Empty tills at closing time
Small businesses find new ways to deter break-ins
Pearl District businesses are displaying empty tills after hours to deter theft.
At Miss Oz’s at 1105 NW Johnson near Jamison Square, a pink lamp shines on an empty till through the night. The coffee and ice cream shop was broken into mid-August of 2025.
Owner Millie Keum says it’s just another way to keep her staff and business safe.
“Since we began leaving the till visible and the lights on overnight, we thankfully have not had any additional attempted break-ins,” she said.
The idea to display the empty till was shared with her by Roberto, a manager at nearby Piazza Italia restaurant.
“It seems to be a practice that some businesses in our area have quietly adopted to discourage theft,” she said.
Monique’s Boutique is a European-style women’s clothing store that’s been on Northwest 10th Avenue in the Gregory Lofts for two and half decades. Owner Monique Lampe has been placing an empty till on the shop floor with the “hold-down arms” in an up position for three or four years now.
“I’ve been open 24 years, and I even stayed open during the pandemic. But in 2025 (business) went way down,” Lampe said. “Zero people.”
She blames permissive city policies, not her patrons. Pho Van Fresh, the longtime neighborhood favorite next door to Monique’s, has been broken into multiple times, she said.
“My customers tell me they aren’t comfortable coming by, and I know it’s not comfortable seeing people doing drugs.”
District 4 Councilor Olivia Clark, who has visited a few times, earned Lampe’s respect by being clear-eyed about what small businesses are facing.
“If people don’t come to the stores, we will no longer have charming little shops,” Lampe said, adding that 11 of 13 nearby stores have closed, leaving her shop and Garnish Apparel as the last ones standing.
Lampe moved to Portland from Germany in 2000 because Portland was known as the most European-style city in America, famous for its natural beauty and the human scale of its small city blocks. An arts lover, she enjoys the Oregon Ballet and attending Pink Martini concerts.
But in the coming weeks Lampe will be placing half-off signs in the windows of Monique’s Boutique.
“I am forced to close my store even though I love what I do.”
