Birkenhead shop shut for three months over counterfeit goods and illegal sales

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 14 Oct, 21:03 · Archive

A Birkenhead shop has been closed for three months after police and Trading Standards found counterfeit toys, illegal cigarettes and age-restricted items being sold to under-18s.

Birkenhead Bargains on Grange Road has been ordered to shut for three months after police and Wirral Council's Trading Standards found the shop selling illegal and counterfeit products to under-18s without adequate safeguards.

Officers who visited on 6 October seized over 1,000 illegal cigarettes, 0.6kg of illegal hand-rolling tobacco, 91 suspected counterfeit Pop Mart Labubu dolls that failed toy safety regulations, and numerous other items that did not meet safety standards. Age-restricted products including BB guns, knives, bladed articles and butane gas were being sold despite the shop having no age-verification policy, no staff training and no challenge procedures in place. The person in charge incorrectly stated that BB guns could be sold to those aged 16 and over, when the legal minimum is 18.

The action followed social media concerns about BB guns displayed alongside balaclavas amid ongoing anti-social behaviour issues. The closure is the 27th Wirral Council has secured since December 2025 under the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014. Additional breaches included unregistered food products lacking UK labelling, failure to register as a Food Business Operator, and the main fire escape blocked by combustible materials and padlocked shut. The matter was referred to Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service. The owner was fined more than £2,000.

How it is being reported

• Birkenhead shop shut down after illegal cigarettes and 'counterfeit Pop Mart dolls' foundThe closure followed concerns raised on social media about the shop displaying BB guns alongside balaclavas amid ongoing anti-social behaviour issuesLiverpool Echo · 14 Oct, 20:42
• Birkenhead shop selling fake Labubus, knives, BB guns and balaclavas shut downA BIRKENHEAD store has been ordered to shut its doors after police and Trading Standards found counterfeit toys, illegal tobacco and dangerous items being sold to under-18s.Wirral Globe · 14 Oct, 13:45

In this story: Birkenhead Bargains · Grange Road · Birkenhead · Wirral Council · Merseyside Police · Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service · Pop Mart

This summary was written by AI from the headlines and standfirsts above, and states as fact only what at least two outlets report. How we use AI · Report a problem