VoCoVo research flags massive impact of rising crime and customer abuse levels on retail colleagues

88% of retailers have had colleagues resign from their roles because of physical or verbal abuse from a customer, according to research from retail communications specialist VoCoVo.  

Its survey, which polled 250 UK retail decision-makers and 503 UK consumers, reveals that crime in the industry is being driven disproportionately by younger shoppers. 47% of adults aged 18-24 admit to stealing from a store, and 35% have abused a retail colleague or another customer in-store.  

For many retailers, incidents are no longer isolated events but a regular challenge, with 37% reporting incidents occurring at least once a week. This has led to widespread concern for 86% of retailers. 

The prospect of facing abuse at work is not just impacting retailers’ ability to retain staff but also attract new talent - rising levels of crime and abuse is now the third biggest reason why jobseekers would avoid joining the retail industry. This sits behind only unattractive shift patterns and pay.  

As incidents become more frequent, the impact is being felt beyond retail teams. 48% of shoppers feel uncomfortable when witnessing abuse in-store, contributing to a negative shopping experience. 

In an effort to improve safety for colleagues and maintain a positive experience for shoppers, AI is viewed as a key solution by 67% of retailers. AI assisted reporting and logging tools (35%), automated incident alert systems (33%) and AI powered CCTV (27%) are cited as the technologies most valuable in reducing incidents of crime and abuse.  

Beth Worrall, CEO at VoCoVo, says: “Retail colleagues are facing unprecedented levels of stress from verbal and physical aggression, which is eroding morale and making both recruitment and retention increasingly difficult.”

“Technology has a vital role to play, helping retailers identify suspicious behaviour earlier while keeping colleagues connected at all times to call on support when a situation escalates. But tackling abuse at scale requires an industry wide effort, bringing retailers together to share best practices, standardise safety measures and explore innovative solutions to protect colleagues, supported by policy and government.” 

2026 RTIH Innovation Awards

AI will be a key focus area at the 2026 RTIH Innovation Awards.

The awards are now open for entries and celebrate global retail technology innovation in a fast moving omnichannel world.

Our winners will be revealed at the 2026 RTIH Innovation Awards Ceremony, taking place at The HAC in Central London on Wednesday, 4th November.

Check out our 2025 winners here.

Our 2025 hall of fame entrants were revealed during a sold out event which took place at The HAC on 16th October and consisted of a drinks reception, three course meal, and awards ceremony presided over by award winning comedian, actress and writer Tiff Stevenson.

In his welcome speech, Scott Thompson, Founder and Editor, RTIH, said: “This is the awards’ fifth year as a physical event. We started off with just 30 people at the South Place Hotel not far from here, then moved to London Bridge Hotel, then The Barbican, and last year RIBA’s HQ in the West End.”

“But I’m conscious of the fact that, to quote the legend that is Taylor Swift, You’re only as hot as your last hit, baby. So, this year we’ve moved to our biggest venue yet, and also pulled in our largest number of entries to date and broken attendance records.”

He added: “This year’s submissions have without doubt been our best yet. To quote one of the judges: The examples of innovative developments across both traditional and digital retail spaces were truly remarkable.”

Congratulations to our winners, and a big thank you to our sponsors, judging panel, the legend that is Tiff Stevenson, and all those who attended our 2025 gathering.