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> Couldn't Whole Foods hire armed security to dissuade theft? This would likely result in a social media fallout that they don't want to deal with, considering
by prottog 4y ago
> Couldn't Whole Foods hire armed security to dissuade theft?
This would likely result in a social media fallout that they don't want to deal with, considering that the core customer base of Whole Foods overlaps largely with those that at least publicly claim that law enforcement over private property rights is tantamount to oppression.
- stuff4ben 4y agoI mean yeah I can see that, but geez, clubs have bouncers and banks have guards. This isn't too far away from that.
- BuyMyBitcoins 4y agoFrom a PR perspective having armed security at a grocery store would invite a whirlwind of bad press and unfair comparisons. Most people would agree that stealing food for sustenance can sometimes be justified. I can already imagine social media backlash over someone being apprehended at gunpoint after trying to steal a small amount of food. Contrast that with how it would look for someone apprehended at gunpoint at a bank. Almost no one thinks it’s okay to steal just a little bit of money from a bank.
- icedistilled 4y agoNo. Other whole foods in SF have a guard at the door. Are they armed? I don't know but they have a guard. No one is bothered. Most big stores in SF seem to have security. Target has multiple that stand by the doors.
- prottog 4y agoI was specifically referring to the "armed guard" aspect. You bet the public response will be different to a Walmart LP person using physical force to detain a shoplifter vs. Whole Foods.
- analog31 4y agoI suspect a more important issue is that attending an "upscale" store is at least partly an aesthetic experience. A heavy security presence spoils that aesthetic. If you want to shop under a 10 x 10 foot grid of security cameras, there's always Wal-Mart. To be fair, the security presence in Wal-Mart, or in a bank, may also be an aesthetic.