M&S calls for crackdown on ‘brazen, organised, aggressive’ retail crime | Marks & Spencer
Marks & Spencer has called on the government and London’s mayor to tackle retail crime, saying retail crime has become “more brazen, more organized and more aggressive” after reporting an increase in theft and violence in its stores.
M&S chief executive Stuart Machin wrote to Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood and retail director Thinus Keeve wrote to London mayor Sadiq Khan, saying more resources were needed for police to tackle crime effectively and target repeat offenders and crime hotspots.
“In the last week alone, we have seen gangs breaking open lockers and robbing shelves, two men brazenly emptying shelves of meat and walking out, a large group of youths looting a store before attacking a security guard, a colleague being head-butted as he tried to de-escalate the situation, and another being hospitalized after ammonia was thrown in his face.” Keeve wrote on the M&S website:.
“It’s worse in London, but it’s happening across the country and it’s become routine because it doesn’t seem to have any consequences.”
Police this week responded to reports of antisocial behavior in Clapham, south London, involving a group of “several hundred young people” in “connections” using social media apps such as TikTok and Snapchat.
Keeve said there were around 5.5 million burglaries across the UK last year, excluding “the large number that go unreported”. “More than 1,600 retail workers are subjected to violence or abuse every day. This is not an isolated incident. It is systemic and it is getting worse, not better.”
He added: “Without a government that seriously tackles crime and a mayor who prioritizes effective policing, we are powerless. We need a stronger, faster and more consistent police response that uses the tools already available to target repeat offenders and crime hotspots. And we need much more transparency on crime so that the true scale and impact is understood and resources can be used to target it.”
“We need to accept this for what it is. It’s a systemic problem. It’s a growing problem. It’s a problem that requires a coordinated response across government, law enforcement and industry.”
Nearly 100 police were called to Clapham High Street on Tuesday, where teenagers were reported trying to break into shops and a restaurant. Fires were also lit and fireworks set off on Clapham Common.
Six teenage girls have been arrested following two separate incidents of antisocial behavior “fueled by online trends”, according to the Metropolitan Police. Five people, including four police officers, were attacked. The Met said more arrests were expected in the coming days.
Khan condemned the scenes in Clapham as “completely unacceptable”. He said “criminals will face the full force of the law” and that police were working with social media companies to block “viral online content that encourages violence and theft”.
Adam Hawksbee, M&S’s head of external affairs, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “Retail crime has always been a problem, but it feels like the problem has gotten worse in recent weeks and months.”
When asked about the impact of shoplifting on staff, Hawksbee said it “clearly has an impact” and that “they are worried about going into work, they may be nervous about the journey home and that’s not the situation we want our colleagues to be in”.
Shoplifting offenses rose in England and Wales in the year to September, but remain just below record levels seen in the 12 months to March 2025, according to the latest available figures from the Office for National Statistics.
There were 519,381 theft crimes in the year to September 2025; This figure was up 5% from 492,660 the previous year. A total of 530,439 crimes were recorded during the year to March 2025.
