1 /5 poetic tam: I had a very disappointing and upsetting experience at Plato’s Closet in Pensacola, despite being a loyal customer for over 10 years. On Sunday, Oct. 12, 2025, I visited with my children while the store’s system was down. I was told my items (about a $150 purchase) would be placed on hold for pickup. I left my full name, phone number, and a note clearly stating I would return after 3 PM the next day (Monday).
When I arrived at 3:05 PM, my items had already been put back on the floor, and no one had called me to let me know. When I asked why, none of the five employees at the counter would take responsibility. I asked for a manager, but was told there was no manager present. Eventually, I was given a manager’s name and number, but the staff refused to give me their names, making accountability impossible.
One employee in particular, later identified by my daughter as Faith, lied directly to me, claiming that employees did not have to give their names “for their safety.” This is not true and not in line with policy, as they are supposed to wear name tags. The other staff did nothing to correct her or attempt to resolve the situation. Instead, their behavior became dismissive, defensive, and unprofessional.
I was falsely accused of “yelling” and “berating” them (which was completely untrue — I was firm but calm). The situation escalated further when one employee threatened to call the police on me and told me I should “never come back again.” Another employee even walked all the way to the end of the parking lot, where I was sitting with my daughter, openly discussing the incident and staring me down in a threatening manner — as if I had no right to sit in a public parking lot. This felt extremely intimidating and unsafe. Another thing they are not allowed to do to customers. I do hope they review their security video to verify who that staff member is and hold them accountable for such threatening behavior.
What should have been a simple transaction turned into harassment and intimidation. Instead of accountability and care, I was met with microaggressions, group dismissal, and bullying behavior. As a long-time customer, this left me humiliated and deeply unsettled.
The only positive part of this experience was that Brad, the district manager who oversees the Pensacola and Destin locations, personally reached out to me by phone. He kindly listened to my disturbing encounter and tried to resolve the matter. He offered to try to locate the items for me but again I stated I did not feel safe returning to that store. He offered me discounts to shop at the Destin location in turn. I appreciate his professionalism and concern, but the conduct of his staff at this Pensacola location has left me unwilling to return. Those girls deserve more that a demotion and decrease of pay. Especially when they kept claiming they wanted to shut the store down and they all needed breaks. Clearly they are not ready to be in a work environment when it comes to retail and customer service. They should find work elsewhere to allow customers to feel safe.
It is also important to note that my experience is not isolated. There are many other negative reviews describing terrible customer service at this location. Taken together, it paints a very clear picture of a store that is not a safe space for families to shop, nor are they welcoming, or respectful to its customers.
After what happened, I do not feel comfortable bringing my children back here again. I strongly urge management to take these repeated complaints seriously and retrain or replace staff so that no other customer has to endure such mistreatment. Customer’s should not be treated in this manner. The staff should not make us feel inferior due to their superiority complex issues. As a Mother I ask how would they feel if someone was to treat their Mother the way they treated me. It was absolutely disgusting and traumatizing.
