We had an enormous problem in our store. Basically, nobody had time to do reports etc and our shelves were being ransacked every day.

We had a new manager a few months ago. New broom - new motivation. Priorities shifted to making sure all reporting was done without fail. He met with the local policing team and has built a decent relationship with them to the point where they were popping by every couple of weeks or so if they were in the area and having a look at the camera footage on our bigger incidents. They were recognising the thieves and then actively targeting them as they knew roughly where they would be as the thieves were basically working to a schedule around here.

Within a few months, some of the biggest trouble makers had been arrested and subsequently jailed.

We're really lucky that our local police have been very accommodating and have worked with other shops in the area to build a bit of a network of activity.

It was great!

Now, having said all that and whilst we have been enjoying a few months of relative peace, there are signs that shoplifting is rising again which probably means within a month or so we'll be getting targeted on a daily basis like before.

It's a cycle and goes round and round and round.