Woman Says Brandy Melville Employee Accused Her of Staining a Shirt She Never Tried On: ‘It Was Humiliating’

TikTok user @haley.r.patrick shared a video describing a recent shopping experience. While looking for shirts and blouses for work, she said an interaction with an employee at a Brandy Melville store left her feeling humiliated. The video has garnered 1.2 million views and 15.4 k comments. The video sparked a discussion among commenters about interactions between shoppers and store employees.

In the video, Haley is crying in her car and says she does not usually make videos like this but felt she needed to discuss her experience. Haley said the interaction began after she picked up a white top to try on. She said the sales associate took the shirt and told her the store could not sell it because it had makeup on it.

The employee grabbed her a new shirt, but when Haley tried it on, she noticed that it also had makeup on it. Haley said she was not wearing enough makeup to have caused the stain. She said she was confused but did not want to ask the associate for another top, so she decided not to try on the second shirt.

When she came out of the fitting room, Haley said the employee confronted her, leaving her feeling humiliated. While she was paying, the woman who helped her before came to the register and told her she had to buy the shirt because she got makeup on it. Haley said she was not responsible for the stain because she had not tried on the shirt. She said she left the store feeling embarrassed and upset.

She tried to explain that she had not tried on the shirt and was shopping for other items, but the employee still told her she had to pay for it. Haley said she ultimately had to pay for the shirt. She had to put back a shirt she planned on buying to make up for the cost she was forking over for the shirt she was accused of staining.

Commenters Debate Whether She Should Have Had to Pay for the Shirt

The comment section was filled with support for her. Some commenters said they had also experienced difficulties while shopping at Brandy Melville. Other commenters shared their own negative experiences with the retailer.

One commenter wrote, “I’m so sorry; the workers there are literally so mean for like no reason at all. I'm crying with you, girl.” Another commenter added, “Brandy’s hiring process is literally based off vibes and looks. No wonder I hear all these horrible stories. It’s just one big high school clique up in there.”

Several commenters questioned why Haley was required to pay for the shirt and criticized the employee’s handling of the situation.

The Daily Dot was unable to independently verify the interaction described in the video or the circumstances surrounding the stained shirt. The details above are based on Haley’s account shared on TikTok under the username @haley.r.patrick.