17-year-old tries on dresses at the Showroom in Nashville. Then the owner body shames her—now everyone is looking for ‘Kristin’
A woman takes her little sister shopping at formal clothing store The Showroom in Nashville and films her trying on dresses. They hear commotion in the next fitting room and film a worker seemingly body shaming another customer. Then, the shopper speaks out in her own viral TikTok.
In a video with over 5.4 million views, TikToker Ella Durbin (@elladurbinnn) and her sister stand in the dress shop’s fitting room. They film themselves in the mirror to catch the conversation next to them.
“I knew it wasn’t going to work. I was actually doing you a favor. I’m trying to help you find dresses that fit you,” a woman says, presumably one of the workers at The Showroom. The shopper sounds distressed, repeating, “It’s fine. It’s fine.”
Shortly after Durbin’s video went viral, the distressed shopper makes her own video with more details about what went down.
Did The Showroom worker bodyshame the shopper?
TikToker Maddie Cox (@maddiejocox09), a 17-year-old, sits down to recount the conversation with The Showroom worker. She notes that she has done pageants since she was a toddler and has purchased several couture and formal gowns over the years.
Cox says she went to the showroom to try on gowns for “several events this year.” A gold couture dress catches her mom’s eye and she asks the worker if Cox can try it on.
Cox notes that several of the dresses were too big, so she asked for the couture dress in a smaller size.
“The owner heard my mom and came back to the dressing room and looks me up and down and says that I am ‘too big’ for the dress,” she recounts.
After leaving the store, Cox writes a Google review about her negative experience. And she can’t believe what the owner, Kristin, replies.
What did The Showroom owner write?
Cox posts a screenshot of her Google review, including The Showroom’s reply.
“You and your mom were the worst customers ever!” The Showroom writes. “You were both extremely rude and demanding to my employees who were trying to help you.”
But The Showroom owner didn’t stop there. Cox shows a screenshot of one of her Instagram posts where she holds a large corn on the cob. The end of The Showroom’s Google review reply reads, “Get your popcorn ready, or should I say your corn on the cob?!!”
Cox also says The Showroom posted a video of two workers trying on the dress she was interested in as soon as she left, which she believes was intentional.
The TikToker shares that she decided to share her experience because she “doesn’t want any other girl to have to go through that.”
As of the time of publication, The Showroom Nashville deactivated its TikTok account. The Mary Sue reached out to The Showroom via email for further comment.
How did viewers react?
Many commenters jump to Cox’s defense, praising her for how she handled the insulting interaction.
“I absolutely love the way you handled that situation. nobody deserves to be degraded like that,” one writes.
“You handled this so well! It’s sad that teens are more mature these days than some adults!” a second says.
“Wow. I’m absolutely appalled… I’m so so sorry that happened to you. A moment that should’ve felt exciting never should have turned into a comment like that,” another remarks.
Other viewers suggest its not the first time The Showroom has created an “unwelcoming” atmosphere for shoppers.
“The Showroom was such a nightmare when I went prom shopping, everyone was so unkind and made me feel so unwelcome,” a commenter says.
Another claims, “I’m so sorry that happened to you. My business is literally next door to them. We’ve also been a victim of her rude behavior many times.”
“I’ve been to The Showroom Nashville and I refuse to rent from them. When I went and selected the *few* dresses they provided in my size, the store associate made it loudly known to not ask if there were more plus size dresses in the back,” a third shares.
@elladurbinnn yeahhhh this was actually crazy… ??? #prom #nashville #dress #pleasehelp #fyp ♬ Slipping Through My Fingers – From 'Mamma Mia!' Original Motion Picture Soundtrack – Meryl Streep & Amanda Seyfried
The Mary Sue reached out to Durbin and Cox via TikTok direct message and comment. We will update the story when they reply.
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