Family-run vintage shop owner, who is frustrated by theft, in the middle of the increase in retail crime in BC

Tricia Hall remembers what it needed to keep her family business alive when the pandemic hit almost six months after its opening.

“I can tell you that it was traumatic and yet fun,” said Hall, Hall, owner of Stoxx Vintage, black and owned, family-run economy and vintage clothing business in Vancouver.

“We came together, worked seven days a week and did ourselves and we are still here.”

Today the shop has expanded to locations in Burnabys Metrotown and Nanano to Vancouver Island. But Hall said, while the business survived the pandemic, it is now faced with another challenge: a steady increase in theft.

In recent years she said that theft and theft have become a regular burden, especially in her location Burnaby and Kingsgate Mall in Vancouver.

“We have the feeling that we all have to watch all the time, and it's not a nice feeling.”

This week a man went to the Metrotown Store and went with a 300 dollar -Carhartt jacket without paying.

“He basically came into play, we trusted him, had a nice conversation … and within seconds less than 30 seconds he stole an expensive jacket,” she said, adding that she had reported the police's incident.

Burnaby RCMP confirmed in a statement to CBC News that they examined the incident. They said that the number of shop files in Burnaby had increased significantly – in 2024 3,685 compared to 2,437 in 2023.

The police said that the department of the department had started several “Boost and Bust” operations to fix the theft of retail. In March, a two-day initiative in Metrotown led to 22 arrests, the seizure of weapons and drugs and the recovery of over $ 2,800 were stolen.

Nevertheless, Hall said that the incidents in their shops were common and sometimes brave. One person, she said, stole a few shoes and then returned to sell them back. In other cases, she said thieves were waiting for the escape car outside.

“In times when the police are involved, it feels like nothing was happening. I was never called to testify,” said Hall. “I have the feeling that the people who commit these crimes realize that there are not really any effects.”

It has installed more surveillance cameras, but the additional precautionary measures are associated with costs.

“There is no place to hike the prices,” she said. “I can't pass this on to the customers.”

Retail crimes “quite widespread” in Metro Vancouver and BC

In Vancouver, the police reported an increase in shoplifting at 12 p.m. in 2024 compared to the previous year and an increase of 40 percent in the core of the city center.

The problem, supporters say, are not limited to some shops.

Jess Ketchum, co -founder of the Save Our Street Coalition, said that shoplifting and violent incidents are “quite common in BC”.

“There were many companies that went out of business,” he told CBC News.

Ketchum said that the owners fight with rising costs, security issues, personnel challenges and difficulties in securing insurance. He added, while the theft was to be addressed, there are many incidents associated with untreated mental illnesses and addiction.

“It is estimated that about 50 percent of these crimes are due to addiction and mental health,” he said. “You can't just throw these people into prison. This is simply not the right thing. We need a complete continuum of care so that people can get the treatment they need.”

In response to this, the Vancouver City Council voted last month for setting up a task force for retail security under the mayor's office. The aim is to examine the causes of shoplifting and evaluation of the answers from enforcement to social support.

The city of Vancouver has also hired more than 200 new police officers and 35 specialists for mental health, extended crisis reaction teams, and the VPD has launched Task Force Barrage to aim for organized crime in the city center of Eastside.

Hall said that she only wants to see more accountability and support for business owners who try to stay open and safe.

“[This is] A room that is created with a lot of love is only discouraging when people come in with bad intentions. “