Thieves have ripped a safe from the wall, stolen iPads, cash and even a cookie jar in a brazen early morning break-in at the Alfredton store of a popular Ballarat bakery.
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Emma's Bakery owner Emma Conroy said she and her staff are shocked by the incident, which happened at her Sturt Street store about 3.45am on Thursday, April 11.
Ms Conroy said she was working at one of her other sites at the time, when the security company alerted her to alarms and motion sensors going off.
"I knew that wasn't right because no one was due up at the store," she said.
"I came up to have a look with one of my other workers, because I didn't want to come on my own, and noticed that the door was smashed in."
Ms Conroy said the offenders were caught on CCTV and were in and out within six minutes, taking about $1000 in cash and three iPads.
She said the three offenders, who arrived in a car and wearing hoodies, used a crowbar or hammer to smash through the front door.
"They had a chat for about a minute or two in front of the stores, they must have been working out what doors were going to do and then they got back in the car," she said.
"They drove around the back of the building ... must have been checking to make sure no one was around. They came back, parked the car again and in they go."
Ms Conroy said the incident has affected her and her 27 staff that work across both of her stores.
"You just feel kind of really saddened and disappointed that it's happened," she said.
"My team seems really saddened and a bit shocked by it all.
"It's just also the pride ... we set up here for (the) morning and all our beautiful regular customers came through to get their morning coffees and we had to tell them, 'we're sorry because we can't open until the forensics have been to dust this place this up.' "
Ms Conroy said it is the first time her business - located among a row of others - has been targeted in the three years it has been there.
She said other business owners have been very supportive following the incident including supplying CCTV footage.
"We're such a community bakery, we always fundraise and we're always out there doing our best to support the community and then to have this happen to us ... this morning. It's just not cool," she said.
Anyone with information on the incident is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential report online at crimestoppersvic.com.au
