What is coffee made out of when a café sets dress rules?

A trendy Shenzhen coffee shop drew attention after reportedly refusing service to customers with dyed hair and reminding one wearing Crocs. Staff moved the affected customers to other seats. The shop says it does not discriminate, but the venue sits inside a college campus as a teaching ancillary site, so it applies certain grooming requirements.

The store's notice boards list friendly reminders and ask customers to mind dress and behavior, but they do not spell out specific clothing rules. The case has split online opinion over whether a commercial café may set its own service standards, and it raises questions about what is coffee made out of a fair approach to house rules.

Recently, a trendy coffee shop in Shenzhen made trending news for refusing to serve customers with dyed hair. According to Southern Metropolis Daily, a consumer posted a complaint saying that she was reminded by staff in the store that customers with dyed hair were not served, and was then rearranged to a different seat. Even more unexpectedly, another female customer wearing Crocs also received a similar reminder. Although there was a notice board at the entrance, it did not specify any particular grooming or dress requirements. After the incident gained traction, online opinion polarized: some believed that a cafe, as a commercial establishment, should not be selective about customers, while others held that the shop had the right to set its own service standards. The coffee shop responded that the brand does not discriminate against customers with dyed hair, but because the store is located within a college campus and is an ancillary teaching venue, it has no choice but to impose certain dress requirements on customers.

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Recently, Southern Metropolis Daily reported that a consumer in Shenzhen posted a complaint saying that when she went to check out a trendy coffee shop in Shenzhen, she was told that the store did not serve customers with dyed hair, which drew considerable attention from netizens.

According to the poster's account, shortly after she arrived at this trendy coffee shop, a staff member came over to remind her that the store did not serve customers with dyed hair because leaders would conduct routine inspections of grooming and appearance, and then the staff member moved her to a new seat. The consumer said that at the time, another female customer in the coffee shop was also reminded by staff because she was wearing Crocs.

This experience left the customer confused and baffled. She posted photos she had taken, in which two notice boards could be seen standing at the entrance of the coffee shop. One of them listed five friendly reminders about the coffee shop, while the other stated that the coffee shop was a "teaching ancillary venue" and reminded customers to pay attention to their dress, speech, and behavior.

However, neither of the two notice boards in the store specified the particular requirements for customers' grooming, appearance, or clothing, nor did they mention that customers with dyed hair would be refused service.

The customer recalled that the staff member who came to remind her had a very nice tone and was visibly embarrassed, so she guessed that the person was not deliberately excluding her and that it might have been due to the rules. But the customer believed that if the cafe had unwritten rules for customers, it should clearly inform them of the specific requirements on the notice board at the entrance or on third-party platforms. She said that if she had known in advance, there would have been no need to make a special trip.

After the post was published, some consumers who had been to this cafe also said that they too had been refused service by staff because of dress issues. "One time in the middle of summer I wore flip-flops and was told off," "In summer, even skirt-shorts above the knee were not allowed."

In response, some netizens argued that a cafe, as a commercial establishment open to the public, should welcome guests from all sides rather than being picky about customers, turning away anyone who walks in with dyed hair, slippers, or a miniskirt.

But others argued that just as customers can choose which cafe they want to visit, shop owners can naturally choose whether to serve customers. Some pointed out that many coffee shops nowadays post store rules stating that they "do not serve children," "strictly prohibit photography," and so on, and certain specific venues also have dress requirements for guests. From this perspective, they believed it was not excessive for cafe operators to have certain requirements for customers.

In addition, some netizens pointed out that the reason this coffee shop had requirements for customers' grooming, dress, and behavior was that it was located within a certain college and had to comply with the college's relevant regulations.

Staff from the store also appeared in the comment section, saying that the coffee shop itself had no front door and could not be fully enclosed, so some outside customers who were unaware would enter the store to consume. When facing these customers, they could only remind them quietly, and they stated frankly that they were not excluding customers with dyed hair.

The Nandu Bay Finance Agency reporter who covered the incident called the coffee shop and confirmed the staff member's account. The coffee shop responded that the brand does not discriminate against customers with dyed hair; rather, because the venue is restricted and is not an ordinary store open to the public, it has no choice but to impose certain dress requirements on consumers who enter.

Image source: Internet

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The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.