Stephen Curry’s wife Ayesha forced to shut down beloved store to ‘protect staff’ in lawless Oakland

Stephen Curry’s wife, Ayesha, has been forced to shut down her store Sweet July in order to ‘protect staff’ after other companies have similarly fled the crime-riddled Oakland area. 

In an Instagram post on Saturday, the brand announced the ‘difficult decision’ to close the store to ‘prioritize the safety’ of customers and staff. 

‘We have loved being part of Oakland and are grateful for the community that has opened their arms and embraced us. It has been an honor to serve you,’ the post said. 

‘While this chapter comes to a close, Sweet July has exciting new ventures on the horizon that we can’t wait to share.’ 

The store had been previously broken into in October 2022, forcing a temporary closure. A spokesperson told SFGate that ‘an individual(s) gained access to the business by shattering the entrance glass’ and ‘took several items from the location prior to leaving.’ 

Sweet July specialized in jewelry, candles, throw blankets and other home decor. Curry specifically focused on supporting Black-owned businesses and Bay Area makers with art pieces and books sold in the store. 

The decision to open the store in its specific location was based on a desire to be on ‘a block dominated by businesses owned by Black women.’ Two shops on the same street have also shuttered their stores. 

‘In a way, the store is really the magazine brought to life,’ Ayesha previously told SFGate. ‘It’s filled with beautiful inspiration to act as a retreat for the Oakland community, similar to what I hope readers feel when they sit down and dive into one of our issues…’

Stephen Curry’s wife Ayesha has been forced to shut down her beloved store Sweet July in Oakland to ‘protect staff’

In an Instagram post on Saturday, the brand announced the ‘difficult decision’ to close the store to ‘prioritize the safety’ of customers and staff. ‘We have loved being part of Oakland and are grateful for the community that has opened their arms and embraced us. It has been an honor to serve you’

The decision to open the store in its specific location was based on a desire to be on ‘a block dominated by businesses owned by Black women.’ Two shops on the same street have also shuttered their stores

‘I wanted it to be something the Oakland community could be proud of and somewhere where everyone could feel at home.’

The store, which made its debut in Oakland in 2021, is set to shutter on February 9 later this week. Sweet July did not immediately respond to the DailyMail.com’s request for comment. 

The announcement comes following the departure of In-N-Out Burger from the area last year after a slew of ‘dangerous’ encounters. 

The billionaire owner of the restaurant chain, Lynsi Synder, revealed it was the ‘absolutely dangerous’ conditions in Oakland that led to the unprecedented closure of the store.

In an interview with PragerU, she described 300 out of 365 days of violence in a single year – including stabbings and gunshots ripping through the building. 

‘There were, car burglaries, violence, theft, there was a lot,’ she said. ‘Gun shots went through the store, stabbings – it was huge.’ 

‘The amount of time it would take for the police to get there was alarming. For the safety of our associates, it was just not okay,’ she added. 

The restaurant, which had become a magnet for crime in the area, was forced to close its doors in March after police logged a staggering 1,335 criminal incidents in its location since 2019 – making it Oakland’s most dangerous business location.

‘I wanted [Sweet July] to be something the Oakland community could be proud of and somewhere where everyone could feel at home,’ Ayesha previously said

The billionaire owner of In-N-Out Burger revealed the shocking wave of violence that forced her to shut down the chain’s Oakland restaurant

The In-N-Out sits in a square mile with several gas stations that cops say are the targets of around a dozen violent crimes every day

The crime wave included 1,174 car break-ins, nine robberies, two commercial burglaries, and four domestic violence incidents.

Oakland has been a hot spot for crime in recent years, with law enforcement struggling to keep up. 

Last year in July, former police chief LeRonne Armstrong blamed City Hall for deliberately diverting money from the police. 

in 2023, former Mayor Sheng Thao, who was indicted in an FBI corruption probe for allegedly funneling city contracts to a pair of businessman, put a hiring freeze on police, despite being understaffed.

Afterward, critics like Armstrong claim the council deliberately wants to reduce the role of police without sufficient replacements.

‘There’s this sense of lawlessness. This sense of, we can do whatever, there really aren’t any consequences – almost like a video game,’ he told The Free Press. 

‘Our leaders are tone-deaf.’ 

Armstrong claimed the problem was so obvious that lawbreakers were coming to the city for ‘crime tourism’.

‘Oakland’s free-for-all is now attracting criminals from outside the city, Armstrong told me, because they know they can get away with it,’ the outlet wrote.

‘There’s this sense of lawlessness. This sense of, we can do whatever, there really aren’t any consequences – almost like a video game,’ said former police chief LeRonne Armstrong

Despite efforts to tame crime in the area, it was reported last year that burglaries shot up 23 per cent and motor vehicle thefts rose by 44 per cent compared to 2023

Tim Gardner of the Oakland Report had a similar view: ‘You have a police force that’s incapacitated and a criminal population that’s smart enough to recognize it, test it, and realize they can do anything they want.

‘It’s 100 percent self-inflicted.’

Incidents seen last year included a mass shooting at a Juneteenth celebration and a mob of nearly 100 people that ransacked a gas station. 

Despite efforts to tame crime in the area, it was reported last year that burglaries shot up 23 percent and motor vehicle thefts rose by 44 percent compared to 2023. 

Ken Houston, 60, the director of the city’s Beautification Council and a community activist said the city was the worst he had ever seen and described the situation as being like a ‘war zone’.

Houston said: ‘We’re in war times. I mean, we had three homicides in three days – one person ran up into the store around my corner and killed them in the store.

‘That’s war when you have trash being dumped on the street where kids have to walk around it and it has contamination in it.

‘When your seniors can’t even walk on their sidewalks, when you’re scared as a senior to walk down the street [for fear of] getting robbed, beat thrown down.’

An elderly woman is brutally attacked in unprovoked assault in Oakland

Former Mayor Thao, who was charged with bribery, conspiracy and mail and wire fraud, said at the time: ‘The City Team continues to work tirelessly to address the critical needs of our own city.

‘This is why we are also taking steps to strengthen our encampment management policy, to ensure that this ruling is not used as an incentive for other cities to push their homelessness crisis into nearby cities.

‘We have a responsibility to address the homelessness crises with compassion and humanity by moving people into temporary, and ultimately, permanent housing so they can live with dignity.’

But Houston was unconvinced, saying: ‘Public health and safety, environmental protection – that is what creates a healthy, safe, and enjoyable city.

‘Who doesn’t want to have a city where you rest your head that’s enjoyable. Pleasant. Everybody wants to be able to go home and live in peace. Here, people live in fear.’