Plumbing business owner Coty Travis (@cotytravis) showed up at a car dealership ready to buy something for his daughter.

He’d already researched the SUV, knew exactly how much he’d put down, and had the means to purchase it that day.

But the salesman made the proverbial mistake in judging a book by its cover.

Car Salesman Judges A Book By Its Cover And It Backfires

In the TikTok with over 35,300 views, Travis had to teach a car salesman a lesson for judging him.

“I had to teach the dumbest car salesman a lesson today,” Travis begins.

Travis makes note of his appearance may not come off as wealthy, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have money to spend. 

“And look, it’s cold where I’m at. I have a plumbing business. I’ve got mud on me. I’ve got a hoodie on, I got my plumbing jacket and my hat,” Travis shares.

Once arriving at the dealership, Travis walked around the lot and noticed none of the salesmen were giving him any attention. 

“I couldn’t get nobody to talk to me,” Travis continues.

Eventually a salesman came over and informed him that he wanted to look at an SUV. 

“Hey, I wanna look at this little SUV,’” he says. 

Travis believes the salesman began to imply that perhaps the vehicle was out of his price range. 

“I could tell they’re judging me. And I’m thinking, ‘This dude maybe makes $1,500 a week because he ain’t selling no cars.’ I make more money in a day than he makes in a month, and he’s judging me” he said. 

The two have a short back-and-forth. 

“Sir, you’re telling me this is not affordable for me?” Travis confronts

“Well, I mean, this is pricey,” the salesman replied.

“You know me?” Travis questions

“No,” the salesman replied. 

That is where it turns left, and he gets petty: “I said, ‘You might need to Google me. Google me right now.’”

Travis Turned It Up A Notch

“Hold on a second. Come with me. What do you drive?” Travis asks. 

The car salesman pointed at his 2005 Maxima. 

“You ain’t selling a lot of cars, obviously. You see my truck right there? That truck costs more than probably all the cars that all you guys at work here drive. I’ve got five tools in there worth more than your vehicle. And you’re gonna judge me?” Travis confronts. 

This could’ve been an easy sale as Travis already decided he wanted this car. However, Travis walked away after this assumption of his wealth was made. 

“I was willing to buy this car… I already knew how much money I was putting down and I knew everything. And you’re gonna ruin the sale” he continued. 

Clearly frustrated, Travis takes one last jab at the salesman. 

“That’s why you’re driving that old beat-up car right there. Remember, don’t judge people. You’re a [expletive],” Travis concludes.

Is It A Good Idea To Judge Customers Walking In?

There has long been a precedent for these situations.

According to Motor Trend, a car salesman revealed that every person who sets foot on a car lot is instantly “pre-qualified,” or judged. These judgements are made based on their car, their race, and appearance. Some salespeople believed that certain demographics were “a waste of a salesman’s time.”

“If you’re white, driving a nice car, and wearing nice clothes, you won’t have any trouble finding someone to help you. If you’re black or Hispanic, driving an older car, and not so well-dressed, you might have a little trouble rounding someone up.” per Motor Trend.

However, making this assumption can backfire and can lose a business deal similar to the situation with Travis. 

While Travis represented the blue collar workforce, some truly wealthy people often dress casually or poorly, LifeHack reports. 

“They prefer to look at efficiency rather than immediate satisfaction,” per LifeHack.

One of the examples featured one of the richest men in Virginia. This man “always dressed like he only had a few bucks to spend per month on clothing.” This look included extremely muddy boots that made people think he worked in the field. But this wasn’t the case.

So before making any judgements on a customer’s wealth, it’s best to not assume anything because you never know.

Commenters Chimed In

The viewers had much to say about Travis’s ordeal in the comment section.

“Try being a woman,” one TikTok commenter quipped. 

“I went to a Ford dealership with my husband, and the salesman refused to talk to me. I make six figures and I was the one buying the car, so I walked away.” another added. 

While one viewer tried another route of pettiness: “[It happened to me too] Except I didn’t leave and found the newest salesman on the lot and an hour later drove off in a new F-250 Platinum.” one shared. 

But the best comment came from a lesson learned as a child.

“My mother would want my Daddy to change out of his work clothes before going to buy something.. Daddy said, ‘I make it this way, I’m going to spend it this way,’” one shared. 

MotorBuscuit reached out to Coty Travis (@cotytravis11) for more information.

@cotytravis11 Had to teach a bad car salesman a lesson at a big dealership! What do you drive? ?? Don't judge a tradesman. They got the green.#tiktok #bluecollar #tradesman #tennessee ♬ original sound – CotyTravis