For not saying anything?

[PumpkinKlNG]

I was in Greggs earlier standing in the queue and a man walked in grabbed a drink and a sandwich and walked straight back out without paying, the staff didn’t notice and I didn’t say anything, if you saw someone stealing from a shop would you say something?

Yes, but I'm an ex police officer and very quick to pipe up.

The funniest one was a chap who stuck a hot rotisserie chicken up his shirt and tried to get out the door with it with four off duty coppers paying at the counter. He burned himself, the idiot, before we recovered the chicken and had him detained.

Before the bleeding hearts pipe up, he wasn't stealing to feed himself or his starving children, he's a well known local thief and heroin addict who steals to pay for his habit.

In that Scenario I wouldn’t. I’m not gonna stop them and I’m sure the staff aren’t about to start making chase.

I feel like stealing from large corporations would be a “victimless crime” in some ways, but I know that workers can get in trouble for it and I imagine there are other wider repercussions I don’t understand.
I used to work for a chain store (really shit women’s fashion) that went bust partially due to shoplifting and I lost my job. Not a huge issue as I was 18 and living at home but a big problem for some of my colleagues. Not sure I can get het up about someone stealing a sandwich from greggs, though.

I would have told them when I was being served, but I wouldn’t have chased him or anything like that.

Not food but I did report a theft in my local Next last year. A group of well heeled women went round filling designer bags with clothes & walked out. They checked out the blind spots in the shop & targeted those. Nobody batted an eyelid because they were well dressed & well spoken.

Nah, if the staff didn’t notice then that’s their problem. I’m not putting myself at risk to protect a big chains profits.

Yeah I normally point it out to the staff once I've reached the counter.

It's pretty common in Greggs due to the open front style of most of their shops.

I have. I was in a store and couple were taking Yankee candle off the shelf and putting them in their shopping bags. Really blatantly. I was on my way to the tills and told the staff.

Not sure I would have done in that situation. He was probably gone before you could say anything and they weren't going to chase him.

I was in a very small Tesco a few weeks ago when a woman walked around filling up her basket and then walked straight out with it without paying taking the basket with her.
Maybe I should have said something but I just laughed in bemusement.

When I worked in retail, chasing shoplifters across the car park was the closest thing that we had to fun.

He could have needed it? A Greggs meal deal is £3.15. I couldn't get arsey or report anyone for that.

I've reported a guy filling a massive cool bag which he'd hidden under a table. He ran when the security guard approached.

@casualnamechange - stealing from a big, National chain is not a victimless crime. Loss through theft is called shrinkage, and no retailer is going to cover the cost of shrinkage out of their profits - it is one of the costs that gets factored into the price you and I and every other honest person pays in the shop.

I don’t expect to get things ‘at cost’ from the shops - I know they have expenses to cover (shrinkage through breakage, spoiling etc, overheads like staff costs, rent, utilities etc), and they need to make a profit - but every honest customer bears the cost of theft/shoplifting, so I don’t think it is a victimless crime.

It wouldn’t have occurred to me to say anything, I thought it was cheeky but wouldn’t have told them, I only ask because my son saw it, he was getting a drink and the man cane in behind him and grabbed one then picked up a sandwich, so I was looking behind to watch my son so that’s how I saw it and obviously saw he didn’t queue up behind us he just walked out, the reason why I asked is because my son asked why I didn’t tell them.

I wouldn't have said anything if it was a sandwich. To be honest I don't think I'd say anything in a big corporation like that unless it was somewhere that had security. They sign up to deal with thieves etc, a sales advisor shouldn't have to confront a thief IMO.

No but you can bet you're booty I'm
Blatantly noseying when security stop someone

Glad I was right then, it did have me questioning it. But I think it’s best not to get involved in these things.

@SoddingWeddings

Yes, but I'm an ex police officer and very quick to pipe up.

The funniest one was a chap who stuck a hot rotisserie chicken up his shirt and tried to get out the door with it with four off duty coppers paying at the counter. He burned himself, the idiot, before we recovered the chicken and had him detained.

Before the bleeding hearts pipe up, he wasn't stealing to feed himself or his starving children, he's a well known local thief and heroin addict who steals to pay for his habit.

Fully accept that this happens, but... how desperate for chicken would you have to be to buy one that had been up a junkie's shirt?

"Yeah, it's fine, you can just pick the fluff and chest hairs off. They're supposed to smell of Lynx."

I saw someone take something from Debenhams, as did another customer. We were both a bit gobsmacked but quickly told a member of staff who alerted security who told us they couldn’t do anything because they hadn’t witnessed it.

I worked with a woman that did exactly this, regularly. Her favourite was the local tesco express because the bagged takeaways were quite close to the door. She said she often went and just took one and walked out. I hated going in shops with her, which we regularly had to as part of our job, as she without fail stole something. We were on a very good wage as well so she didn't need to!

I definitely think he does it regularly as he came in with so much confidence and nearly pushed my son out the way to get a drink! Basically he wasn’t sly about it.

@Imapotato

Nah, if the staff didn’t notice then that’s their problem. I’m not putting myself at risk to protect a big chains profits.

Exactly!!

Again - shoplifting does NOT impact the profits of shops or big chains - the cost is passed on to all the honest shoppers, via the portion of the price that covers shrinkage.

If there was no shoplifting, prices would be a bit lower - not hugely lower, because shrinkage has to cover things getting broken or spoiled - and shrinkage is only a part of the amount that is added to the cost price of an item - but I begrudge paying more because some people don’t want to be honest (I excuse those who are in genuinely dire straits).

just challenged one in work today. total scum!

I worked at greggs as a student and it was the worst job I ever had. If anyone ever wonders why greggs staff look miserable, they have good reasons. I don’t buy food from there anymore out of sheer principle, it’s a horrible place to work so I say let them steal the sandwiches! They usually end up in the bin at the end of the day anyway tbh, so much food waste.