logo
Greggs to stop thieves by making huge change that will impact all customers

Greggs to stop thieves by making huge change that will impact all customers

Daily Record20-05-2025

The popular bakery has placed a new safety measure in some of its stores to combat shoplifting.
Greggs is taking measures to stamp out shoplifting, with a handful of stores selected to trial out the change. While well-known for the sausage rolls and other hot pastries, the high street bakery also offers a selection of convenient self-serve food and drinks, including baguettes and finger food.
However, with a rise in shoplifting, the company has made the decision to trial holding their self-serve items behind the counter. The measure is being trialled out in a few selected stores that are said to be "exposed to higher levels of anti-social behaviour."

While the initial stores to take on the policy are in England - one in Whitechapel and others in Peckham and Ilford - the company has said that it may also be rolled out to other stores across the country that experience high levels of theft.

Greggs currently has 2,600 bakeries across the UK, and according to the Office of National Statistics, shoplifting offences recorded by the police in 2024 rose by 20 per cent to a whopping 516,971.
However, the number of shoplifting incidents reported by retailers themselves was significantly higher. In the 12 months leading up to September last year, the British Retail Consortium (BRC) said that shops saw a 3.7million rise in incidents to 20.4million.
While shoppers of the selected stores will see more food behind the counter, Greggs have added: "The safety of our colleagues and customers remains our number one priority."
Some retailers, including supermarkets, have reported being targeted by organised groups who wear bluetooth headsets to communicate with each other. These gangs have also been said to set off alarms to cause a distraction so their fellow thieves can escape.
Andy Higginson, chair of JD Sports and the BRC, told the BBC that some people see shoplifting as a "way of life", as they are able to trade or sell the items they have stolen.

He added: "There is an element of society that is starting to take stealing from stores as a way of life and that needs to be stopped."
There has also been a significant rise in theft from retailers after the Covid pandemic, which coincides with the rise in household bills and the price of food.

However, Mr Higginson has dismissed the idea that the increase in shoplifting is due to people struggling with cost of living pressures.
He said: "People are not stealing the food to eat they're stealing very high value items that can be traded and sold."
By contrast, a boss from a firm that provides shops and supermarkets with security has said that his staff has reported a change in the types of thieves they are dealing with - with some now being pensioners who are struggling to keep up with the rising living costs.

John Nussbaum, director of service for retail at Kingdom Security, said: "We've seen a massive increase in pensioners shoplifting, putting a jar of coffee in their bag and one in the trolley, that sort of thing.
"For us over the last 12 months, we've got this different level of crime now. We're now experiencing something different - pensioners, people who don't normally shoplift."
He added: "We've had instances of mothers caught shoplifting when they're with their kids."
Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community!
Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today.
You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland.
No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team.
All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in!
If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'.
We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like.
To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Company linked to Tory Peer Baroness Mone should pay back £121m for ‘faulty' PPE, High Court hears
Company linked to Tory Peer Baroness Mone should pay back £121m for ‘faulty' PPE, High Court hears

Wales Online

time6 hours ago

  • Wales Online

Company linked to Tory Peer Baroness Mone should pay back £121m for ‘faulty' PPE, High Court hears

