The damage was not always just a chocolate bar, it could stretch into thousands of dollars in lost revenue for struggling small businesses.

Inspector David Ryan said Wangaratta police recently arrested two women who had been on a shoplifting spree of about $7000 of goods.

Together with crime prevention officer Leading Senior Constable Helen Parfett, he met with a group of business owners this week for Wangaratta Rotary Club’s crime prevention workshop.

An average of 1.5 shop thefts were reported in the city each week, but many business owners did not always contact police if they could not identify the culprit.

He said police wanted to see more reporting to better tackle the problem.

“It’s so we as police can engage with the retail store owners in Wangaratta so we can understand the level of anxiety around shop theft and how it impacts business,” Inspector Ryan said.

“We need to work out a bit more closely what the real level of theft is.”

Business owners complained even if they detained a shoplifter, they could be forced to wait long periods of time for police – not always worth it for a $2 carton of milk.

Inspector Ryan said he “heard that loud and clear” and the introduction of custody officers to the station would free up uniform officers.

“Some of that will include a high level of visibility in the CBD around the stores,” he said.

Leading Senior Constable Parfett offered business owners advice for their shops such as installing CCTV cameras, moving expensive items in sight near the counter and keeping an eye on customers.

Annie O’Shea, from Rotary and Business Wangaratta, said the meeting was the first step a partnership between shops and police to stop thieves.

“There’s a lot of concern among retailers about the loss that they suffer from ongoing shoplifting,” she said.

She said thieves were not always youths, but often older people struggling to make ends meet.

“If you stop some of the issues in society like poverty and unemployment, then shoplifting wouldn’t happen,” Ms O’Shea said.

“The shops themselves are concerned about those social issues and they’re very genuine people.”