Is this incredibly racist or am I being sensitive

[Restaurantlover]

Have had to nc as incredibly outing.

I enquired about a blossom tree installation in my restaurant, someone got back to me with a quote and I said great what’s his timescales. He let me know a date and I told him it would be suitable but nothing yet agreed.
Next thing I know he says he requires a 50% deposit because he’s ordered the blossom for the tree.
I never asked him to order the blossom, never agreed that the work would actually be done and certainly didn’t agree to give him 50% upfront.

I’ve had to block him as he is continuously ringing and messaging me and is just being plain nasty, to both my husband and I.

I think he’s gone a step too far with this Facebook post though, the reference to scrubbing korma pans and polishing shoes just gets to me, I feel he’s being racist, we have an Indian restaurant but I don’t actually go/work there so he’s obviously made that up to be spiteful.

How convenient that the "I don't see any racist comments" brigade all start turning up after the racist comments have been deleted.

Companies house says his company was dissolved in Jan 2023 so why is he still trading under the same name.

Why was the post mentioning his company's name deleted? Obviously still watching and reporting while regretting damaging his business with his behaviour. Telling that his FB posts and fake Google review have now been deleted! Honestly, imagine using your real name. 🤦‍♀️

They've all been deleted, he's probably banned.

Another poster mentioned his business and I quoted it, and that's gone too though. It was someone who agreed he was being racist.
Like if I were to say in this post what his business was called, it'd likely be deleted too.

His business is dissolved he is trading illegally and needs reporting.

He isn’t trading illegally, he just doesn’t have a limited company anymore. What he’s done is bad enough but this isn’t true.

What a shitshow. The amount of openly racist and then the amount of covertly racist posts is stomach churning.

I hope you’re ok Op.

Can he continue to trade under the same name though?

Really?! I genuinely thought it was illegal for a dissolved company to keep trading.

No. Really don't think he can.

@Restaurantlover I’m so that this has happened and that all the usual mumsnet deniers have appeared. I hope you get the police involved. These people are disgusting.

According to Companies House, HMRC etc - absolutely not.

Bravo OP for calling out this abhorrent fool.

Well his website is badly in need of a copy editor. And that's before we start on the 'trees'.

There has been a misunderstanding. BUT nobody in their right mind would start production if they have not received a deposit! Especially when large sums of money are involved
His messages are really vile.
And yes it is racist.
Why not leave it at scrubbing pans? And if you weren't even at the restaurant, why lie?
Was anybody polishing their shoes at the restaurant?

Did no one like the 'trees drawn onto a poor photo of a restaurant interior using MS Paint' mock ups?

I thought they were spectacularly classy and couldn't wait to give the man 8K for some naff fake trees...

He's got a grand total of 0 followers on twitter.

I think both are not right in how they handled things. For me I read the OP and wouldn't see as racist and the fact they lost all that money they felt over their thoughts over it being the wider issue and lashed out in anger. Unless there's a deeper meaning behind the shoe comment, I could view it differently and become more educated on the subject at hand. I'm not "conventially intelligent" but open minded to seeing why it's racism or could be seen as this. I was most surprised (above anything else) at the slur's on the thread of if you don't see it as racism, you're "thick" vibe and I think that is WAY more awful and prejudiced over reading over people like me who do fall lower into the bell curve over it. Not everyone CAN be intelligent/have the means to secure the kind of life most seem to have here over the community.

No one really cares about prejudice over many groups of people as we're still having to debate over the right language of x, Y or Z. Or the people that have the tools to stick up for themselves better.

I thought they were spectacularly classy and couldn't wait to give the man 8K for some naff fake trees...

Using wood responsibly sourced from <checks notes> ancient woodlands.

Thanks, but I think I'll go for a walk in the park.

Had a look on Insta. They really aren’t very nice trees at all. Was sorely tempted to leave a nasty review but couldn’t quite do it.

If he wanted a deposit or money up front then he should have asked for it beforehand as part of the contract, not just presented you with a bill. And the contract should be in written form. I think you were both slightly unprofessional in not firming that up beforehand.

And his facebook post is most definitely racist and shocking. I think the reference to polishing shoes is intended to be belittling. I'm sorry that happened to you.

Sorry, that should be suistanably sourced wood which offers so many benifets. And yes, I know it's really poor form to criticise SPAG and I know my own isn't perfect. But when someone cuts corners and doesn't bother to spellcheck stuff on their website, you do start to ask whether they pay attention to detail and what else they don't bother checking.

He did say (elsewhere) that he had asked for a deposit up front - we only have the OP's word for it that he didn't, and whilst my inclination is not to believe a racist arsehole, I still don't follow exactly what the timeline was as the OP has not been clear.

After all if you quote someone for something and they make NO agreement for you to do the work, why would you start the work or chase for payment. I do vaguely believe he was told to do the work and promised payment. How much and when... who knows.

All the discussion/mention of the OP's husband being 'good for the money' does indicate that. Ditto the argument about the deposit % really - after all if someone is so shoddy and asking such a huge deposit you don't want to work with them you'd end the interaction there and then - not leave them under the impression that you want them to carry out the work (and agreeing a price and setting a date does seem to be the case!).

It is stupid to start work without a deposit but I can see how someone desperate for work (perhaps because they run a shoddy business and are shit at business in general!) might start work based on a promise, rather than on actual payment in hand.

A very common reason Ltd companies are dissolved is to write off big losses or unpaid bank loans. You can continue doing business as a Sole Trader/Sole Proprietor. But not sure whether you’re allowed to pocket all the profits or if some of that goes back to creditors from your liquified company.

If a person can afford retail premises at One Canada Square, why can't they afford a decent website?

onecanadasquare.co.uk/