Scottish stores reported 56,920 shoplifting cases in 2025–2026, up 129% from 24,877 in 2021–2022, while Co-op described staff facing attacks involving weapons.
Scottish government figures show the increase over four years. But Police Scotland Inspector Emma Wright, of the Retail Crime Task Force, attributed part of the rise to greater confidence in reporting offences.
Co-op retail operations director Kate McCrae described an increase in targeted theft involving violence. Speaking to BBC Scotland’s Scotcast, she listed guns, machetes and knives among the weapons encountered by shop workers.
Harpoon guns had featured in some incidents, she said. In another attack, a person needed hospital treatment after someone threw a fire extinguisher into his face. Her account described violence accompanying thefts targeting specific goods.
Organised gangs use sacks, backpacks and even wheelie bins to clear shelves. They steal high-value products, including energy drinks and baby powder, for resale, with some thefts carried out to order.
Wright described groups recruiting others to carry out offences. Vulnerable people and young people are among those used by organised retail criminals, she said.
“Organised retail crime has become much more organised,” Wright told the programme.
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Her explanation of increased reporting accompanied McCrae’s account of more targeted theft involving violence. Both described the pressure retailers face, although Wright identified confidence in reporting as a factor behind the recorded increase.
Co-op has introduced locked wine cabinets and GPS tagging for steaks as part of its security measures. It credited those measures with reducing retail crime across its supermarket operations by 20%.
