I suspect a more important issue is that attending an "upscale" store is at least partly an aesthetic experience. A heavy security presence spoils that aesthetic. If you want to shop under a 10 x 10 foot grid of security cameras, there's always Wal-Mart.

To be fair, the security presence in Wal-Mart, or in a bank, may also be an aesthetic.

No.

Other whole foods in SF have a guard at the door. Are they armed? I don't know but they have a guard. No one is bothered. Most big stores in SF seem to have security. Target has multiple that stand by the doors.

I was specifically referring to the "armed guard" aspect. You bet the public response will be different to a Walmart LP person using physical force to detain a shoplifter vs. Whole Foods.

I mean yeah I can see that, but geez, clubs have bouncers and banks have guards. This isn't too far away from that.

From a PR perspective having armed security at a grocery store would invite a whirlwind of bad press and unfair comparisons. Most people would agree that stealing food for sustenance can sometimes be justified.

I can already imagine social media backlash over someone being apprehended at gunpoint after trying to steal a small amount of food. Contrast that with how it would look for someone apprehended at gunpoint at a bank. Almost no one thinks it’s okay to steal just a little bit of money from a bank.