Melbourne small business owners say they’re being driven to the wall amid a sharp increase in retail crime.
Tim Webbers owns Smartronic, a mobile phone repair and accessories business in Lynbrook, in the city’s south-east.
The store was recently broken into and robbed by a hoodie-wearing offender.
“I’m not a violent person at all. I wish I was, because I would put him to sleep”, Webbers told 9News.
“We don’t make f—ing thousands of dollars a week in this place. We’re struggling as it is to barely pay the rent.”
The damage bill at the store is well over $1000.
Multiple other stores in the Lynbrook Village Shopping Centre have also been targeted in separate incidents, including Afef Borny’s pizza shop.
“We never used to have this much of a crime rate here,” she said.
Analysis of the latest crime statistics in Victoria reveal a staggering increase in retail theft – up 38 percent in 2023, a 10-year high.
Police estimate many of the culprits are first-time offenders.
QUT retail expert Professor Gary Mortimer believes cost of living pressures are among the reasons for the spike.
“Unfortunately, there’s a strong correlation,” he told 9News.
“Theft is costing retailers about $9 billion a year and that doesn’t account for the preventative measures that retailers have to take.”
