Shoplifting a daily 'curse', say London businesses

"You call the police but nobody comes."

That is the message from a number of shopkeepers in south London, with some saying they are being targeted by thieves on a daily basis.

Research by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) found 59% of high street small firms in London say increasing crime or anti-social behaviour in the area poses a big risk to the high street.

The Metropolitan Police has said recent data shows a huge rise in action being taken against shoplifters.

Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones, the founder of The Black Farmer, selling a range of food products, said stock is stolen from his stores every single day.

"Shoplifting is the biggest curse for anyone in retail and it's getting worse," he said.

"It's not just here, I have another shop in White City and we have the same issues.

"It's now at the point where you think is this even worth it?"

"We had our own security guard but it cost £5,000 a month," he said.

"This business can't afford that salary, every penny helps. I have to be careful just turning on the heating - you're trapped because you can't afford security and can't put up prices, it's just about surviving."

The Black Farmer is one of a number of independent shops that make up the arcade, Brixton village and Market Row.

Bilal, who works at African Queen Fabrics nearby, said reporting theft seems to make little difference.

"We have a lot of thieves here but the police don't do anything," he said.

"What can they do? They arrest people and then have to release them as there is no space in the prisons."

The Met said it has seen a large increase in "positive outcomes" in the past year, where action is taken against an offender, including charges and cautions.

Between February 2024 and February 2025 there were 7,161 positive outcomes reported, but over the next 12 months this rose by 78% to 12,761.

Ch Insp Rav Pathania, the Met's lead for tackling retail crime, said: "Tackling shoplifting continues to be a priority and we are focused on tackling repeat offenders.

"By working with retailers, we are encouraging more reporting.

"We are also increasing the use of technology such as facial recognition, which has helped us solve double the number of shoplifting cases."

Noureddine, who works at Artisan Stories, said he has noticed a decrease in shoplifting and has had a good response from police.

"People steal rugs, bags and wallets, anything," he said.

"Last year we experienced theft four times a week, but this year we haven't seen as much.

"We call the police every time there is theft and they do come and check our CCTV."

However, one shopkeeper, who asked to remain anonymous, had not had the same experience.

"We don't call the police anymore, they don't come so why bother?" he said.

"And if you try and hold the person here, then you're in the wrong, so if we catch them we just kick them out and tell them not to come back."

Sarah King, FSB London's regional business and stakeholder manager, said: "Many owners don't report crimes, particularly if the value of the goods is below £200, as many feel the police won't do anything about it."

Emmanuel-Jones said: "The process to report theft is so difficult that we don't report 50% of incidents, only if it's really serious, so when the police give out statistics on theft it isn't the true figure."

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