“If you steal from one of us, you steal from all of us.”
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
This is the message Bay business owners and employees have for thieves as they unite to stamp out shoplifting.
Tired of having items stolen from her two stores in the Nelson Bay, Homebody and The Home Interior, Josie Collard started a private Facebook message with other business owners in the CBD just before Christmas.
The Facebook Messenger thread, named Taking Care of Business Nelson Bay, is a virtual space for business owners and their staff to connect with each other but also to share pictures of individuals who have stolen items from their stores.
“A friend who owned a shop down at [d’Albora] marina sent me a picture of a woman who had stolen something from her shop one day,” Ms Collard said.
“She sent it as warning, to keep an eye out for this person.
“I was at home sick that day but I sent it [picture] to my staff. Ten minutes later they messaged me back saying they could see this person outside the shop.”
Police were called and the woman was arrested and charged for shoplifting.
Seeing firsthand how instant photo sharing could catch a thief, and between just two Bay shop owners, Ms Collard wanted to expand the method to include all businesses in the area.
She started the Messenger thread and it quickly gained momentum, with more than 50 people asking to join within a matter of two weeks.
MS Collard said that most of the business owners in the Nelson Bay CBD were now members of the message thread.
Business owners and employees from shops in Shoal Bay and Salamander Bay are also members.
Corinne Phillips from Iggy’s Bazaar in Nelson Bay said the thread, which she is a member of, was “handy” in catching shoplifters and would help combat the issue.
“Shoplifters go from store to store,” she said. “We’ve seen it. They steal from one shop then go up the street and steal from another one.
“Now it’s a case of if you rob from one of us, you rob from all of us. We will know who you are. We will catch you.”
According to the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research, 160 incidents of theft from a retail store were reported to Port Stephens police in the 12 months to September 2017.
This incident rate was down from the year before where 185 reports of theft from a retail store were made to police – the highest rate in the past five years.
Ms Collard, who has been operating businesses in Nelson Bay for the past 17 years, said the “prime time stealing season” for her stores in particular was the lead up to Christmas and summer holiday period.
Since founding the message thread and connecting with business owners around the Bay, she has found this theft period is largely the same for most of them.
In addition to catching shoplifters, Ms Collard said what she likes about the message thread is that it brings businesses from around the Bay together.
“This has been a great way to connect and bring us together,” she said. “We can communicate with each other, get together, share our experiences.”
Sharon Mellor from I Am Activewear in Nelson Bay agreed, saying as a small business owner you often became “isolated” because you are so busy running it.
“This helps you to get to know other businesses in the Bay,” Ms Mellor said.
Anyone wishing to join the message thread is asked to phone The Home Interior on (02) 4984 4888 and ask to speak with Ms Collard or the store manager.
