Burglars take thousands in merchandise from San Pedro shoe store day before scheduled reopening

SAN PEDRO, LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- A shoe-store owner in San Pedro is heartbroken after burglars broke into his business and stole thousands of dollars in merchandise just days before he was set to reopen.

Street Sole had been closed during the pandemic, operating through online sales only. But the store's owner tells Eyewitness News he was planning to hold the reopening on Thursday.

Burglars broke into the building early Wednesday morning and stole more than $100,000 worth of merchandise, including items that had already been ordered by customers.

"It hurt a lot," owner Jean Grisard said about the burglary. "It's devastating to me. We have three kids."

Security-camera footage shows at least two individuals dressed in hoodies rummaging through the store, removing items from the racks and loading them into a truck parked out front.

It appears the burglars pried open a metal gate covering the front door and then smashed through the glass to get inside. They also cut wires to some of the security cameras.

Grisard is still processing what happened to the business he first opened in 2017. It's the second time his store has been burglarized.

"We don't know what we're going to do," he said. "We have to look at everything and see how we can recover."

Grisard and his wife set up a GoFundMe page for assistance during this difficult time. If you would like to donate, visit www.gofundme.com/f/street-sole-burglary.

The Los Angeles Police Department's Harbor Division said it was notified about the alarm going off at the business at 6:28 a.m. Detectives are investigating.