https://www.sfgate.com/business/article/petty-theft-shoplifting-burglary-hayes-valley-13544921.php
'I'm so fed up': With shoplifting all too frequent in Hayes Valley, some merchants are at wits' end
Owning a small business in a pricey city like San Francisco is challenging enough, but shoplifting "is the thing that deflates me the most," said Elizabeth Leu, the owner of Fiddlesticks, children's clothing and toy store in Hayes Valley. "It feels like someone running into your house and grabbing your throw pillows."
In the span of a year, Leu estimates between $6,000 and $10,000 worth of merchandise is pilfered from her shop, with about two thefts occurring each month. Leu says she has little recourse.
Often the items thieves grab are not worth enough to qualify as grand theft, which has a minimum threshold of $950, and filing petty theft claims only increases the business owner's liability insurance.
'I'm so fed up': With shoplifting all too frequent in Hayes Valley, some merchants are at wits' end
Owning a small business in a pricey city like San Francisco is challenging enough, but shoplifting "is the thing that deflates me the most," said Elizabeth Leu, the owner of Fiddlesticks, children's clothing and toy store in Hayes Valley. "It feels like someone running into your house and grabbing your throw pillows."
In the span of a year, Leu estimates between $6,000 and $10,000 worth of merchandise is pilfered from her shop, with about two thefts occurring each month. Leu says she has little recourse.
Often the items thieves grab are not worth enough to qualify as grand theft, which has a minimum threshold of $950, and filing petty theft claims only increases the business owner's liability insurance.