Shop owner’s response to 1-star review over homeless man offers a valuable lesson

Customer reviews are crucial for businesses to understand what their customers want, but sometimes they can be unfair. A donut shop owner recently demonstrated how to handle such reviews with grace and humor. After receiving a one-star review complaining about a homeless man sitting outside the shop, the owner of Nomad Donuts offered a thoughtful and witty response. The exchange was shared by u/beerbellybegone on Reddit and quickly gained widespread praise online.

In the one-star review, the customer wrote, "A homeless guy has lived (morning, noon and night) against the front entrance for about a year. Really makes me feel great about spending $5 on a jelly donut." The owner responded, "Thanks for coming into the shop. We've appreciated your support over the years, even at the original one on 30th St! I'm sorry that Ray ruined your experience on your last visit. Know that he would like you to continue buying $4 donuts from Nomad every day and doesn't want you to feel guilty about it."

He then elaborated on Ray’s positive impact on the store: "Our 'new' location on University has a lot more homeless people than the original on 30th St, and it had really been an issue until Ray started hanging out outside the shop," he shared.

"He keeps the problematic ones away. Yes, we've had many of those on meth, heroin and such that I've had to almost forcibly remove from the shop, but Ray keeps them away," the person went on. "Ray is a former computer programmer with some physical and psychological challenges, but he is very intelligent and respectful." He added, "I speak with him almost every day. I like him [and] he is part of our community. The outside of the building provides him shelter from the sun and rain and the building slabs give him warmth at night." The man expressed, "I understand how you feel, it's not easy to look at. I know I probably lose some business, probably yours too, because of my choice not to chase him away, but I won't."

"He's not looking for handouts and he tries not to bother anyone. If you stop and talk with him, maybe you'll come to like him too. Respectfully, Brad K," the response concluded. People took to the comments section of the post to support the business owner. u/highlandviper wrote, "The business owner is clearly socially conscious. That’s great and I’d support that. But it seems to me that the hero of the piece is actually Ray. He needs more love than the business."

u/Momof3dragons2012 commented, "We have a homeless guy who basically lives in the mall. He sleeps between the doors and spends his day walking around the mall. He is allowed to do this because he provides various services for the mall, like picking up garbage, reporting theft and vagrancy, and caring for the birds who also shelter in the mall. He is not an alcoholic or drug addict." u/bsteve856 remarked, "In a society that is as rich as the US or Canada (where one finds donuts and 30th Streets), why do we have homeless people, to begin with? Leaving Ray or others to shiver against the building on a slab to protect them from the rain is not a sign of compassion but a failure of compassion. (I am not blaming the store owner, but the city and the society as a whole.)"