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Exclusive: The owner of a busy South London pharmacy has had to move almost all his OTC stock behind the counter after an estimated £100 worth of stock was being stolen every day. 

Salim Jetha, owner of Lewis Grove Pharmacy in Lewisham and chair of Avicenna Membership Services, told P3pharmacy yesterday (August 11) that he had had to strip the spacious pharmacy’s shelves of over-the-counter stock and strip out shelves that once stood in the middle of the shop floor due to “very high levels of shoplifting”. 

“The shoplifters are not frightened at all,” Mr Jetha said. “They just bring a carrier bag and put things in there. They see the CCTV cameras but they don’t care – and police are not interested.”

Speaking shortly before the National Pharmacy Association revealed that 88 per cent of its members in England have seen a “surge” in shoplifting in the last year, Mr Jetha said that before moving the stock behind the counter “we were losing at least £100 a day”. 

Mr Jetha said he was also concerned for the safety of his staff: “If they try to confront them, there could be violence. We can’t do anything about it, the only option is to remove the stock.” 

Many local retailers have hired security guards due to rising levels of crime, he said: “Even the petrol station has security now.”

Earlier this year, the Metropolitan Police named Lewisham High St as one of the worst-affected antisocial behaviour ‘hotspots’ in the capital. 

Mr Jetha added: “Since we removed the stock, we are quite happy from the safety point of view – but self-service is now a problem. You can’t display the products because they’re going to be nicked.

“Before we had skincare, cosmetics, everything on display. Unfortunately, the people who come to the pharmacy nowadays are deprived of the selection they’d had before.”

The shop floor shelves are now largely used for health information leaflets.

He said that through visiting other Avicenna member pharmacies, he has learned that some are even worse affected by theft and violence, with some reporting that thieves have entered the dispensary and stolen prescription medication. 

“Because I’m on the high street, I’m not as much exposed,” he said. “But a pharmacy that is smaller and more isolated is very prone to attacks.”

Mr Jetha told P3pharmacy that to make better use of the space, he is currently planning a pharmacy refit that will see the counter brought forward to make room for consultation areas and facilitate more service consultations. 

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