Early Wednesday morning, security footage shows several thieves breaking in to KESSHŌ’s kitchen and warehouse in Montopolis, stealing at least $5k of equipment.
AUSTIN, Texas — The owners of a local chocolate and gelato business are asking for help from police after someone broke into their kitchen and warehouse in Montopolis early Wednesday morning.
“I was very nervous,” Liang Wang, an owner of KESSHŌ, said. “I was also nervous that I don’t know if they would come back.”
Wang was born and raised in Bejing, then studied pastries in Japan. About three years ago, she and her business partner used their savings from their bakery in China to open their international award-winning shop, KESSHŌ, here in Austin.
The business makes Asian-inspired chocolate and gelato with unique flavors, everything from black sesame to matcha white chocolate. The business has been a great passion for Wang, but recently it’s not been so sweet.
Since they’ve been in Austin, Wang says they’ve been broken into five times. Just a week after opening their food truck off of S First Street in 2023, someone stole their power cable, resulting in a loss of much of their products.
Early Wednesday morning, security footage from her kitchen and warehouse showed a group of thieves breaking in. She said they stole about $5,000 worth of equipment, including their generator and specialized tools. Wang called police, but was told to call 311, who then told her to report the incident online.
While waiting for police to come out and investigate, Wang is frustrated that there’s nothing more officials can do, and is worried that the thieves could come back.
“I feel like we are being watched, and that sense of insecurity really disturbs me,” Wang said.
She said if police were able to get out there sooner, they may have a better chance of them finding their stolen items, and tracking down the thieves so they don’t do it again.
“I know the police resources are limited so it is also hard, difficult for them to respond to the cases very quickly, I fully understand that,” Wang said. “But it’s just very disappointing we couldn’t find a way to really protect ourselves better.”
Wang said they have cameras and other security measures in place, but they plan to continue upgrading them. Two months ago, she said another food truck near theirs got broken into, so she’s pushing to make sure this doesn’t keep happening to other small businesses.
“It’s just not easy, even without a break-in for all small businesses,” Wang said. “I felt really disappointed and felt really emotional.”
Wednesday night, shaken up from the incident and not able to sleep, Wang posted the video of one of the thieves breaking in, hoping people would be able to identify him. She was shocked to find an outpouring of support from Austinites, some even wanting to help raise money for the business, but Wang says that’s not what she wants.
“I know we are tight on cash, but I think what’s more important is something we can do together, to maybe make the police force stronger, or maybe together we can make the city a safer place,” Wang said.