'We're struggling as it is': Melbourne store owners tormented by crime spike

Melbourne small business owners say they're being driven to the wall amid a sharp increase in retail crime.

Tim Webbers owns Smartronic, a mobile phone repair and accessories business in Lynbrook, in the city's south-east.

The store was recently broken into and robbed by a hoodie-wearing offender.

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"I'm not a violent person at all. I wish I was, because I would put him to sleep", Webbers told 9News.

"We don't make f---ing thousands of dollars a week in this place. We're struggling as it is to barely pay the rent."

The damage bill at the store is well over $1000.

Multiple other stores in the Lynbrook Village Shopping Centre have also been targeted in separate incidents, including Afef Borny's pizza shop.

"We never used to have this much of a crime rate here," she said.

Analysis of the latest crime statistics in Victoria reveal a staggering increase in retail theft - up 38 percent in 2023, a 10-year high.

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Police estimate many of the culprits are first-time offenders.

QUT retail expert Professor Gary Mortimer believes cost of living pressures are among the reasons for the spike.

"Unfortunately, there's a strong correlation," he told 9News.

"Theft is costing retailers about $9 billion a year and that doesn't account for the preventative measures that retailers have to take."