Security boss: Brazen center class clients really feel ‘entitled’ to steal
Brazen middle class customers feel ‘entitled’ to steal a few things from upmarket chains because they are regulars, a head of security has claimed.
Richard Fowler, who manages security at upmarket health food brand Planet Organic, said shoplifting at the Chiswick branch takes place ‘every day’ – and that ‘posh totty’ types are part of the problem.
He claimed the brand loses a staggering £900,000 a year as a result of stealing. The chain has nine stores across London and claims all the products it sells are organic.
Speaking to the BBC, Mr Fowler said: ‘We’ve got our homeless… Then we have what I would call the posh totty people.
‘They shop in Planet Organic on a daily basis, they spend a lot of money with our business.
‘[They think] ”Today I’m a little bit short of money, so I’m entitled to steal something”.’
Brazen middle class customers feel ‘entitled’ to steal from Planet Organic because they are regulars, the head of security claimed
Richard Fowler (pictured), who manages security at Planet Organic, said shoplifting at the Chiswick branch takes place ‘every day’
Planet Organic has nine stores across London and claims all the products it sells are completely organic
Metropolitan Police figures show that 57,453 offences were reported across London last year – an increase from 38,157 in 2022.
Emmeline Taylor, professor of criminology at City University, told the BBC: ‘It’s widely known that the police have been overstretched and under-resourced for over a decade.
‘It is not just about the number of police that have been taken off the streets, it’s also the operational approach and the strategy.’
Shoplifting has risen to the highest level on record, new data revealed in April this year.
Retail bosses accused ministers of allowing shoplifting to become effectively decriminalised, with many police forces failing to attend the majority of reports and failing to gather any evidence when they do.
Less than 40 per cent of shoplifting reports were attended by the Met between April 2022 and April 2023, figures revealed.
Separate data suggests a similar – and often worse – situation in the rest of the country, with forces sending out an officer for just one in five calls related to shoplifting.
Former Home Secretary James Cleverly previously said shoplifting has a ‘corrosive effect’ on people’s confidence and that police should attend every incident and pursue every line of inquiry to send a message that ‘you don’t just get away with it’.
