SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — A small business owner is determined to rebuild after specialized costumes and other equipment worth an estimated $300,000 was stolen from his San Francisco office.
For 17 years, Dare Fashion has specialized in occasion wear designed and made in San Francisco, offering Renaissance, Goth, Victorian, Bohemian and Steampunk styles in all inclusive sizes.
On May 1, owner Ben Wang discovered that his office and warehouse on Market Street had been broken into and countless costumes, accessories and dresses stolen — all this just days before the 4th Annual Gathering: World Goth Day festival.
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“All my best-selling styles have completely disappeared,” Wang says outside the graffiti-covered, broken-in Market Street space. “The building has been broken into five times in the past three years.”
Wang also said that their manufacturing facility on Jessie Street in the SoMa district has been nicknamed “the Urine District.”
Ben and his team attended the event and say they are determined to move beyond this crime.
“What I'm really trying to do is turn this around and take the worst thing that happened to me and make it the best thing that happened to me.”
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Ben commented on the state of the city and how he has seen it change over the years.
“I still believe in the San Francisco dream and would like to continue doing business here if I could. It's a beautiful building, a beautiful neighborhood and it would be sad to see everyone leave. One of the reasons I love San Francisco is because it's a progressive place and we're always trying new things to see if they work. But there have been some things that haven't really worked. We tried saying, OK, we're not going to prosecute petty theft, but that didn't work and it made the place unsafe.”
Dare Fashion has since relocated its operations to new premises in Japantown, and Ben plans to launch a podcast and YouTube channel to help others turn negativity into positivity.
Wang said he had $1 million in insurance on his business, but quickly learned it was only liability insurance. He warns others to double-check their insurance. He has set up a GoFundMe to help recover from his losses.
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