Karen customer demands barista make her a Frappuccino, complains that it's not an iced latte when the barista hands it to her: 'Being a barista is truly a social experiment'

When it comes to sales, retail, and food service, you'll constantly encounter the phrase "The customer is always right." Of course, any time it gets mentioned on the internet, there will be those who are quick to correct that this is only a portion of the "original" phrase and that the full phrase is "actually. "The customer is always right in matters of taste." This isn't necessarily true either, as there isn't a single definitive origin of the phrase, with there being many instances and origins from pioneering retailers at the turn of the 20th century. 

No matter the origin or version of the phrase to which you ascribe, it stands to reason that, if you've worked in any retail or service industry job in the last 30 years, particularly in one run by any large corporation, you've been told something to this effect by your superiors. And, over time, the horrifying reality has become that customers expect to be treated like this. 

The problem is that a large majority of the general public has no idea what they want, and more still are actively wrong about what they think they're asking for. They might even give you very specific instructions, only to be surprised and confused when you give them exactly what they asked for.

As the worker or customer service person, this is, of course, maddening. And you'll find yourself questioning your own sanity as you navigate through an interaction with someone who is clearly not living on the same planet as the rest of us.

In this latest example, this barista shared a bewildering interaction that she had with a Karen customer who insisted that the barista make her a frappuccino. However, despite desperately claiming she wanted one, she clearly had no idea what that word meant. When the barista handed her the frappuccino, she looked confused… she had actually wanted an iced latte, apparently, and it only goes on from there. The bewildered barista shared her story with a video on social media that has had some viral traction since.