Locked doors during business hours

A Surrey boutique owner now keeps her door locked and makes customers ring a bell to enter after thieves with wire cutters raided her store in January 2025.

“One barricaded the door, the other came in and cut the wires on the bags and stole quite a lot of them”

Shoplifting up 52% since pandemic

Kent, Surrey and Sussex recorded 42,674 shoplifting offences in 2025/26, compared with 28,048 cases in 2019/20.

Sophisticated organised gangs at work

Thieves scout shops beforehand, knowing exactly what to steal and how to get in and out quickly. They target designer goods and high-value items.

“They're very organised, they know exactly what they are doing”

Rural farm shops hit hard

Gibson's Farm Shop in Wingham lost thousands of pounds in a year to gangs stealing meat joints and alcohol. They have to drive there, so it's not opportunistic.

Social media shaming works

After posting thieves' images online, some offenders walked into police stations with money to pay back the stolen goods.

Trolleys and prams as getaway tools

Shoplifters fill trolleys or load prams with goods, then walk out. Some film items they want stolen and send others in to grab them.

Canterbury's dedicated retail crime team

Kent Police set up a specialist unit using facial recognition and CCTV to quickly identify repeat offenders responsible for most thefts.

“It's a set few individuals who commit a disproportionate amount of that crime”

Real-time radio alerts between shops

Canterbury's City Watch scheme connects 137 businesses with radios. When an incident unfolds, shops can warn each other and police immediately.

Sharing intelligence across Sussex

Business crime partnerships flag known offenders between areas, so shops can identify repeat thieves before they commit multiple crimes.

Charges up but crime still high

Shop theft fell 4% last year and charges rose 19%, but only 23% of investigations led to charges. The government now treats retail crime as a priority.