It was a tactic once reserved for strong medications, spirits, tobacco and lottery products, but bakery firm Greggs is now placing sandwiches and soft drinks behind the till to combat rising crime levels.
The retailer is trailing the move at a “handful” of shops that are “exposed to higher levels of antisocial behaviour”, a spokesperson from the firm said.
Greggs stores in various areas of London including Whitechapel, Ilford and Peckham are said to be among those where customers will have to ask staff for drinks and sandwiches. The initiative follows an investigation by The Sun that found thieves were targeting some outlets every 20 minutes.
The move comes as shoplifting rates are the highest since records began in 2003, with 516,971 incidents reported to police in 2024 alone, a 20% rise. That figure is likely to be just a fraction of the true number of incidents, though, with many retailers not reporting the crime, often due to a perceived lack of action from police.
The British Retail Consortium estimates around 20m shoplifting incidents took place last year, and warned at the start of 2025 that retail crime in general is “spiralling out of control”, with 2,000 violent and abusive incidents taking place each day in shops, a 50% increase on the previous year.
A recent investigation by Forecourt Trader found that in up to 94% of reported fuel-thefts, police cease investigations with no suspect being identified, often with no officers visiting sites to review CCTV. Retailers also report they often receive templated emails or text messages informing them no investigation will take place within hours of a crime being reported.
Greggs’ chief executive, Rosie Currie, told sister publication The Grocer that the firm was trialling putting food and drinks behind the counter to see if this is “the right way to make sure that we get the balance of keeping our colleagues safe and having a nice trading environment for our customers to shop”.
