People in Toronto mistaking U of T Anthropology department for Anthropologie store
The names may sound alike but the U of T Anthropology department doesn't sell overpriced look-alike heirlooms or pseudo-bohemian blouses.
That doesn't stop people from calling the university's Anthropology department on a fairly regular basis looking for Anthropologie, the clothing and lifestyle store in West Queen West, according to U of T administrative and communications assistant Matt Blair.
"Yes, it's true that we do periodically get calls from Anthropologie customers who have Googled the wrong number," Blair told blogTO in an email. "It's never an inconvenience or a disruption."
But after getting the latest call on Wednesday this week, Blair decided to put out a tweet to clear up the confusion.
Good morning! A friendly reminder that we unfortunately cannot assist you with any @Anthropologie purchases at any of their Toronto clothing stores. We are the Department of Anthropology at the University of Toronto. Thank you and good luck.
— U of T Anthropology (@UofT_Anthro) February 3, 2021
"I thought I'd tweet a quick disclaimer for fun before getting down to work," he said.
The tweet ended up generating discussion, nearly 2,000 retweets and more than 20,000 likes.
Can I still message you for fashion advice though?
— PatrickDCL (@PatrickDLucht) February 4, 2021
The comments ranged from intellectual to humorous.
"What if I want to return an ill-fitting cultural expectation? Which manager can I speak to?" one person joked.
curious how many times this happened to necessitate a public reminder?
— a s (@_girlvsbrunch) February 4, 2021
"I am sorry, the manager responsible for cultural expectations is no longer with us," another person responded.
What if I want to spend my social and cultural capital? Can you help with that?
— James Rosen-Birch 🛸🔮🛠 (@provisionalidea) February 4, 2021
Most commenters mixed the store's style and the university's academia.
"But I need a peasant blouse now...and the analysis of the 'bohemian' trend of the last twenty years and how it can maliciously appropriate different marginalized communities," one person posted.
Do you have any faculty who specialize in material culture?
— Janet Elizabeth Childerhose, PhD (@JEChilderhose) February 5, 2021
Other people worried students were calling the store mistaking it for the university.
Omg I hope people haven’t been messaging @Anthropologie asking to waive prerequisites so they can get into the Anthro major
— Stephanie Nakamata (@nakamataStef) February 4, 2021
Most people just found the tweet really funny.
Bahahahahah that’s hilarious 🤣
— Sabrina Grossi (@SabrinaGrossi6) February 4, 2021
And people congratulated Blair for a job well-done.
You win Twitter today. 😀
— Christine March (@Kitsilano65) February 4, 2021
For Blair's part, he never expected all the attention for one tweet.
"We did not at all expect it to take off in the way that it did," he said.
blogTO
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