One shopworker said the business is targeted by shoplifters up to 10 times a day
BUSINESSES on Queen Street are calling for stronger measures to tackle shoplifters, on the street with the second highest number of offences.
Between August 2024 and January 2025, 136 incidents of shoplifting were reported on Queen Street, according to South Wales Police data.
Troy Savory, 31, manager of Ganesha Handicrafts near The Capitol Centre said: “We get five to 10 people a day that try to shoplift, or actually get away with it.
“On one occasion, I had a man come into the shop with a pigeon on his shoulder, and he tried to steal a bag. When I confronted him, he threw the pigeon on the floor, snapped its neck, then tried to stab me with a pen.
“I called the police and they turned up 10 minutes later thinking it was a joke call. When I made a complaint they told me he was banned from the city centre, but I saw him again the following week.
“We’re neglected by the police and the council in this area of town. I thought the renovation of the canal would help, but it’s just become a hotbed for anti-social behaviour.”
According to figures from the Office for National Statistics, shoplifting offences in South Wales have more than doubled in the past two years.
Geraint Randall, 33, the owner of Infinity Vapes, had his business targeted three times by shoplifters who broke in through the window, resulting in a total loss of £36,000 in damages and stolen stock.
“The council have renovated the nearby canal, and are starting to make changes, but it’s too little too late, and that’s why you see lots of businesses having to close around here.
“We tried to get permission from the council to put shutters on our doors, but it got rejected on the grounds that it would look like a prison, so we’ve had to fit bars on the inside as a quick deterrent.
“This part of town is just forgotten about if I’m honest. There needs to be more CCTV in the area, and more of a police presence to help protect us.”
Cardiff Council guidance for shopfront design and signage states: “Within the City Centre (Principle Shopping Area / Central Business Area), Cardiff Bay (Bay Business Area), Conservation Areas and with regard to listed buildings, external security shutters are not considered acceptable and will not be supported.”
As of March 2025, Cardiff recorded 10.3 shoplifting incidents per 1,000 residents, 21% higher than the national average for England and Wales, according to calculations by data company PlumPlot, based on ONS stats.
Dean Williams, 33, a manager at the Sainsbury’s store on Queen Street said: “There’s no consequences for shoplifters. We can report it all we want, and use tags on certain items, but they’ll just move on to the next thing.
“The only time we see a police presence is when we’ve reported something. Generally, the police just drive past straight into the centre of town and don’t bother hanging around.”
Amadou, 45, who did not want to give his full name, has been working as a security guard for the Sainsbury’s Queen Street branch for six years.
“I deal with about five to seven incidents of someone physically taking something from the store a week,” he said.
“We only tend to call the police when the amount stolen is high and, in a month, we might get one or two that is arrested.
“Normally we give them banning orders, but they will always come back.”
The rise in shoplifting in South Wales has multiple causes, but among them are the recent cost-of-living crisis and a lack of perceived consequences for the offender.
Sara Jones, Head of the Welsh Retail Consortium, which represent the views of over 200 major retailers said: “Theft now costs Welsh retailers £100million a year, which leads to customers having to face both higher prices and more inconvenient shopping as retailers have to mitigate the costs and shrinkage resulting from this criminal behaviour.
“It’s not acceptable that retail staff in Wales have to operate in this climate of fear. Whilst the recent budget announcement of £3 million to help tackle retail crime is a good start, the reality is a much greater effort is needed across the criminal justice system to get this situation under control and protect workers and customers.”
