Lower Parliament Street is the worst street for shoplifting in the whole of Nottinghamshire, new figures reveal.
A Freedom of Information request by Nottinghamshire Live asked police for the top five streets in Nottinghamshire where the most shoplifting incidents were recorded.
Lower Parliament Street in the city centre has the highest with 285 shoplifting incidents in 2017/18. This has jumped up from 193 offences in 2016/17 and 157 the year before.
Other streets include Memorial Avenue, in Worksop, with 196 shoplifting offences in 2017/18, Long Row with 172, Milton Street with 153 and IKEA Way, in Giltbrook, with 129 shoplifting incidents.
Shoppers told Nottinghamshire Live the crimes were "idiotic".
Jess Moore, 33, of Sneinton, said: "It's a real shame to hear the figure is rising each year. It's an idiotic crime and people think they can get away with anything. Stores will have to introduce more guards I think. There's only so much police can do."
Andy O'Shea, a 22-year-old student, added: "It's a stupid thing to do and not good that it's going up. I know there are more serious crimes but you feel for the independent businesses, most who are just trying to make a living."
Jeff Allen, chairman of Nottingham Business Improvement District (BID), which represents hundreds of businesses in the city, said: "It is hardly surprising that shoplifting is the most common reported crime in the city.
"Nationally according to the most recent figures from the British Retail Consortium (BRC), shop theft is costing retailers £700m a year and Nottingham is not immune to this.
"It is regrettable that society seems to view this as a victimless crime when, in fact, it places an incredible burden on an already pressurised high street.
"We need to stop talking about shoplifters and start talking about thieves and shop theft as the BRC does.
"Nottingham BID will continue to work with the police and other agencies to combat shop theft using measures such as our information sharing system which tries to identify prolific shop thieves and share information with BID members and the police."
Lower Parliament Street is home to a number of household-name stores including Poundland, Boots and wilko and Argos.
Responding to the revealed figures, a wilko spokesman said: "We know that Lower Parliament Street is a great place to shop but unfortunately there are a few people that choose to spoil it for others and, if and when they do, we will work with our local authority partners to take appropriate action to help keep the area vibrant for others to enjoy.
"We’re committed to continuing to work hard to provide a safe, friendly shopping environment for both team members and customers and look forward to continuing to serve our loyal customers in Nottingham."
A Poundland spokesman added: "It costs us real money to fund measures to stop the people who shoplift. And that's hard cash we could be spending on our colleagues and customers.
"That's why we have a zero tolerance of shoplifters and will always encourage the police to prosecute."
Police have said they will continue to work with businesses to deter shoplifters.
A Nottinghamshire Police spokesman said: “Busy city centres, particularly those with thriving high streets, are always going to attract a number of instances of shoplifting.
"We will continue to work with businesses to encourage preventative measures to deter shoplifters and we will seek to prosecute wherever possible, particularly persistent offenders.”
Chris Hobson, director of policy and external affairs for East Midlands Chamber, added: "Retail crime is one of the few crimes that continues to grow and affects everyone concerned.
"Low-level retail crime such as shoplifting has major implications for cities such as Nottingham, which not only affects business turnover and viability, but also has knock-on effects for the local community and economy."
Criminal who ran extortion racket with his brothers wants taxpayers to finance new legal team
More public areas in Nottingham could be made smoke-free under new plans
Mum diagnosed with cancer for second time wants to make memories for her five young daughters
