A couple who run one of Tenby’s busiest stores have once again highlighted how AI technology is being utilised to help catch shoplifters, and help traders ‘make a stand’ against retail crime.<br />Vince Malone who took the helm at Tenby Stores & Post Office back in 2014 with his wife Fiona, had previously stated that thieves were costing them £26,000 a year while they struggled to persuade police to take cases forward. <br />Vince who is also a senior figure at the Fed (National Federation of Independent Retailers) explained to the BBC this month, how AI technology is helping the business to tackle shoplifting.<br />Detailing the technology they installed, which tracks and manages people as they move around the shop, so that if they make a suspicious gesture, it pings up a little video on a mobile phone, allowing the management to immediately take action, Vince explained: “It pings within our ears in about 5 seconds...it allows us then to be proactive in our approach.<br />“It’s given us control back, it allows us to get on the front foot really.<br />“It’s costing us in excess of £5,000 a year, but it’s about us making a stand and saying, do you know what, enough is enough, and this has got to stop!<br />“We’ve got it in as much for people’s safety as well. It’s not about this ‘big brother’ - it’s about us actually saying, as a community, we want to be safe; and it’s about us being proud of where we live,” he continued.<br />In a previous interview with Victoria Derbyshire on BBC’s Newsnight programme, the couple had told the presenter that such matters are not a ‘victimless’ crime and should have stronger ‘consequences’, explaining how shoplifting sometimes occurred daily at the store situated opposite Tenby’s historical town walls.<br />©BBC<br />
