and stole items from the fridges, telling staff: “You’re going to chuck it away anyway.” In response to a surge in thefts and confrontations with customers last year, the bakery chain has equipped its personnel in some London locations with body cameras.
Britain’s growing shoplifting crisis
The crisis of shoplifting in Britain has been escalating, reaching unprecedented levels. Official figures from the Office of National Statistics (ONS) state that shoplifting offences rose by 20 per cent in 2024 compared to the previous year.
According to the ONS, 516,971 instances of shoplifting were recorded in the UK for the year to December 2024. This is compared to 429,873 in the year to December 2023.
This is the highest ever recorded figure since current reporting practices began in 2003. However, retail bosses say even this does not reveal the full picture.
Association of Convenience Stores chief executive James Lowman said: “The increase in shop theft shown by these figures reflects what our members are seeing every day in their stores. The volume of theft is still massively under-reported though: our own member survey revealed 6.2million thefts recorded by convenience stores alone.
“It is encouraging that more theft is being reported, even if it is still only the tip of the iceberg. Unless theft is reported, we cannot identify the repeat offenders who are responsible for so much of this crime.”
Helen Dickinson, Chief Executive of the British Retail Consortium, said that retail crime is “spiralling out of control.” She added: “People in retail have been spat on, racially abused, and threatened with machetes.
“Every day this continues, criminals are getting bolder and more aggressive. We owe it to the three million hardworking people working in retail to bring the epidemic of crime to heel. No one should go to work in fear.”
