Secrets Boutique - San Mateo — Local services in San Mateo

door was locked at 9:45pm even tho it clearly states on the (locked) door that the shop is supposed to close at 11pm!!!

was confused but decided to try knocking, even tho it looked empty, and to my surprise a woman did actually come to unlock/answer the door; which made me think it was just locked for safety reason or w/e & was thinking i was about to be let in…. but.. NOPE!

she gave me the (obvious bogus) excuse of that they h a d (lol!?) to close early bc of being “short-staffed”… since when would a business NOT want to make money just because of having 1 less person k they only taking cash because they were already closed (over an hour early today/march 18th)… due to being “short-staffed” and so bc of it “closed”, but then quickly added that they ARE/only accepting cash at that moment still…. umm??? “closed”, YET still taking cash??? whatever could that possibly be for???

my take on this, & ESPECIALLY being that this closing hours early trend has for some reason became a common REOCCURRING bay wise issue🤔…

i don’t have any concrete proof, so i’m assuming based on how it looks like th, unfortunately UNLESS the… well…. um…. the shall we say ridiculously attractive mid to late 30’s woman who briefly spoke with me, actually IS the owner, then it makes me think the cash would have just been pocked…. you since i was going to use apple pay i was turned away…

i’m not sure what’s going on with the adult stores in the bay area bc i’ve already come across MANY that have been doing this lately…

the repetition appears to be pointing to employees possibly getting a little too comfortable &/or owners possibly getting a little too lazy or trusting… they just lying to leave earlier and get paid without having to work and doing it behind the owners back… not only suspicious but also a waste of my time and gas driving there..

UPDATE 3/19 (next day): i assumed wrong (perfect example for why i try not to assume in general & avoid doing so when/if possible lol)… the owner clearly cares bc they replied & clarified (quickly) that actually yes they are having temporary staff issues & that it’s affecting store hours until it gets handled.. and wouldn’t mind trying again when it does… i mean that or i could just come earlier next time now that i know lol…

tldr? location has temp staff issues.. likely won’t run into any issues if you visit anytime other than near closing.

@owner ty for the update! gave an extra star (2 to 3)... if you can let me know or post an update or something on your page when you’re back to normal then i’ll again edit & add another 1-2 stars.....

Absolutely the rudest customer service I’ve ever experienced in any kind of store. The owner harassed me the entire time I was there for the crime of entering the store on the phone. She loudly proclaimed she didn’t need my business because she’s owned all the Secrets Boutiques for decades and recommended I shop online instead. I recommend other customers do the same and avoid this...

Great place! Always a great convo with the amazing lady behind the counter. They’ve even brought in product based off my recommendations! It’s on the pricier side, but they’ve got a great selection of everything and it’s right there for the taking, no waiting which to me is worth the extra...