Police called after Corby bargain hunters make clean getaway with products

Northamptonshire Police were called to a discount shop after a social media offer caused hundreds of shoppers to descend on the store yesterday (Thursday, August 27).

The Company Shop in Princewood Road had advertised that they would be selling hand santiser and anti-bacterial wipes for a pound.

A spokesman for Northamptonshire Police said: "More than 200 people started queuing and because there was no social distancing staff became concerned and closed the doors.

"Staff called the police at around 6.30pm after a group of 30 women were reported to be stealing items from the store.

"By the time officers arrived on the scene the women had gone."

The incident happened just days after the store had announced that they were ending the summer holiday food voucher scheme that they had been running.

A Company Shop spokeman said: “We experienced a particularly high number of members at the store on Thursday evening. This led to an increased number of people inside the store and queueing outside, as a result of the strict social distancing measures we have in place.

“The health, safety and wellbeing of all our members, colleagues and wider community is our absolute priority. As soon as we became aware that it was not possible for members and colleagues to socially distance in line with the strict standards we uphold, we temporarily restricted access to the store and requested support from the police as a precautionary measure to ensure everyone’s safety.

“Our dedicated Corby team have been working tirelessly to meet the increased demand of the last few days and are now working hard to ensure all of our members have a great experience in store with access to amazing products at great prices. We would also like to thank our members once again for their understanding following the busy last few days”.

The Company Shop on Corby's Earlstrees Industrial Estate, sells surplus brands to members.

People eligible for membership are employees who work in the fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) food supply chain, NHS workers including volunteers, students, GP Practices and NHS Dentists, police officers and special police officers, fire service staff and people in receipt of a qualifying pension from the same groups.

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