Candy Store owner says rent hike forcing closure

Jennifer Torres, 33, the owner of The Candy Store on Main Street, stands at the counter of her downtown Tiburon shop on April 18. She says a base rent hike and a new monthly maintenance fee will increase her rent by more than 60%, forcing her to close the business after 27 years. (Ted McDonnell / For The Ark)

The Candy Store on Main Street, a staple of downtown Tiburon for nearly three decades, is shutting down by the end of the month, sparking a GoFundMe campaign and protests by residents as owner Jennifer Torres says a 61% rent increase is forcing her out.

Torres said she was “shocked” by landlord A&C Ventures’ December offer that would raise her monthly rent to $6,177 from $3,834. That accounts for a 44% baseline rent increase plus a new fee for building-and-space upkeep. An alternative to avoid the new fee, she said, was a mandatory out-of-pocket investment into building modernizations and renovations she estimated would cost “at least” $15,000-$20,000.

The 33-year-old Tiburon native, who’s worked at the shop for nearly half her life — she started part-time at age 17 before buying it from the retiring owners when she was 24 — said she’s now scrambling to clear out.

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