#Roommates, what would you do if you were denied service because of your physical appearance? Unfortunately, a Houston woman experienced just that when she recently went to a local nail salon for a pedicure and was refused service due to her weight.
Tina Lewis from Houston, Texas went to Rose Nail Salon in the hopes of getting a pedicure—but sadly she was turned away and denied service after the owner reportedly told her that she was “too big” to sit in the pedicure chair. As reported by @Blavity, Lewis said she was shocked at the owner’s comment because she recalls seeing customers at the salon in the past who were also her same size getting a pedicure.
Lewis visited the salon with her mother and recalled just how surprised she was to hear the owner deny her pedicure request, saying:
Stay Connected
Subscribe to updates from The Shade Room
“She was like, ‘What did she just say?’…I said, ‘Yes, mama, she just said that to me.’ I was like, ‘Can I get a pedicure? And what chair do I sit in?’ …and [the employee] was like, the chairs were not big enough for me to sit in. And I was like, ‘Are you serious?’”
The salon’s owner stated that reason why Lewis was told she could not receive a pedicure due to her weight is because the salon chairs reportedly cost hundreds of dollars to repair if they are damaged due to being overloaded.
Marie Bui, one of the salon’s employees insisted that no one intended to hurt Lewis’ feelings or be offensive to her. Bui went on to explain that in the past another customer had broken a salon chair presumably because of her size, which is why Lewis was turned away.
Lewis isn’t convinced that’s the reason, saying she thinks “those chairs are very sturdy” and believes the salon is just using that as an excuse not to serve her. She suggests that in the future, the salon should alert customers of the weight rule by putting up a visible sign.
Roommates, what would you do if this happened to you?
