Scotland-based retailer Shamly Sud has raised concerns over the growing impact of retail crime, reporting a 29% increase in theft and attempted theft across 11 RaceTrack Pitstop stores in the first 10 months of 2026.
Retail crime is becoming an increasingly serious concern for Scottish retailers, with Sud warning that theft must not be excused or normalised, following an incident involving a young child allegedly being encouraged to steal.
In a LinkedIn post, Shamly Sud, who operates the RaceTrack Pitstop store estate in Scotland, said hardship could not automatically justify theft, particularly when children were being taught that such behaviour was acceptable.
Highlighting the scale of the problem across the business, Sud shared figures from CCTV and incident records covering 11 stores between January 1 and November 10, 2026.
The stores recorded 383 incidents of theft and attempted theft during the period, a 29% increase on the same period last year. Fuel drive-offs rose 13% to 124, while 12 incidents of assault were recorded, up 20%.
The business also logged 519 CCTV incidents, excluding routine stock checks. Approximately 7% of these involved abuse or aggression towards staff.
Sud stressed that the figures represented only a small part of Scotland's retail sector, questioning the wider scale of the problem across the industry.
Behind the numbers, she said, were shop assistants trying to earn an honest living, managers working to protect colleagues and family businesses attempting to keep their doors open.
Retailers were increasingly expected to absorb losses, manage confrontations and safeguard employees while continuing to operate under pressure, she added.
Calling for a change in attitudes towards retail crime, Sud said tackling the problem required more than legislation, policing and security equipment.
"We need to stop treating theft as acceptable," she wrote. "We need to stop making excuses for behaviour that damages businesses, frightens employees and undermines the values we should be teaching our children.
"We need parents to teach responsibility and respect. We need schools and communities to reinforce those values.
"We need meaningful consequences for repeat offenders and greater protection for retail workers. We need the police, government and justice system to recognise the cumulative impact of retail crime, not simply the value of an individual stolen item.
"And we need the public to understand that shoplifting is not a victimless crime.
"Every stolen product has a cost. Every abusive encounter affects someone's wellbeing. Every incident adds another burden to businesses already operating under enormous pressure. But above all, we need to stop normalising behaviour that we would never want our own children to grow up believing is right."
Concluding her post, Sud said the incident involving the young child had left her concerned about the values being passed on to the next generation.
“I am proud to be a retailer. I am proud of the industry, our teams and the communities we serve. But I am also a mother,” she wrote. “The real loss here isn't just what was stolen from a shop. It's the values we risk losing as a society.”