Ann Summers has reported a 42 per cent drop in personal safety incidents after trialling body-worn cameras in three of its higher-risk stores.
The eight-week pilot took place at its Edinburgh Princes Street, London Oxford Street and Nottingham city centre locations, and it is now planning to extend the scheme to more stores.
According to Ann Summers, the trial delivered an immediate impact on staff safety and in-store behaviour. Its Edinburgh branch recorded no police-attended incidents during the period and saw its quietest Fringe season on record in terms of reported incidents.
Ann Summers said the decision was driven by concerns over the safety of its teams, many of whom are women, including younger supervisors, who have increasingly had to deal with intimidation, aggression and people under the influence while at work.
Head of business risk Sam Tenner said the business introduced the cameras as a practical step to help staff feel safer in challenging situations and to support de-escalation when incidents arise.
He said: “It’s a sad fact that it’s tougher to work on our high streets, and with resources dwindling, the ability for police to respond in the way in which we might hope isn’t realistic anymore.
“With instances of confrontation or aggression up, we saw body cameras as a viable personal safety tool.”
Ann Summers added that the trial had also helped reassure staff who may initially have had concerns about how customers would react. The retailer said there were no customer complaints linked to the cameras during the pilot, despite the discretion often associated with its store environment.
Staff were given guidance on how and when the cameras should be used, with recording treated as a last resort in situations that were escalating.
Tenner said the rollout was ultimately about showing staff that the business is willing to invest in measures that protect them.
He added: “Our motivation was purely around making our people feel we’re investing in the right tools to keep them safe and showing them how to use those tools to actually de-escalate aggressive behaviour.”
The retailer’s trial comes against a backdrop of increasing concern across the sector.
The British Retail Consortium has previously warned that more than 1,600 incidents of violence and abuse against retail workers are taking place every day in the UK.
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