Alko locks spirits away, Helsinki theft surge pushes state retailer behind counter

• Alko says shoplifting rose 16 percent from 2024 to 2025 across its stores.
• In the Helsinki region, thefts increased 31 percent, the sharpest rise mentioned in the report.
• Spirits have been moved into locked display cases and, in some stores, behind the counter.
• Alko’s security chief says the company has introduced many measures this year and has begun to turn the trend.

Customers in some Alko stores now have to ask for a bottle of spirits instead of taking it from the shelf. According to Iltalehti, Finland’s state alcohol monopoly has moved spirits into display cases and, in some locations, behind the counter after shoplifting rose 16 percent from 2024 to 2025.

The increase is steepest in the capital region. Iltalehti reports that shoplifting in Alko stores in the Helsinki area rose 31 percent, far above the national figure. That is where the retailer’s open-shelf model appears to be under the most pressure: each bottle made less accessible cuts the chance of a quick theft, but also turns a self-service purchase into a staff-handled one.

Alko security chief Hannu Huuhtanen told the paper that the company has introduced many anti-theft measures this year and has managed to turn the number of shoplifting cases in the other direction. The report does not quantify how much losses have fallen after the changes, or how widely the stricter arrangements have been deployed across the chain. It does show the direction of travel. A monopoly built around controlled sales is adding another layer of control inside the shop itself.

The trade-off is visible at the counter. Locked cabinets, staff retrieval and bottles stored out of reach reduce impulse theft, but they also add waiting time, more staff intervention and a different store layout for ordinary customers. In Helsinki, where the rise is fastest, the burden lands first on the stores with the heaviest traffic and the highest theft pressure.

Alko was created to ration access to alcohol through law. In 2025, in parts of the capital region, access to a bottle of spirits is rationed one step further: by whether a staff member is free to hand it over.

Källor: Iltalehti