Even the smallest everyday interactions can spiral into unnecessary conflict when someone decides to respond with a bit of rudeness instead of basic courtesy. That’s exactly what occurred recently at a California florist when a rude customer — which many online have dubbed a “Karen” — entered the store, but refused to close the door. The owner politely asked her to close the door because the air conditioning was on inside, but she refused, which ultimately sparked a heated back-and-forth. The video is currently circulating online.
The video starts with surveillance footage of the Karen approaching the store. The owner explains, “This girl here came in my shop and I thought, oh, she’s gonna be such good energy. Like, look at her. Enjoying life. Fist pumping the air. I was like, oh, she’s gonna be a ball of fun. Let’s see what she wants. You guys, I was wrong.”
The footage then cuts to inside the store, where the florist is live-streaming herself as she’s preparing bouquets of flowers. As video of an onsite security camera plays out, she runs through a brief overview of the incident, explaining that the customer entered the store, said something in Spanish, and pushed the door open. The thing is, the AC was on in the store, likely to protect the flowers inside from the extreme California heat outside. As a result, the owner asks her to close the door, but she responds rudely with, “If you don’t want me to buy anything, I’ll close the door, otherwise I’m gonna leave.“
Next, the footage cuts again, this time showing the moment from the owner’s livestream feed. The rude back-and-forth unfolds yet again, but this time you can hear the original audio from the awkward interaction. “We have the air on, can you close it?” the owner politely asks the woman, but the Karen refuses. As the incident escalates, the florist ends up refusing service to the rude customer, stating, “You know what, you’re not gonna buy from here. Go ahead and just leave. No, you came off very rude because I asked you to please close my door.“
However, the customer tries to play the victim card, and claims that the owner is being rude to her. After exchanging further barbs, the owner exclaims, “It’s my shop and if I want my door closed– go ahead and leave, you’re still here.” When the customer finally leaves, the owner turns to the camera and says, “You guys?! What the [expletive]?“
Following the heated exchange, the owner gets a phone call from her husband, who’s also shocked by the interaction, and was presumably watching the livestream. Finally, the florist discusses a comment that was left on her video, which she thought was unacceptable.
Essentially, one commenter took issue with the fact that the owner couldn’t speak Spanish, and this deeply upset the California florist. “You’re making your own people feel like [expletive] because we’re not Mexican enough for you.” snaps the florist, before explaining that she’s a “4th, possibly 5th generation” Mexican-American, and that her “ancestors were here, probably in California, some of Texas, when it was Mexico.” With emotion in her voice, she says, “So none of us crossed the border. The border crossed us.”
As the video continues to make the rounds online, netizens took to the comments to share their thoughts and reactions. On Reddit, one person wrote, “Karen wanted some free flowers!” while another chimed in with, “All Latin American children are taught to respect the rules under someone else’s roof. She probably didn’t get the Correa enough as a kid 🙄😂” Meanwhile, over on TikTok, one commenter penned, “I’m guessing she wanted the door open so she could grab and run” while another added, “Who leaves the door open when you walk in a store?“
