When the prices spike, so do the thefts, grocers say

Local retailers say laundry products have long been among the targets of shoplifters looking to resell what they steal for a quick buck.

Munther Zeid, an owner of local grocery chain Food Fare, said shoplifters have been going after laundry and dishwasher pods at the family’s stores for years.

“Anything that’s considered high value, or of demand, are the things being stolen,” said Zeid. “Cheese is shoplifted, Tide PODS, even Cascade pods, those Mr. Clean Magic Erasers. Believe it or not, chocolate chips are on the list of things being shoplifted.”

He said they tend to see an increase in shoplifting of popular goods anytime the price goes up for the specific item.

“They’ll come in and grab four or five bags at a time and try to steal them if they can, they’re not just taking one,” he said, pointing to laundry and dishwasher detergent pods, in particular.

Zeid said in-demand, expensive items are targeted for bulk theft.

“Anything that they can go into a parking lot or somewhere and go, ‘Hey, want to buy this?’” he said.

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“There are some Tide POD packs that are worth $25, $30, depending on the pack size, some are $15, $12. If you offered somebody one they know it’s on sale for $9.99, and somebody goes, ‘I’ll give you three for 10 bucks.’ They don’t look at the value, they just want a few bucks… they’ll just steal some more.”

Relative Ramsay Zeid, also a co-owner of the business, said he’s noticed a recent uptick of coffee thefts — multiple bags at a time — as prices spike. He suspects the thieves are reselling the java.

Jennifer Donald, a supervisor at Downtown Family Foods, said their shop has steadily seen laundry products stolen over the past year. The real spike of late, she said, has been of people stealing dairy and bakery products.

Winnipeg Police Service spokesman Const. Stephen Spencer said the department doesn’t keep specific statistics on items stolen — but anecdotally, household and personal hygiene products are commonly stolen, along with groceries.

erik.pindera@freepress.mb.ca

Erik Pindera
Reporter

Erik Pindera is a reporter for the Free Press, mostly focusing on crime and justice. The born-and-bred Winnipegger attended Red River College Polytechnic, wrote for the community newspaper in Kenora, Ont. and reported on television and radio in Winnipeg before joining the Free Press in 2020.  Read more about Erik.

Every piece of reporting Erik produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.