Walgreens, which has been plagued by theft, is closing five more shops in San Francisco.
Walgreens has announced that it will close five more shops in San Francisco next month due to organised retail theft.
Walgreens announced Tuesday that it will close five more locations in San Francisco next month due to organised retail crime, adding to the city’s terrible reputation for widespread and blatant thievery.
According to SFGATE, the businesses will close next month. According to the report, Walgreens has closed at least ten outlets in the city since the beginning of 2019.
“Retail theft across our San Francisco stores has continued to increase in the past few months to five times our chain average” according to Walgreens spokesperson Phil Caruso, despite significant upgrades in security.
San Francisco Supervisor Ahsha Safai expressed sadness over the closure of a Mission Street store that “has been a staple for seniors, families and children for decades.”
“This is a sad day for San Francisco,” said Safai to SFGATE. “We can’t continue to let these anchor institutions close that so many people rely on.”
Last year, Walgreens shut down a store where the company said it was losing $1,000 per day due to thefts.
The widely circulated photos of shoplifting caught on film have increased frustration and worry over thefts. This summer, shoplifters wearing masks and carrying armfuls of designer goods dashed from a downtown Neiman Marcus and into getaway automobiles.
A masked man was seen on video at a Walgreens in June cramming items into a garbage bag before speeding out on a bicycle. A suspect in that theft was apprehended.
Mayor London Breed and Police Chief Bill Scott announced last month that they will dedicate more officers, improve cooperation, and make it simpler to report shoplifters.
The policy tries to combat thievery, which has contributed to the liberal city’s reputation as being lax on crime.
“We care about criminal justice reform. We care about second chances. We care about making sure that people are not wrongly accused,” Breed in announcing the new measures. “But don’t take our kindness for weakness, our compassion for weakness.”