Recent ONS statistics reveal that the retail sector prospered this summer with 0.5% growth in both August and July. However, this momentum has been overshadowed by a sharp increase in shoplifting. In fact, in March 2025, there were 530,643 shoplifting offences, a 20% rise from the year before, the highest number since such records began in 2003.
Understandably, this is having a devastating effect on businesses’ bottom lines. For example, crime cost retailers £4.2bn last year, including £2.2bn from shoplifting alone. But this financial toll is only part of the problem. As well as increased shoplifting, staff across the retail sector have to deal with increasing levels of verbal abuse, threats, and even physical assault too.
A recent survey from the British Retail Consortium found that 23% of customers have witnessed abuse of shop staff in the past 12 months, including violent or verbal abuse, threats, or worse. Meanwhile, union data from Usdaw – the shopworkers’ union – shows 77% of retail staff have experienced abuse, 53% threats, and 10% physical assault. To combat this problem, Chris Potts, Marketing Director at ANT Telecom, believes body-worn cameras are an answer to helping retailers protect their profits and, most importantly, their people.
Why now for retailers?
Recently the Retail People Index – from the Retail Trust and global consulting firm, AlixPartners – revealed another urgent challenge facing retailers: 54% of employees are looking to leave their roles and wellbeing scores have dropped to 59%. Therefore, it’s clear that employees are struggling with the day to day stress of working in retail. And if businesses fail to act now, they risk not only losing staff, but the knock on effect on customer service and experience and in a worse case, shutting their doors for good.
Additionally, with shoplifting and staff abuse at record levels, now is a critical moment for businesses to invest in robust safety measures. There are a number of ways retailers can try to prevent and manage incidents. Some of these solutions include increasing the security guard presence in stores to help put off criminal behaviour. However, this is costly and more often than not criminals fail to see this as a completely effective deterrent, as security guards have very little power to deal with many situations appropriately.
Another common option retailers use is investing in Electronic Article Surveillance tags (security devices attached to merchandise in retail stores to detect shoplifting). Yet these tags are often unreliable and can often trigger false alarms, leading to employees ignoring warnings and distrusting them. Finally, CCTV is another popular prevention. Yet, all too often footage doesn’t reach all areas of a shop and can fail to capture the desired results. So, what’s the answer?
Beyond the camera: How devices can help protect staff and shops
One of the most effective solutions for retailers to consider in 2025, though, is to introduce body-worn cameras as a core part of their safety and loss prevention strategy. Why? Well, the benefits are clear. Firstly, they are visible and act as a more effective deterrent because they can capture and record crimes happening, and the footage may be used as evidence in court. This means the visible presence of a camera often discourages aggressive behaviour or theft, as individuals know their actions may be recorded. They also provide reliable evidence for subsequent investigations at a later date. As mentioned, video and audio footage can be used by the police to prosecute in court, reducing reliance on staff testimony alone, meaning a higher conviction rate for criminals, as a testimonial can often be disputed or difficult to verify.
Today’s body-worn cameras have evolved far beyond simple video recorders. The latest models combine high-definition recording, Push-to-Talk over Cellular (PoC), and Staff protection in one compact device. This means that staff can not only capture evidence of theft or abuse, but also communicate instantly without needing a separate radio.
Built-in SOS functionality enables employees to raise an alarm if they feel threatened, instantly notifying management or security teams. Lone Worker features, such as man-down detection add an extra layer of protection for staff working in isolated areas, such as stockrooms, back-of-house facilities, or during early and late shifts.
Finally, the Push-to-Talk (PTT) function also enhances teamwork, enabling staff to coordinate responses in real time. For instance, if someone spots suspicious behaviour, they can alert the security team who can track individuals either on foot or via CCTV. This integration gives retailers the benefit of three systems in one.
Supporting staff wellbeing in a time where employee morale is low in retail, a body-worn camera is equally important in impacting staff wellbeing. Trials show that employees feel safer when equipped with this equipment. In transport, for example, a University of Cambridge study commissioned by the Rail Delivery Group and the British Transport Police found that body-worn cameras can reduce the likelihood of assault against rail staff by nearly 50%. For retailers, this proves that body-worn cameras are not just a tool for reducing losses, but a way of showing employees they are supported and protected. In a sector grappling with both high crime and staff turnover, that reassurance is invaluable.
Of course, equipping teams with a camera isn’t a silver bullet to fixing shoplifting altogether. Integrating connected body-worn cameras comes with operational costs and training; however, this is a small price to pay when you consider the profit and loss of staff morale associated with shoplifting and also just the total impact on the bottom line for retailers. When implementing this technology though, staff buy-in matters. If a retailer’s team doesn’t buy into the concept, they may not use them as intended. For instance, if staff feel that the cameras are for employee surveillance. So, it’s vital to ensure that management can get the message across that these are protective tools, not a surveillance overreach.
