Several shop owners in Britain have banned youths wearing hoods and baseball hats in an effort to combat what they say is a growing problem with crime and intimidation of customers.

Shop owners complain that "hoodies" and hats act as camouflage, preventing video cameras from identifying young men robbing a store.

Also fuelling the trend is a government campaign to tackle what has been referred to as the country's culture of disrespect.

A sign at a Liverpool store

Prime Minister Tony Blair has promised to make addressing the problem a priority during his third administration.

About a week ago, Britain's largest shopping complex, the Bluewater in Kent, banned hoodies – a term for the youths themselves or their hooded jackets and sweatshirts – to stop families from being intimidated by gangs.

The centre says since then, the number of shoppers has risen by 22.6 per cent.

Young people hanging out in Liverpool

"They're just hanging around in gangs," said one shop owner in Liverpool. "They've got nothing else to do, and it is really intimidating to people. I'm trying to stamp down on it."

But for many young people, wearing a hooded sweatshirt is just the latest trend. They say they don't want their clothes to automatically turn them into suspects.

"I'm wearing a hood, and I'm not even a thief," said one teen in Liverpool in a CBC interview. "I'm wearing a hood because it's raining, but it doesn't mean I'm going to go in and rob that shop, does it?"

Several stores in the city have put up signs, saying clearly that hoodies are not welcome.

Some community workers say this whole stigma on young people is just going to isolate them even more, making problems with anti-social behaviour worse rather than better.

"It's very controlling and frustrating for young people," said youth outreach worker Dhercoj Shamoo. "And they haven't even consulted young people themselves."