Company linked to Tory Peer Baroness Mone should pay back £121m for 'faulty' PPE, High Court hears PPE Medpro is being sued for an alleged breach of contract over the supply of PPE during the Covid pandemic, with the Government claiming the gowns were unusable The company in court is linked to Baroness Mone (Image: PA Archive/PA Images ) A company linked to Tory peer Michelle Mone should pay back more than £121 million for breaching a Government contract for 25 million surgical gowns during the coronavirus pandemic, the High Court has heard. The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) is suing PPE Medpro for allegedly breaching a deal for the gowns, with lawyers for the Government telling the court they were "faulty" because they were not sterile. ‌ The company, a consortium led by Baroness Mone's husband, businessman Doug Barrowman, was awarded Government contracts by the former Conservative administration to supply PPE during the pandemic, after she recommended it to ministers. Any wrongdoing has been denied. For our free daily briefing on the biggest issues facing the nation, sign up to the Wales Matters newsletter here ‌ The Government is seeking to recover the costs of the contract, as well as the costs of transporting and storing the items, which amount to an additional £8,648,691. PPE Medpro said it "categorically denies" breaching the contract, and its lawyers claimed the company had been "singled out for unfair treatment". Opening the trial on Wednesday, Paul Stanley KC, for the DHSC, said: "This case is simply about whether 25 million surgical gowns provided by PPE Medpro were faulty. Article continues below "It is, in short, a technical case about detailed legal and industry standards that apply to sterile gowns." Mr Stanley said in written submissions the "initial contact with Medpro came through Baroness Mone", with discussions about the contract then going through one of the company's directors, Anthony Page. Baroness Mone remained "active throughout" the negotiations, Mr Stanley said, with the peer stating Mr Barrowman had "years of experience in manufacturing, procurement and management of supply chains". ‌ But he told the court Baroness Mone's communications were "not part of this case", which was "simply about compliance". He said: "The department does not allege anything improper happened, and we are not concerned with any profits made by anybody." In court documents from May this year, the DHSC said the gowns were delivered to the UK in 72 lots between August and October, 2020, with £121,999,219.20 paid to PPE Medpro between July and August that year. ‌ The department rejected the gowns in December, 2020, and told the company it would have to repay the money, but this has not happened and the gowns remain in storage, unable to be used. In written submissions for trial, Mr Stanley said 99.9999% of the gowns should have been sterile under the terms of the contract, equating to one in a million being unusable. The DHSC claims the contract also specified PPE Medpro had to sterilise the gowns using a "validated process", attested by CE marking, which indicates a product has met certain medical standards. ‌ He said "none of those things happened", with no validated sterilisation process being followed, and the gowns supplied with invalid CE marking. He continued that 140 gowns were later tested for sterility, with 103 failing. He said: "Whatever was done to sterilise the gowns had not achieved its purpose, because more than one in a million of them was contaminated when delivered. ‌ "On that basis, DHSC was entitled to reject the gowns, or is entitled to damages, which amount to the full price and storage costs." In his written submissions, Charles Samek KC, for PPE Medpro, said the "only plausible reason" for the gowns becoming contaminated was due to "the transport and storage conditions or events to which the gowns were subject", after they had been delivered to the DHSC. He added the testing did not happen until several months after the gowns were rejected, and the samples selected were not "representative of the whole population", meaning "no proper conclusions may be drawn". ‌ He said the DHSC's claim was "contrived and opportunistic" and PPE Medpro had been "made the 'fall guy' for a catalogue of failures and errors" by the department. He said: "It has perhaps been singled out because of the high profiles of those said to be associated with PPE Medpro, and/or because it is perceived to be a supplier with financial resources behind it. "In reality, an archetypal case of 'buyer's remorse', where DHSC simply seeks to get out of a bargain it wished it never entered into, left, as it is, with over £8 billion of purchased and unused PPE as a result of an untrammelled and uncontrolled buying spree with taxpayers' money." ‌ He also said there was a "delicious irony" that Baroness Mone was mentioned in the DHSC's written submissions, when she had "zero relevance to the contractual issues in this case". Neither Baroness Mone nor Mr Barrowman is due to give evidence in the trial, and did not attend the first day of the hearing on Wednesday. A PPE Medpro spokesperson said the company "categorically denies breaching its obligations" and will "robustly defend" the claim. Article continues below The trial before Mrs Justice Cockerill is due to last five weeks, with a judgment expected in writing at a later date.

Moment ‘predator' accused of posing as Uber driver to attack woman is stopped by cops who found ‘rape kit' in car
Moment ‘predator' accused of posing as Uber driver to attack woman is stopped by cops who found ‘rape kit' in car

Scottish Sun

time7 hours ago

  • Scottish Sun

Moment ‘predator' accused of posing as Uber driver to attack woman is stopped by cops who found ‘rape kit' in car

