Is Foot Locker trying to stop adults from buying less expensive kid-size shoes? It's a question that popped up in response to TikToker Mason Tannar's (@popocornwh0re) recent video.
In it, she detailed her experience attempting to buy a pair of Ugg slippers from a Foot Locker location. She says the store indicated the kids' size she was interested in buying online was available. However, upon entering the store to purchase them, an employee said they weren't available.
This didn't sit right with Tannar, so she decided to buy them online for a pick-up order. Next, she visited the store after the 2-hour online wait time expired to see if she'd get the product. Her "Foot Locker Fiasco" story time accrued over 1.7 million views as of Sunday.
Tannar says she wanted to get a kid's size 6 in Ugg because that would be a women's 8. However, she says the worker claimed they didn't have it. When she mentioned the website showed the shoes as available at this location, he replied that it only gets updated "weekly."
"I was like weekly? For Christmas? Weekly? That's kind of insane but like all right," Tannar says. "So I place an order for pickup. And we'll see if it's ready in 2 hours."
Sure enough, after two hours of killing time at the mall, she returns to the Footlocker and receives her shoes.
"However, when I was picking them up the guy seemed to...he didn't very much trust my name was Mason Tannar. But I showed him my log," she says. "And then I saw the same worker who told me 'no' telling someone else 'no.' So who knows what's going on back there? Somerset Mall, check it!"
The comments section of Tannar's video was a mixed bag. Some speculated that there was something fishy going on. One commenter thought there was a sizing conspiracy going on.
"I wonder if they don’t want adults buying kids sizes because they want them to pay more for the adult shoe?" they speculated.
Speculating as to the intentions of the employee would be just that—speculation. However, some industries frown upon adults purchasing products intended for children. In food service, for instance, adults who buy kids' menu meals have faced scrutiny. That's because children's meals are often "promotional" offerings not crafted with profit margins in mind. The reason why they're cheaper than "grown-up" entrees is to incentivize parents to dine out with their kids. However, this hasn't stopped some diners from pulling moves similar to Tannar's. Like one TikToker who orders them for curbside pick-up, only to eat the kids' meals herself.
Others stated that they, too, have faced similar conundrums whilst shopping at a variety of retailers.
"I did a pickup at target," one wrote. "They brought my stuff n said they’re out of the toilet paper. So I was like I need TP. So I ran in to get a diff pack n the exact pack I ordered was on the shelf."
Another replied that this occurred when they tried buying a fragrance. "This happened to me at ulta with perfume," they wrote. "I could SEE the perfume and was told it wasn’t the right one. I curb side ordered it."
It appears that the solution many have found to this hack was curbside ordering.
"Sam's Club told me I couldn’t buy their last deep freezer bc it was on the shelf. And I had to come back the next day and hope I got it first, So I placed an order for 2hr pick up, they were mad mad," one wrote.
Someone else wrote, "Sephora has been doing the same thing! Went in to smell a scent they told me nope not in stock. But the app said same day p/u so I ordered and yep I was able to pick up same day."
@popcornwh0re @footlocker ♬ original sound - mas????????
However, some opined that Tannar's issue wasn't a grand conspiracy. But rather just a case of a worker who had trouble locating an item.
"I work fulfillment at my store and sometimes I legit can’t find the item. But those 2 hrs gives a manager time to search all ends for a product. And they find it hidden where it’s not supposed to be," one retailer worker wrote.
Others surmised that it could've just been an issue of stock allocations. "That's normal, stores have a different stock for online and store purchases," one said.
The Daily Dot has reached out to Foot Locker and Tannar via email for further comment.
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The post ‘I wonder if they don’t want adults buying kids sizes’: Foot Locker customer demands answers after worker refused to sell her Ugg shoes appeared first on The Daily Dot.
