Robert Seymour says he got a "sickening feeling" upon entering his downtown St. John's business Nov 15. Co-owners of Outfitters, a Water Street shop specializing in outdoor equipment and clothing, Seymour and his business partner, Jonathon Earle, were shocked to discover that the store had been broken into sometime overnight Nov 14.

"It certainly impacts a person," Seymour said with a sigh. "It's definitely a violation".

Theives entered the shop using what appeared to have been a calculated, well- thought-out plan. They used a tool to pry open a heavy-guage steel door at the back of the shop - a door Seymour said is extra-reinforced on th einside and was seemingly fool-proof - and once inside, took thousands of dollars worth of equipment, including Helly Hansen, The North Face, Sierra Designs and Mountain Hardware jackets, pants, shirts, backpacks, heart-rate monitors, geo-positioning systems and tools including knives, axes and shovels.

The RNC believes the theives were well-prepared for the crime and possibly had a vehicle parked in an alley behind the store to hold the stock and in which to make their getaway.

Seymour said the approximate retail value of th eitems taken from the store is in the range of $40,000 with thousands more added on for damage.

For Seymour and Earle, the theft was especially hard because it's so close to Christmas. "At this time of year, you put so much emphasis into the time that's gone into selecting the product and merchandising it and this past Thursday was normally our busiest time of the year with the tax-free day downtown," he said. "It's just frustrating."

Something else the pair found frustrating was the fact that some clients passed on tax-free day, having heard about the theft and thinking the store would be closed or out of stock. The truth is Seymour and Earle have been scrambling since the theft to put new stock on th eshelves, rushing orders and putting out what inventory they had left.

With more stock expected to arrive in the next couple of weeks, Seymour is optimistic that the store will be ready for the busy shopping season. "We still have lots of stock and we can certainly service the community but we're going to have to order more in," he said. "We'll be in good shape for the Christmas season, for sure."

Meanwhile, Seymour said he and Earle have been getting great support from many regular customers and fellow downtown business-owners who have dropped by to offer their sympathy and best wishes.

Seymour said one way members of the the public can help is by keeping their eyes open for anyone selling their store's merchandise. "A lot of these items you're only going to see in a specialty store such as ours. They're rather unique, colourful, high-end merchandise," he said.

"If people are approached to purchase these items at discount prices way below the actual value be suspicious and report it to local authorities or give us a call."

The RNC is asking anyone with any information on the theft to contact them at 729 8000 or call Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1 800 222 TIPS.

By Tara Bradbury Bennett, The Telegram, November 22.