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One afternoon, while scrolling through TikTok, I came across a reel posted by Mizartlane — a home baker specialising in Halal bento cakes with over 9,000 and 18.4K followers on Instagram and TikTok, respectively.
Apparently, after the home-based business owner had received repeated messages on her personal number, she had to resort to block the customer on her phone — even after informing the customer 5 times that she wasn’t available. The customer lingered outside her condominium, hoping to collect the cake, but Mizartlane had already left her apartment.
So far, it might sound like the home baker was being unreasonable, right? Well, don’t judge too quickly — here’s some context.
Mizartlane opens her pickup slots in 30-minute blocks — for example, from 12 pm to 12.30pm. She had also informed all her customers that business inquiries should only go through Instagram.
The issue began when the customer was late for her pickup. Mizartlane decided to turn a blind eye and informed her that she was willing to wait an additional 30 minutes, no longer than that.
However, she showed up 40 minutes later — and when Mizartlane was no longer able to wait, guess what? She was upset that the home baker couldn’t wait an extra 10 minutes. (I mean… the audacity!)
The customer exclaimed that it was unfair and wasn’t given a chance. At one point, the customer also said, “Oh, you look so nice in your TikTok, I didn’t know you were this mean. Is this your other personality?”
The customer continued messaging her for an hour, attempting to get the home baker to return home to pass them the cake. The questions included:
- Do you have a family member that can help pass the cake?
- Can you pass the cake to the security guard?
- Can you leave it outside?
- Can you come back for a bit?
Having worked in the F&B industry and encountered all sorts of strange customer requests, my answer to question 2 and 3 is — ABSOLUTELY NOT! If the cake had been compromised and the customer suffered food poisoning, who do you think would be blamed? It’s also unhygienic to leave the cake outside.
Mizartlane also said that it’s not the guard’s job to collect cakes/parcels for residents or guests.
The customer had also offered the home baker to name her price, in which she refused as it wasn’t about the money.
The customer continued saying that she was due to have the event at 5pm and didn’t mind waiting for her until then. Mizartlane gave her other alternatives, including collecting the cake the next day during work hours, or purchasing a ready-made cake at a retail store.
Since it was a custom bake, the customer insisted on waiting. Mizartlane warned her that if she didn’t leave, she’d call security. Even after the customer left the premises, she claimed she was still lingering nearby and would stay in the rain.
Mizartlane commented that she should have anticipated potential issues. The customer had not only made a last-minute order but was also late in making the payment and providing all the necessary details.
True to her nature, Mizartlane waived the last-minute fee, but she didn’t expect things to unfold this way. It was the first time she had been hounded by a customer who showed up late.
After the ordeal, the customer emailed Mizartlane, stating that it was the home baker’s responsibility to ensure customers knew the pickup timing. She also blamed Mizartlane for not sending a simple DM on Instagram and for not going above and beyond to make sure customers arrived on time.
The thing is, 3 days before the incident, the home baker had already sent an email and Instagram DM with the collection details. The customer made the payment right after receiving the message, leading Mizartlane to assume she had the green light to proceed.
1 day before the pickup day, an additional reminder email was also sent.
Netizens were divided. Some comments suggested that the home baker wasn’t flexible enough — questioning why she couldn’t have arranged for Grab delivery. One even advised Mizartlane to leave the cake with security and hold the customer accountable for any consequences.
Others were on her side. One commented that the customer was self-entitled, another compared her situation to an actual restaurant, saying that if a customer is late, he/she has no right to demand for the restaurant to open (yas!).
What are your thoughts on this? Do you side with the customer or the home baker?
