Dealing with difficult customers in retail is immensely difficult when you’re having a bad day, though you think it would be manageable on a good day too?

How would you handle a customer who insisted on you breaking the rules for them? And still getting punished for doing the right thing?

One girl recently took to Reddit to vent about exactly this.

Here are the details.

Got a corporate complaint for “being too bubbly”

As I was ringing up a customer, she gives me two coupons.

Both coupons indicate that they can’t be combined.

So I suggest she save one for later use.

Frugal people love logical suggestions.

I have an optimistic, upbeat, friendly personality.

I’m also pretty empathetic and I always try my best to deliver disappointing news in a good light.

Sounds like they’re perfect for navigating retail!

She continues to press me about combining the coupons and I tell her that I understand her frustration, but I repeat that the coupons cannot be combined.

I stayed calm and kind.

A few days later, my store manager asks to talk to me in the back.

Oh no…

He starts off by telling me not to change who I am after we talk and giggled.

Then he proceeds to tell me that I had a formal corporate complaint from a customer for “being too bubbly.”

Seems like this lady was a bit of a grouch.

She said my interaction with her was insincere and therefore made her very uncomfortable.

This customer made no mention of the request for coupon stacking.

Well, that’s convenient!

Thankfully, my store manager was already aware of the initial incident.

But he still had to file the report into my employee records since it came from corporate.

The inner machinations of corporate environments are deeply flawed and unfair. Let’s see what Reddit had to say about it.

A few were immediately helpful.

Some asked for important context.

One person jumped right to satire.

Some could unfortunately relate.

Others shared similar unfortunate occurrences.

I guess kindness isn’t everyone’s cup of tea.

If you liked that post, check out this post about a woman who tracked down a contractor who tried to vanish without a trace.