Helping a Local Business That Was Robbed

Hi everyone, my name is Matthew Allen and I run a Vanlife Vlog called VanlifePLUS. Over the last few months I have gotten to know the amazingly kind family behind the local camping supply store Craze Outdoors here in Calgary, Alberta.

They have put countless sleepless nights into making their business a success and even recently moved to a bigger location as they had rapidly outgrown the previous one. Seeing such hard work pay off is awesome and being able to support local has become something very important to me over the last few years.

Unfortunately, when I paid them a visit this morning I learned that they had been robbed during the night. Thieves had broken into their warehouse and stolen a ton of expensive gear including, but not limited to products from Jackery, EcoFlow and Dometic, estimated value between $30,000 and $40,000.

Seeing the family in such distress after working so hard and being so close to hiring on new staff broke my heart and I was at a loss for words. No one should be treated like this and while I hope the police will be able to figure out who did it based on camera footage and that insurance will cover the lost property - I’m hoping my community will be able to help in some small way. I would love to see this family back on their feet and not having to deal with the fallout of this situation.

Owning and operating a small business is no small feat and they truly did not deserve this.