An investigation by the Daily Express has uncovered aggressive behavior, hidden ownership, and suspected tax evasion in London’s American candy shops on Oxford Street. Reporter Zak Garner-Purkis and a videographer were met with threats and intimidation when they tried to ask questions about the businesses.
Aggressive Confrontation in a Candy Shop
When the team entered one shop and began filming, a worker lunged at the videographer, shouting, “I’ll break your f**king camera.” Garner-Purkis stepped between them, but the worker continued to yell, “Don’t f***king film me.” The level of aggression was fiercer than expected, especially given that the same premises had been raided by police and trading standards officers just over a year earlier after tourists were charged £800 for two bags of sweets.
During that raid, staff fled, and officers discovered a secret underground passage hidden behind a wall of t-shirts. The tunnel was stashed with thousands of allegedly counterfeit goods worth over £80,000. Despite this, one of the directors connected to the business when it was raided was still listed as having an active company at the same address.
Pattern of Tax Avoidance and Hidden Ownership
The investigation aimed to understand why so many businesses on Oxford Street keep going bust and reappearing. Several probes have linked this to tax avoidance, with Westminster Council reporting a loss of £9 million in business rates alone in 2023. The team found constantly absent managers, anonymous owners, and a lack of transparency. In several shops, the official company name, which must be displayed by law, was not visible.
In the Harry Potter-themed shop Wizards and Spells, an employee gave an absurd explanation: the paper with the company name had fallen off the wall, into a cellophane folder, and into a closed drawer. The employee claimed it had “leapt” there.
Intimidation and Threats
Later, two men loitering outside a store tried to intimidate the journalists. One followed them, filmed them on his phone, then changed into a security vest inside the shop. When questioned about ownership, he became aggressive, thrusting his phone in their faces and saying he would “find us” for his unnamed boss. His ID card was turned away, and he refused to show it, claiming he didn’t need to because the journalist was not a representative of the Security Industry Association. UK law requires licensed security staff to display credentials at all times except in exceptional circumstances.
Similar behavior was encountered across multiple shops: threats, insults, and attempts at intimidation. Garner-Purkis noted that this level of aggression is unusual, as business owners typically avoid scaring off customers. In contrast, a similar investigation in Accrington months earlier met no such hostility.
Broader Implications
The reporter concluded that the problem goes beyond counterfeit goods and tax evasion. The lack of accountability and aggressive behavior suggests a serious issue that undermines trust in retail on Britain’s most famous shopping street. If this cannot be tackled in the capital’s prime retail destination, there is little hope of addressing it elsewhere.
