Courtesy: Greensboro Police Dept.
Winston-Salem, NC -- After a string of robberies at several Harris Teeter grocery stores, some customers are questioning whether they're safe.
Since December, a pair of suspects have held up seven Harris Teeter stores in High Point, Winston-Salem and Greensboro.
Investigators think those cases are related, but they're not sure if they're tied to three new Harris Teeter robberies that have happened in Charlotte in the last couple weeks.
On Wednesday, News 2 asked an expert how well Harris Teeter is doing, looking out for customers.
Harris Teeter has brought in security guards. And they've done away with 24-hour stores, at least for now.
Rick Amme, the President of Amme & Associates, and a crisis consultant, said it's all about minimizing the risks for the employees and the customers.
"You have to reassure people that they're going to be safe. And safety is what people care about most of all, so they had to make sure people were safe with their actions and their words, and they did it," said Amme.
Amme said if he was in Harris Teeter's shoes, he would have taken the exact same steps that they already have.
He said in terms of risk management, there's not much more they can do other than hope this comes to an end, fast.
"I don't see any long-term damage from this because they've take action before something serious did happen," said Amme.
Amme said the steps Harris Teeter has taken are not only meant to reassure customers they're safe, but also to let criminals know if they're going to try to hold up one of their stores, it's not going to be easy with a whole lot more people around.
WFMY News 2