STREET 'PROWLER' Moment 'predator' accused of posing as Uber driver to attack woman is stopped by cops who found 'rape kit' in car THIS is the moment a man who allegedly posed as an Uber driver to attack a woman was stopped by cops with a "rape" kit, a court heard. Graham Head is accused of sexually assaulting the 25-year-old after offering her a free ride home in the early hours. Advertisement 3 Graham Head was pulled over by police after allegedly assaulting a woman 3 He has denied the charges against him Jurors at Lewes Crown Court heard she managed to read the driver's number plate after being attacked. She then called 999 to report being assaulted by a man in latex gloves and a Covid mask who was the driver of a car with registration staring L21, it was said. The court was told Head was a "sexual predator" who "slipped up" the night he was arrested. In footage shown to jurors, police can be seen talking to Head, 68, after pulling him over in Brighton. Advertisement He is asked by the officers he had any interaction with a female in the minutes before he was stopped. Head tells police through a blue face mask: 'No, I haven't. 'I'm going back to Pevensey.' Officers tell Head his personalised registration matches a partial plate given by the woman minutes before. Advertisement He tells police: 'Definitely not me, no.' As he is speaking, police decide to search his car where they found latex gloves, viagra, condoms and a balaclava that allegedly formed a rape kit. When asked why he had the condoms and viagra, Head said: "I'm a normal red blooded male". The court heard Head later changed his story and told police he had picked the woman up as she looked "worse for wear". Advertisement He said: "I know I haven't done it. 'If I took her to the correct address, that's not kidnapping. 'I never said to her I was an Uber driver, I've never said that ever. 'I did not sexually assault that lady, I didn't." Advertisement Jurors heard police later found business cards advertising him as a "N-Uber driver" that were emblazoned with the slogan "Safe and Reliable - For All Occasions". Head is also accused of assaulting an 19-year-old woman he picked up near Hove Park. The two attacks allegedly took place in the early hours of August 19 and November 18, 2022. The 25-year-old woman has since died, the jury was told. Advertisement Head denies kidnapping, attempted rape and three sexual assaults. The trial continues.

Pinko returns to profitability following strategic restructuring and new leadership
Pinko returns to profitability following strategic restructuring and new leadership

Fashion United

time10 hours ago

  • Fashion United

Pinko returns to profitability following strategic restructuring and new leadership

After navigating several challenging years, Italian womenswear brand PINKO has successfully returned to profitability in the first quarter of 2025. This marks a significant achievement in its ongoing transformation, driven by a strategic overhaul and new leadership. The company, founded in 1986 by Pietro Negra and Cristina Rubini, reported Q1 sales exceeding 70 million euros and a positive EBITDA shift of 6 million euros, moving from -1.2 million euros to +5 million euros year-on-year. This turnaround comes as PINKO works to emerge from Italy's Composizione negoziata della crisi, a negotiated debt settlement procedure. Chairman Pietro Negra described it as a "real turning point," emphasizing a prudent, sustainable business plan designed to generate cash flow starting this year. A new phase under CEO Laura Manelli The arrival of CEO Laura Manelli in March 2025 signaled a decisive shift for PINKO. With extensive experience at leading fashion houses such as Armani, Versace, Fendi, and Sergio Rossi, Manelli brings a strong background in financial oversight and fashion operations. Under her leadership, PINKO has concentrated on redefining its business model, streamlining operations, and realigning with core brand values. "We prefer not to call it a relaunch," Manelli stated. "There is untapped potential in the brand. These results confirm that our new approach is working." She underscored the company's strengths in brand recognition and customer loyalty, attributing the recent progress to employee commitment and the new management team's direction. Lessons learned from overexpansion PINKO's current position follows a period of rapid expansion and financial strain. After growing revenue from 197 million in 2019 to 303 million euros in 2022, the company embarked on an ambitious international strategy targeting 500 million euros in turnover. However, significant investments in China and the US underperformed, leading to liquidity issues and a debt load exceeding 100 million euros by late 2023. "The post-Covid growth wave misled us," Negra admitted. "We invested too fast, especially in China, where market dynamics shifted rapidly. Our mistake wasn't going to China – it was going too fast." The restructuring blueprint To regain financial stability, PINKO implemented comprehensive restructuring measures, including closing underperforming stores, cutting operational costs, resizing the company, and simplifying its governance. The plan has been submitted to banks for final approval and is expected to conclude the debt resolution process by mid-year. Both Negra and Manelli emphasize that the crisis was financial, not a crisis of brand identity. "This was a financial crisis, not a crisis of image," Manelli noted. The brand's appeal remains intact, and current efforts are focused on refining market positioning and improving operational efficiency. Future outlook: Strategic recalibration Positioned firmly in the 'entry-to-luxury' segment, PINKO is recalibrating its international strategy with a more selective and geographically cautious approach. A new partnership with Lima Commercial Management in Shanghai, signed in February 2025, exemplifies this shift towards sustainable growth in China. Domestically and internationally, PINKO is also deliberately moving away from the post-pandemic pricing surge observed across the luxury sector. "We're lowering our prices," Negra stated. "Our aim is to offer the best value for money while maintaining our aspirational brand presence." With strong Q1 figures, a refined strategy, and new leadership at the helm, PINKO appears to be transitioning beyond crisis towards a more measured and resilient future.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store