Business Owners Accuse Each Other of Threats, Vandalism

Business-to-business took on a new meaning last week for two La Grange store owners, with one accusing the other of putting used cat litter on her cars and both saying they were threatened by the other.

According to La Grange police reports, Nest Vintage Modern owner Alana Waters-Piper reported threats she received via Facebook and phone calls from fellow vintage home decor shop owner Gina De La Mora, who runs Painted Rubbish.

Both store owners told police they were the ones threatened, and they reiterated their opposing sides of the story Tuesday. This particular spat happened Aug. 15, but they said they’ve been in communication since before Nest opened.

Painted Rubbish, 20 W. Harris Ave., opened in March. Nest Vintage Modern has operated as an online store and then at a space in Brookfield for a few years, but moved to La Grange in May at 26 S. La Grange Rd.  

“Both parties were advised to no longer have contact with each other, and both parties advised they will,” according to the police report.

They both confirmed they communicated months ago, though it’s unclear who initiated the conversations. De La Mora said she first received Facebook messages from Nest Vintage Modern about “what I better and better not do and to stay out of their way.”

Waters-Piper said De La Mora was intentionally calling her vendors, when she believes the ethical thing to do is offer something different. “I can call whoever I want,” De La Mora said. “It’s up to the vendor to make the decision.”

On Aug. 15, the two met again, but the details are unclear. De La Mora said she was getting lunch with her daughter and merely walked past Nest Vintage Modern when Waters-Piper began yelling at her. Waters-Piper said there was more to the story, that De La Mora was knocking on the window and taking tags off outdoor displays, and that was after a string of threatening communication.

That night, the cars at Waters-Piper’s home were vandalized with eggs and used cat litter. She reported it to Brookfield police and also contacted La Grange police so they were aware of the incident, which she believes De La Mora is behind. De La Mora said that's not true.

“We’ve been receiving some very unprofessional communication that we haven’t returned,” Waters-Piper said. “I’ll leave it at that. We really treasure good, symbiotic relationships and want to ignore the negative.”