A bakery owner has vowed she will not be beaten after crooks broke into her business and snatched hundreds of pounds of furniture.

Thieves broke into a storage shed belonging to Weston’s Bakery, which is off Halstead High Street.

A number of boxes containing brand new flat pack furniture were taken by the crooks Bakery owner Chris Weston said: “We’ve got new tables and chairs we bought last October that hasn’t been built stored in there and they’ve gone straight for that and run off with some of them.

“In some ways we feel we got off lightly because they took about £300 worth.

“It’s all flat pack furniture but it’s really heavy so I don’t know how they have managed to run off with it.”

The theft came at the worst possible time for the bakery as plans were in place to build the stolen furniture and set it up in the courtyard the following day.

Ms Weston, who runs a similar venture in Sudbury with husband Peter, added: “We had people working hard on the courtyard and made it looking lovely. We came back the next day to set up the furniture and found some of it had been taken.

“It’s such a shame because people have been so supportive and we have been welcomed by Halstead.

“It’s a small blip but I’m not going to be put off by this and let them stop me.”

Weston’s Bakery opened to the public back in January and offers customers a variety of products including breads and cakes.

It also has plans to launch a new range of waffles and Womelettes - omelettes cooked in a waffle machine.

A spokesman for Essex Police said: “We received a report at 7.30am on Friday, April 27, about theft from Weston’s Bakery, in High Street, Halstead. Suspects forced open a cupboard at the rear of the building and removed five garden tables and four chairs.”

Call police on 101 quoting reference 42/59233/18 with information.