I had an extremely disappointing and distressing experience at one of your store locations in Culver City on August 28, 2025, between 8:33 PM and 9:00 PM. This was my second visit to this location. My first visit, about three weeks ago, was excellent and I was impressed when a representative even went out of their way to retrieve an item from storage close to closing time. Based on that experience, I had a positive impression of your store and brand.
Unfortunately, the experience I had on August 28 was the worst customer service interaction I have ever encountered. I went in to pick up a few items I had ordered online. As always, I had my QR scan codes ready for the pickup. I've done this many times, and while I've only visited this particular location twice, I am familiar with Pop Mart's in-store pickup process from my visits to South Coast Plaza and other locations.
I arrived at the store approximately 30 minutes before closing, went directly to the register, and informed the associate that I was there to pick up an order. I showed her the QR code, and she immediately told me it could not be a screenshotand asked me to close it out. This was the first time I had ever heard of this requirement, but I complied and logged into the app to show her the code properly.
Without asking, the associate took my phone, closed out the app, and manually retrieved the code herself, which made me feel like she assumed I was stealing the item or trying to commit fraud. It was incredibly uncomfortable and insulting.
I then informed her that I had a second order to pick up, which belonged to my disabled mother who was waiting in the car. The representative immediately said that the account holder must be present. I said okay and returned to the car to bring my mother into the store. By this point, it was about 15 minutes before closing.
When we returned, I told the same representative that this was the account holder, and that we had signed into the Pop Mart app on my phone. She then insisted that my mother needed to sign into the app on her own phone, which I found absurd especially since we were already properly signed in and simply picking up a pre-paid order.
The tone and body language of this representative were dismissive, accusatory, and condescending. Rather than assisting us respectfully, she seemed pleased to be difficult. She then walked to the back of the store, where she could be heard mocking and laughing and again, an extremely unprofessional and humiliating moment.
At this point, a manager came to assist us, but rather than de-escalate the situation, she seemed already biased and sided with the associate immediately. I tried to explain that I didn't understand why the process was so difficult. She repeated the same information that screenshots were not allowed, and that customers must be signed into the app. I told her that I was already aware and had complied.
What shocked me was that the manager somehow already knew I had presented screenshots earlier and despite not being present during the transaction. Yet she failed to acknowledge that I had already followed the proper login procedure afterward. Her involvement felt less like support and more like reinforcement of this unfair treatment.
I expressed my frustration, explaining that I had never received such poor service when trying to pick up items I had paid for. I then asked the manager for the name of the associate I had dealt with and she refused, citing "security reasons." When I stated that I would be contacting corporate, she doubled down and implied that I could be a security threat for even requesting their names. When I asked her directly, she also refused to give me her own name.
At this point, I was shaking, feeling close to passing out, and completely overwhelmed. I am currently ill and disabled, and the emotional stress of this interaction was more than I should have been subjected to for a simple order pickup. I considered leaving the items behind, but knew I would be outside the 24-hour window, and I had already driven over an hour from Orange County just to get there.
The items I picked up were Labubu figures. I don't know if this was the reason I was treated so poorly perhaps due to the perceived value or collectibility but if so, that's even more disappointing.
For clarity:
* The first representative was a young woman with a black bob-style haircut, resembling Angela Aguilar.
* The manager was an older Hispanic woman with long hair.
* Neither provided their names when asked.
* I did not receive an apology at any point.
I have previously worked in retail for many years, both in high school and throughout college. I have never treated a customer no matter the circumstance with this level of disregard or suspicion. The behavior I witnessed and experienced was disrespectful, humiliating, and completely unprofessional.
Pop Mart, your employees are the face of your brand, and in this case, they left a lasting and negative impression read more