Venice business owner draws inspiration for new clothing from shoplifter

A Venice business owner is making the most out of an unfortunate situation, which is now the inspiration behind a successful new line of clothing beloved by locals. 

When an unknown man shoplifted a few items from Vardagen last year, Jared Ingold said it was at first just another of many times that the Abbot Kinney Boulevard shop had been hit. Fast forward a few months and that same thief is now the star of his newest line of clothing. 

The "Wanted" line, featuring the thief now known as "No-Face Freddie," offers shoppers t-shirts, sweatshirts, shorts and headwear, making what was an unfortunate situation a positive one. 

"We could be, like, filing a police report and chasing the guy down ... or we could make a line and make a lot more, and we already have," Ingold said. 

He says that he came up with the idea as a form of artistic expression to share what small businesses all over Southern California are dealing with. 

"After we did this, some of the other locals on the streets are telling us their stories," Ingold said. 

It's been so successful, that he's now even getting ready to launch a game for store customers. 

"It's called 'Petty Crimes.' You can actually steal items from our store and you can actually win real prizes," he said. 

Shoppers have taken to the idea quickly, with product commonly flying off the shelves when it gets restocked. Fernando Pullum says the creativity alone is enough for him to stock up. 

"I think it's very inventive to be able to come up with a positive, for something that's insanely negative," he said.