Perth businessman’s ‘worst nightmare’ as £700 of clothing stolen from car outside Dundee flat
by Stephen Eighteen · The CourierStock worth £800 was stolen from a Perth businessman’s car after he set up a pop-up clothes shop in Dundee.
Elliot Miln, 24, has been running Bottom Drawer Finds since the end of 2021.
The enterprise sells vintage clothing and streetwear in pop-up locations across Scotland.
Elliot, who is from Perth, set up a temporary shop inside Perth Road store SookSouk on Saturday September 14.
That night a thief stole a third of his stock and £300-worth of his girlfriend’s belongings from his grey Hyundai car.
The vehicle was parked outside a flat in Lochee that he moved into just two months earlier.
Now Elliot has set up a fundraiser to recoup some of the stock he has to replace.
Theft sets back Perth businessman’s growing company
Elliot says the theft has set back the steady growth he had enjoyed as the sole owner of the “niche” company.
“This is a massive hit on my business and is exactly what I’d describe as my worst nightmare,” he added.
“Every single item I have is hand-picked and found individually so I do feel years of work and effort has been ripped away from me.”
He suspects the culprit had some background knowledge about his business.
“I believe the person knew what they were taking,” Elliot said.
“All the designer jackets and those of high value were taken. All the expensive T-shirts were taken.
“The ones I would charge £10 for were left in the car but the ones I would charge £100 for were taken.
“Thankfully the person left two-thirds of my stock.
“I assume their hands were too full to take any more stuff.
“I am thankful to have some of the stock still there but it has taken me years to find these items.
“Some have a personal connection to me and some are really hard to get your hands on.
“I have tried to save and invest in these things so to have them taken away is gutting.
“The majority of my high-value and hard-to-come-by stock was taken.
“But at least I still have my own personal collection at my house.”
Theft from car is bad start to life in Dundee
Elliot is unsure how someone was able to get into the locked vehicle without causing visible damage.
And it has been a bad start to his new life in Dundee with his girlfriend.
But he has been encouraged by the response to his GoFundMe fundraiser, which sits at £285.
“I left my car at 11pm and came out at 9am the following day,” Elliot continued.
“The person also stole a brand new Hoover, hairdryer and electronics that me and my girlfriend were gifted for the move.
“The police aren’t that hopeful because there was no CCTV and the time frame is a bit too large to fully investigate.
“It’s not an encouraging start for me at a new flat and it’s knocked my confidence a bit.
“But because of people knowing me on my Instagram page I have managed to create a supportive community who have given me a bit of their change.
“There is an older gentleman who buys things every now and then.
“He has been generous enough to donate £120 to me.
“Everything is appreciated.”
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Around 10.25am on Sunday September 15 2024, officers received a report of a break-in to and theft from a vehicle.
“Enquiries are ongoing.”