Pre-owned technology retailer CeX tackles retail crime with roll-out of Auror platform in UK stores
Refurbished tech and entertainment retailer CeX has partnered with Auror to roll-out the firm’s crime reporting platform to its 390 UK stores. The platform allows colleagues to record instances of crime, giving CeX the intelligence needed to identify top offenders, make more informed decisions to protect their people and manage risk across their estates, and collaborate with police to investigate the most serious offenders.
CeX Head of Loss Prevention Derrick Gough says the secondhand retail sector faces a different set of risks that can often be misunderstood or overlooked.
"Because much of our stock isn't sitting out on the shopfloor, the crime we see is rarely ordinary shoplifting," he comments. "It's a phone snatched when someone asks to see a device, it's robberies, and unfortunately it's threats to our colleagues in escalated situations. Those moments are frightening for our teams. Their wellbeing is our top priority. Auror has given us a consistent way to record what's happened and surface the repeat offenders behind it - in fact, a prolific cross-country offender linked to £48,000 of stolen products at CeX was arrested following their last theft attempt in Edmonton.”
Auror GM UK & Europe Mark Gleeson says: “While the nature of risk is different from retailer to retailer, the consistent trend across the whole sector is that 70% of crime in retail settings is driven by the top 10% of repeat offenders, and those same offenders are up to four times more likely to be violent. The sector cannot get on top of this problem alone. When committed retailers, like CeX, appreciate the value of working together then every store in that network becomes safer and they can understand who the top high-harm offenders are because offenders are not brand loyal and do not respect jurisdictional boundaries.”
2026 RTIH Innovation Awards
Retail security 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.
