A café owner has spoken of his anger and frustration after burglars broke into his shop.
Curtis Blackmore, 21, only opened Café 33 on Warner Street in Accrington in May this year and said he has ‘worked day and night to try and make it a success’.
Heartless thieves smashed the front door window to gain entry between 5pm on Tuesday, October 2, and 8am on Wednesday, October 3.
They stole cash from the till, a laptop and caused damage to the door.
Curtis, who provides regular food donations to charity Maundy Relief, said it is the latest in a series of burglaries to hit the street in the last few months and the incident has left him feeling ‘disheartened and deflated’.
He said: “I’ve been a chef since I was 15 years old and having my own little café has been my dream for years.
“Young people get such a bad name sometimes and I wanted to show that with some determination, drive and hard work anything is possible.
“It’s been hard work getting it up and running, I’ve invested everything I had, physically and financially to try to make the café a success but this was the last thing I needed.”
The cafe was forced to close during the day on Wednesday to clean up the damage and allow for police investigation works.
However Curtis said he is ‘determined not to be beaten’ and was due to open as normal on Thursday.
He said: I’m going to bake a mountain of cupcakes. Anyone who comes into the café to show their support on Thursday, Friday or Saturday will receive a free cupcake with every hot drink purchased.
“I want to show that I will not give up, I will not be beaten and with the support of my lovely customers plus everyone on Warner Street I will bounce back from this bigger and better than before.”
Lancashire Police said the burglary was reported to them at 8am on Wednesday and no arrests have been made.
A spokesperson said: “An unknown offender has approached the café and smashed a large glass panel in the door to gain entry.
“They have entered and stolen various items including an Apple Mac, money from the till and caused damage to the door.”
Anyone with information should call police on 101 quoting log number 216 of October 3.
