Tableware Affair
Have you ever been to a wedding and felt in awe at the glistening gold cutlery adorning the table? Or maybe fallen in love with those gin glasses you’ve been served with at a bar one evening? Ever thought about pinching them? Your customers have.
We surveyed 1,000 UK residents to look at how much revenue catering businesses lose through stolen tableware such as crockery, glassware, cutlery and napkins, and also how much is lost through breakages
We asked the British public if they had ever stolen from a pub, bar or restaurant, how many stolen items people have in their home and how often they steal. The results, we feel, you will find truly shocking!
Do people actually admit to their “crimes”?
Have you ever been to a friend or family member’s house and noticed an odd fork, knife or wine glass in among the rest? If the answer is yes, then you won’t be surprised to hear that 17 million British adults (27%) have stolen tableware items from a pub, bar or restaurant.
The biggest culprits in the mix were the 18-24-year olds with a whopping 34% admitting to their wrongdoings; the 25-34-year olds were next in line at 31%. 18% of over 54’s admitted they’re guilty of nicking the odd knife or bar glass.
Are you in the worst offending city?
Cardiff was revealed as the worst offending city, with 36% of the public admitting to stealing tableware and glassware. Southampton was close behind on 35%. In contrast, however, a whopping 90% of people living in Bristol said they have never stolen tableware, with the second and third most innocent cities Norwich (85%) and Nottingham (83%).
How often do your customers steal?
Our survey found that shockingly, over 4 million Brits steal tableware from a pub, bar or restaurant more than once a week. We’re surprised that these establishments have any crockery and cutlery left!
To give you a little more hope, we found that only one in ten do so a couple of times a year and 57% steal these items less than once a year. Phew, we hear you say, however 12% of 25-44-year olds still take cutlery, crockery and glassware more than once a week!
If you’re in Sheffield, unfortunately you’re among the worst offenders with 17% of people stealing more than once a week, closely followed by those in Birmingham who steal something about once a week (13%).
What is the British public stealing?
Did you know that one in three people (36%) have at least one or two stolen cups or glasses in their homes, and that 25-34-year olds are the worst culprits (68%)? Even more shocking is that an astounding 3 million Brits admitted that every single item of crockery, glassware, cutlery and soft tableware in their home is stolen! We can’t quite wrap our heads around that one.
If you’re heading to a friend or family member’s house and they live in Belfast (100%), Leeds (89%) or Edinburgh (80%), then make sure you look out for one or two stolen glasses in their home, as our survey found that people living in those areas are the worst for pinched glassware.
What is the cost to the catering industry for stolen and broken items?
We asked high-end vegetarian restaurant, Vanilla Black, for their expert comments on the matter. They told us that each plate costs the business £8.00, glassware costs £2.50 per item and that if ten glasses and two plates are broken per week this costs them £41.00, which over the course of a year amounts to a staggering £2,132.00!
On average, 37 million Brits have stolen glasses in their home. Based on two glasses costing £5.00, this works out at a value of £186 million worth of stolen items in our homes.
What can you do to stop people stealing?
Stopping customers from stealing small items, such as cutlery and condiments is an extremely tricky task. And often it’s unpreventable. But there are some ways you can minimise the impact.
In 2015, Mexican restaurant Wahaca held a month long amnesty, giving customers the chance to return stolen cutlery for free tacos. Holding your own amnesty is a great way to retrieve costly tableware, whilst bringing customers through your doors. You don’t need to give away free food or drinks either, perhaps just a discount off a drink or meal.
You could also consider adding 10p to every item on the menu to help cover the cost of replacing stolen or broken items. Or encourage customers to use just one glass throughout the night, returning to the bar for a refill. This way you can minimise the number of glassware in circulation and minimise breakages.
