Internet Applauds Woman’s ‘Pretty Woman’ Moment With ‘Sexist’ Car Dealership

A woman said in a now viral post that she had a “A pretty woman” moment with a “sexist” car dealership.

Posting to Reddit’s “Malicious Compliance” forum under the username u/Karamist623, the woman wrote: “[A] The car dealer told me to come back when I “knew what I was talking about”. “The story garnered 8,200 upvotes and 1,200 comments of support.

Women would buy 62% of all new cars in the United States and influence more than 85% of all car purchases, said Forbes. Yet a 2019 survey by AutoTrader found that 94% of women don’t trust dealerships and 40% “fear” the car buying process, reported Lamborghini Women’s Advisory Board Member Erin Baker. .

Part of that distrust, Baker says, is rooted in women feeling “disenfranchised”; consumers want to be “respected”, not “privileged” as u/Karamist623 had been.

“Malicious Compliance”

In their article, u/Karamist623 said they visited a dealership a few years ago looking for a “special edition” Jeep. But when she asked a salesman about the car, he told her it didn’t exist.

“[I told him], ‘Yes, that’s one thing. It’s on the official Jeep website. The website says you have one,” said u/Karamist623.

The salesman insisted that the car u/Karamist623 was looking for did not exist and then told him to “come back when [she knew] What [she was] talking.” So she left and found the Jeep somewhere else.

A week later, she returned to the dealership in her new car “and made it a point to say [the salesman] he missed a good commission and that he should never belittle a client, especially a woman.”

The car buying experience

Athena Staten, owner of SheCar, an online car dealership, said Newsweek that she hears stories like u/Karamist623’s “all the time”.

“When I ask [customers]’How did you hear about SheCar,’ they’ll often say, ‘I just left the car dealership, and I was so [humiliated]”, Staten said. “They don’t use the word ‘humiliated,’ but that’s how they felt – I know that.

“I always tell women, ‘You can feel confident, you can hold on,'” Staten continued.

To feel confident walking into a dealership, Staten says women should make a list of basic needs and wants beforehand. She also recommends creating a budget.

“Think about how much you will spend, not how much you want a car,” she advised.

Staten also reminded women to “trust each other.”

“At the end of the day, it’s just a car,” she said. “Don’t fight.”

Editors react

Redditors applauded u/Karamist623’s story and compared the moment to A pretty woman.

“[You] Julia Roberts killed it,” u/damishkers said.

u/bad_advices_guy wrote: “Damn you really just hit him with the A pretty woman script.”

“I LOVE THIS!” u/ForceAccomplished890 exclaimed.

“Please also consider posting to r/SexistRevenge,” u/FixinThePlanet added. “Stories like this really make my day!”

Newsweek has contacted u/Karamist623 for comment. We were unable to verify the details of the case.

Other “malicious compliance” stories

In September, a woman went viral after she shared a photo of the stern note she received from a neighbor asking her to stop walking barefoot in her apartment.

In July, Redditors applauded a woman who admitted she had been an “a**hole” to her new neighbor.

And in April, a man split opinion online after sharing how he handled a fence issue he had with his neighbour.