The House of Costumes / La Casa De Los Trucos — Attraction in Miami

If I could give this store zero stars, I would.

On October 29, 2025, around 4:30 p.m., I visited the store with my daughter to buy costumes for my daughter and my dog. Unfortunately, during our visit, I was racially profiled. After completing my purchase and exiting the store, I was stopped by an employee and asked to show my receipt — even though no other customers were stopped. Everyone waiting in line, including several who had been outside for over 30 minutes, appeared shocked. I was the only customer singled out, and I am African American.

The employee, an older white woman who often works at the register and was wearing a black-and-white dress, made me feel targeted and unwelcome. A customer asked her why no one else was being stopped, and she simply shrugged and threw her hands up, showing no explanation or concern for her actions. I showed my receipt without issue, but the experience left me deeply uncomfortable and disappointed. I have shopped at this store for three years in a row, but after this incident, I will not be returning.

Fortunately, I know the proper avenues where my experience will be heard and taken seriously. I will be following those channels and filing a formal complaint because it is unacceptable that I still have to be mistreated in 2025 because of my race. It is embarrassing to this company and reflects poorly on its values and customer service.

Incidents like this not only hurt loyal customers but also damage the store’s reputation. Additionally, I noticed that the store was overcrowded and not following capacity regulations, creating a potential safety hazard.

I hope management takes this matter seriously. No customer should ever feel disrespected or discriminated against. One customer who witnessed the incident even gave me her phone number in case I decided to take this further. I truly appreciated that gesture, as it showed that others recognized the situation was wrong and supported me in speaking up.

Update: Instead of asking questions or looking into customers claims, this business shame customers for their bad experiences. There were witnesses of all races!!!! Check your cameras and take accountability!! This business response to my experience is a poor example of...

Chaotic, Overcrowded, and Misleading Policies. Beware!

I had one of the most frustrating shopping experiences at this costume store. The environment is extremely chaotic — the store is so overcrowded that it gets unbearably hot, and there’s nowhere to try anything on.

You can’t simply browse for costumes. Instead, you have to wait hours just to use one of their computers to look through their catalog, write down a code, and then find someone to retrieve the costume from a warehouse next door. With the number of people packed in there, it’s almost impossible to move around comfortably.

When I bought my costumes (~$200 worth), I specifically asked about returns or exchanges since there was no way to try them on. The staff assured me that I could exchange them for a different size if anything didn’t fit. So, I went home, tried them on, and found that one piece was too small. Everything else worked! Including shoes

When I went back- first thing on the very next day to exchange it, they refused to let me in the store after realizing I wanted to make an exchange. They told me “no returns or exchanges,” completely contradicting what they said the day before.

This place is disorganized, misleading, and lacks basic customer service. Be aware — they will say that you can exchange the size to make a sell and once you buy, you’re stuck with it, even if it doesn’t fit. I definitely won’t be returning or recommending this...

I get it it’s going to be crowded especially on the days leading up to Halloween, but that should have warranted better organization and protocols. As an indigenous Latina I have never felt more ignored and racially discriminated against than in this store.

I asked a lady for help with a costume- they only had it in X-Large. She told me to search for something else on the computer. Once I finally found something in my size, I saw that she was busy helping another girl so I went to ask someone else. She then came out of nowhere and lied to her coworker about how she was already helping me but that I decided to abandon her and that I was asking for the same costume which she already said was unavailable.

Even after explaining that it’s a different costume, both proceeded to ignore my request and went on to help other customers (white Americans and white Latinos). I then ask another girl and she said she’ll be right back with it. I waited over 30 min for her and she never came back. Meanwhile, a white Latina and her son, right next to me, got immediately helped and served by another employee.

I left because it seemed like everyone else got their costumes so fast, yet I was left waiting and waiting. I’m sorry if I messed up by asking too many people. Maybe implement a better system because I wasn’t the only one complaining about how overstimulating it...