Customer Demanded To Speak To A ‘Man Who Knows Things’, She Found Him The Perfect One

It’s amazing how fast some people will discredit you the moment they realize you’re a woman, especially in a field they assume men dominate.

One young fish expert learned that lesson at just 17 years old when a customer at her tropical fish store refused to take her seriously. But instead of arguing, she decided to give him exactly what he asked for… and karma swam right back at him.

When ignorance meets expertise, the results can be beautifully ironic

The OP, a 17-year-old woman, had clearly mastered the aquatic domain at her retail fish store: she managed koi and pond plants, answered off-shift calls, and knew diet, temperature ranges and origins of each fish.

Yet when a male customer asked, “Can I talk to someone who KNOWS THINGS? Like a MAN?”, her expertise and experience were dismissed because of her gender. She redirected him to an older male “expert”, who then did nothing but send him back to her, prompting the customer to storm out.

On one side, the customer might argue he preferred someone he assumed to have “authority” or “experience”, perhaps believing a man would understand male-centric hobbies like pond-keeping.

From the OP’s perspective, his request wasn’t about actual knowledge but gender bias: she was the expert, yet he wanted a man nonetheless. Her motivation was professional competence and rightful respect; his motivation appears rooted in dated assumptions about gender and expertise.

Zooming out, the incident reflects a broader social issue of gender discrimination in frontline retail: young women often face disrespect and lack of recognition despite equal (or greater) competence.

A survey of 1,160 retail workers found that young female employees were more likely than men to face abuse and felt less heard in key workplace issues. (The University of Sydney)

The retail sector remains rife with unspoken assumptions that “man = authority”, which undermines women’s contributions and perpetuates workplace inequality.

What should the OP (or someone in her shoes) consider doing?

First, she could treat the event as a signal: her knowledge was unquestionable, so documenting similar interactions might reveal a pattern.

Second, she might escalate politely: share the incident with her manager or HR, not as a personal grievance but as a concern about equal-treatment and customer service standards.

Third, she can reinforce her expertise publicly: perhaps by offering mini-educational sessions, signage noting her role, or referrals that reinforce she is the company’s pond & koi specialist.

If the store culture repeatedly tolerates requests like “talk to a man”, she may reflect on whether this is the environment she wants to invest in professionally.

Here’s the feedback from the Reddit community:

These commenters shared stories and empathy about the everyday sexism women face at work

This group highlighted how to handle disrespect cleverly

These users mixed humor and observation, using sarcasm or real anecdotes to show how deeply ingrained gender bias still is

Would you have done the same, or told him off on the spot?