Garden centres across the UK are facing a costly crisis as shoplifting rises, forcing retailers to spend millions on security upgrades to protect their bottom line.
Big Business With a Dark Side
Visiting a garden centre is a common pastime, with the Horticultural Trades Association (HTA) estimating that over 200 million people visit these stores annually. The industry generates significant revenue, but it is increasingly plagued by theft. Officials say Britain’s 1500 garden centres lose approximately £16 million every year to shoplifting. The theft is not limited to small items; some incidents involve high-value goods like BBQs and soft toys. “It is a costly crisis, with thefts now commonplace, negatively impacting both the bottom line and retail staff in garden centres across the UK,” says Jennifer Pheasey, the HTA’s Director of Policy and Public Affairs.
Most stolen goods are small and easy to conceal. Seed packets and hand tools are the most common items taken, often disappearing into pockets without detection. High-value lifestyle products, such as gifts, are also frequently targeted. Soft toys, especially those from the Jellycat brand, have become a frequent target for what appears to be opportunistic theft by children or parents. One centre in County Durham reported a single day of thefts worth £800, while a group of thieves took more than £2000 from Tates of Sussex Garden Centres on two separate occasions. As a result, 71 per cent of HTA member garden centres now consider customer theft a “major issue”.
The Rise of the Professional Thief
Security experts say the nature of theft has changed over the last few years. Nathan Wilson, Head of Group Security & Total Loss at Blue Diamond—the largest garden centre group in the UK—attributes the rise to the closure of other retailers during the pandemic. “Covid had a big impact on the increase,” Wilson says. “Shops closed and only supermarkets, DIY stores and garden centres remained open. Your typical shoplifter couldn’t go to the high street to steal as that revenue stream had been cut off. This drew them into garden centres.” Once inside, thieves realized that products like tools and accessories could be sold on easily.
Read Also: Monty Don quits Gardeners World show
Blue Diamond has identified four distinct categories of thieves operating in their stores. The first is the Opportunist, who is often an older person taking small items like seeds or candles. The second is the Entrepreneurial Shoplifter, who comes in with a shopping list of branded goods to sell online. The third is the Career Thief, who targets specific high-value items and moves quickly. The final category is Organised Crime Groups.
Investing in Surveillance
The lack of police support has pushed garden centres to implement their own security measures. Blue Diamond has spent over £1 million upgrading its CCTV to a centrally managed HikVision system. “We have also put facial recognition (FR) and automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) in place. As a result, we’ve reduced the overall shrinkage by nearly half [47 per cent],” says Nathan Wilson, who adds that 184 incidents have been reported to the police.
Other approaches, recommended by the GTA, include signage, repositioning items close to the till, avoiding ‘red routes’ and training staff in the psychology of how to prevent and tackle difficult situations. Electronic Article Surveillance (EAS) also protects products through hard or soft tags that activate when going through an exit. “These are more as a deterrent for your opportunist thief. The professional thief will either remove these tags or use things to block the signal and remove them afterwards,” says Nathan Wilson.
It appears that crime is prevalent and costly to the horticulture industry. Who would have thought that Big Brother surveillance technology may just be watching you when you next pop in to pep up your borders. Is the strategy working? “100 per cent,” says Nathan Wilson. “We are seeing a reduction in theft and violent incidents in our centres which is making them a safer place to work and shop.”
