About $35,000 worth of merchandise and at least 300 hats were stolen in a overnight break-in. It’s the second burglary to the retail called Flipside Hats since it opened Nov. 1 on Southeast Stark Street in the city’s Montavilla neighborhood. Kori Giudici, her husband Jacob Wollner and their 11-year-old son Moses were just starting to open their Christmas presents Saturday morning when Portland police called with the break in news.
Giudici and her husband were at the store at 11:45 p.m. on Christmas Eve to retrieve a drum set they had bought their son for Christmas and had secretly stored there. They suspect the break-in occurred about 4:30 a.m. Whoever was involved rammed a car into the store’s door and its frame, breaking both before gaining access to their business.
Giudici and Wollner moved from the East Coast to Oregon about 20 years ago, and grew to love the city but said they are dismayed by the crime they’ve had to deal with the last two months. Flipside Hats began nearly 20 years ago when Giudici was in medical school and began selling handcrafted hats at street fairs. They had a store on Southeast Belmont Street for a decade before moving to Stark Street, she said.
Giudici said they’re thinking of putting in a sliding accordion-type door to cover up the entire entrance to the business at night but expect that could take some time. In the meantime, they might use a small retail spot next door that they haven’t rented out yet.
