If you are weighing up a retail, convenience store or fast food franchise in the UK, a new figure from Retail Trust deserves your full attention: 54% of shop workers now say they are targeted by abuse on a weekly basis, up from 43% last year and just 33% in 2024. For anyone about to invest their savings into a business built on daily, high-volume contact with the public, this is not background noise. It goes directly to staffing costs, legal exposure and the day-to-day resilience of the business you would be buying into.
The scale of the problem
Retail Trust's annual survey, based on responses from 1,138 shop workers and published to coincide with its Let's Respect Retail campaign on 9 November, paints a stark picture. Some 79% of shop workers have faced an abusive or violent situation in the past year, and almost one in four (23%) have experienced abuse involving a physical attack, such as being kicked or hit - a figure that has not improved on the previous 12 months. Shoplifting is now a near-daily reality for many staff, with 84% witnessing it in the past year and over a third seeing it every single day.
Equally concerning is the growing trend of staff being filmed without consent on phones or smart glasses, now reported by 38% of workers, up from 30% a year earlier. The British Retail Consortium's own Crime Report recorded an average of 1,600 incidents of violence and abuse against retail workers every day last year - lower than the previous year's 2,000, but still well above pre-pandemic levels.
Why this matters before you sign a franchise agreement
None of this is abstract for a prospective franchisee. Abuse and anti-social behaviour translate directly into business risk in three areas that every due diligence process should cover.
Duty of care obligations
Franchisors typically set the operational standards, but it is the franchisee, as the employer on the ground, who carries the legal duty of care towards staff. That means risk assessments, lone-working policies, panic alarms, CCTV and clear protocols for dealing with aggressive customers all need to be built into the business from day one - not bolted on after an incident. Before signing, ask the franchisor exactly what safety infrastructure and guidance is provided as standard, and what is left to the franchisee to fund and implement.
Operational costs you might not expect
Training staff to de-escalate conflict, installing security measures and managing higher staff turnover all add to the cost of running a shop-floor business. Retail Trust found that 70% of workers affected by abuse feel stressed or anxious about coming to work, and 36% feel unsafe at work. Almost half (48%) said worsening customer behaviour had made them consider leaving the job or the industry altogether, up from 43% the previous year. High turnover means recurring recruitment and training costs - a factor that should be modelled into your financial projections, not treated as a footnote.
Reputational and trading impact
A separate consumer poll found that 36% of shoppers believe friends or family would avoid returning to a shop where they had witnessed staff being abused. For a franchise built on footfall and repeat custom - whether a convenience store, bakery or quick-service restaurant - this is a direct commercial risk, not just a wellbeing issue.
Industry response and what it signals
Retail Trust chief executive Chris Brook-Carter has described a 'disturbing shift' in which abuse once considered unacceptable is increasingly treated as part of the job. Usdaw general secretary Joanne Thomas has stressed that this is 'not a victimless crime', while British Retail Consortium chief executive Helen Dickinson called the findings 'a stark reminder that violence and abuse against retail workers remain endemic'. The campaign now has backing from the Association of Convenience Stores, Usdaw and the National Business Crime Centre, running a dedicated week of action ahead of the busy Christmas trading period.
This level of coordinated industry concern should prompt any aspiring franchisee to look closely at how individual brands are responding, rather than assuming the issue will simply pass them by.
Questions to ask during due diligence
- What security measures, training and support does the franchisor provide as standard, and what costs fall to the franchisee?
- Does the franchisor have a documented policy on staff safety, incident reporting and support following abusive incidents?
- What is the typical staff turnover rate across the network, and how does the franchisor help manage recruitment costs?
- Are existing franchisees in similar high-footfall sectors willing to discuss how they handle shoplifting, abuse and lone-working risks day to day?
What this means for prospective franchisees
None of this should necessarily put you off a retail or food franchise - sectors like convenience, bakery and quick-service food remain popular routes into self-employment, as shown across the full list of franchise opportunities. But it does mean treating staff safety and duty of care as a core part of your financial and operational planning, not an afterthought. Brands with a strong track record in high-contact environments, from convenience retail to automotive services such as ChipsAway or Green Motion, often have more established protocols precisely because they have had to build them over years of frontline trading. Speak directly to existing franchisees, scrutinise the support package on offer, and factor staff wellbeing into your business plan from the outset. For ongoing context on how these issues develop across the sector, it is worth following the latest franchise news regularly.