# Have stores closed on the west coast because of rampant shoplifting? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 20, 2021, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-stores-closed-on-the-west-coast-because-of-rampant-shoplifting/949241 "2021-08-20T22:06:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2021, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-stores-closed-on-the-west-coast-because-of-rampant-shoplifting/949241/41 "2021-10-16T02:07:47Z")
And you’re not going to get it now if you go to most Walgreens, or CVS across the street. Expect to wait a couple days, even for antibiotics. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2021, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-stores-closed-on-the-west-coast-because-of-rampant-shoplifting/949241/42 "2021-10-16T02:08:56Z")
In the early 1980s, Kmart did a bit of revitalization due to their seedy image, and they did close a lot of poorly-performing stores. It worked, for a while. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2021, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-stores-closed-on-the-west-coast-because-of-rampant-shoplifting/949241/43 "2021-11-22T02:39:43Z")
Big discounts at Nordstrom’s. [https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/80-thieves-ransack-department-store-san-francisco-81314031](https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/80-thieves-ransack-department-store-san-francisco-81314031) ---
**Author:** ![rbroome](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/838e76/32.png) [@rbroome](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rbroome)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2021, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-stores-closed-on-the-west-coast-because-of-rampant-shoplifting/949241/44 "2021-11-22T03:48:54Z")
I read about that. The police are saying that they responded quickly and have so far arrested 3 people. As a result they expect more arrests. Hopefully, the bad publicity will generate enough pressure for people to stop committing these crimes. The article I read mentioned that there have been very similar crimes in many parts of the country. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2023, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-stores-closed-on-the-west-coast-because-of-rampant-shoplifting/949241/45 "2023-09-04T00:44:06Z")
New store in San Fran builds 7-foot tall spike-topped fence around it. [https://www.sfgate.com/food/article/san-francisco-total-wine-7-foot-fence-18341598.php?utm\_campaign=socialflow&utm\_medium](https://www.sfgate.com/food/article/san-francisco-total-wine-7-foot-fence-18341598.php?utm_campaign=socialflow&utm_medium) (ETA: meant to put this in the recent thread on this topic, didn’t notice this was an old one until the “2 years later” part.) ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2023, 7:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-stores-closed-on-the-west-coast-because-of-rampant-shoplifting/949241/46 "2023-09-07T07:18:33Z")
Interesting. There seems to have been a recent attempt at flashmob shoplifting in London, but the inciters didn’t realise that the internet isn’t just read by the people they were aiming at: > **[Police in Oxford Street make arrests amid social media ‘robbery campaign’](https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/aug/09/oxford-street-shoppers-locked-in-stores-amid-social-media-robbery-campaign)** > > Hundreds of teenagers gathered outside JD Sports in response to Snapchat call to take part in robbery [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-stores-closed-on-the-west-coast-because-of-rampant-shoplifting/949241.md?page=2)