Bridgeport Salon Owner Vows to Persevere After Thief Steals Back-to-School Drive Items

A business owner in Bridgeport is upset and frustrated after a thief smashed windows and stole items from a back-to-school drive, but she says that she will not let the theft deter her from her quest to help children. Brittany Matthews, owner of the ‘Haus of Melanin’ hair salon, says that someone broke into the shop and vandalized it. In the process, the thief stole retail beauty products, and Matthews says they also stole school supplies that she had gathered as part of an annual back-to-school event. “I was hurt about the damage to the salon, but it was like ‘you took away from the babies in this neighborhood.’ We were given the bags to give them away for free,” she said. Surveillance footage from the scene captured the sound of glass as a thief broke into the store early Saturday morning, but video from inside the building only captured a portion of the vandalism. She says that back in February an unknown intruder broke out the windows in similar fashion, but was scared off before the person could steal anything. Now, Matthews is left to not only clean up the mess from the theft itself, but to try to clean up after the robbery stole school supplies from students in need. “I was devastated,” she said. “You immediately think about all your hard work that you put into something and just to see something like that, it’s tragic.” Despite the setback, Matthews says both incidents will not stop her from growing her business and gathering more school supplies to make the drive a success. I feel like if I was to run away from this and just shut down, I will be letting that person win,” she said.

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