A man buys three limited-edition BrüMate cups at Target after two failed trips, then says a woman stopped him on the way out and demanded them back

A TikTok creator says he made three trips to Target for the limited BrüMate cups tied to ACOTAR. But after finally buying three, he says a woman stopped him and demanded that he return them.

The creator, who posts on TikTok as Patrick Myers, posted the video from his car. More than 35,000 people have viewed the video since he posted it. He says he had already checked out and was leaving the store when a woman approached him and “demanded that I return them.” The encounter ended with him being “escorted” back to the desk.

He opens the clip by saying he has “a slight problem.” According to him, the cups were not on the shelves during his first visit, even though TikToks suggested otherwise. He says staff told him to try again on the second. When he went back then, he says, he was told to return on Sunday.

The third trip finally pays off

He says he arrived at 8 a.m. and found a man stocking shelves with the cups. He asked whether he could take them straight from the box. The man told him to “go for it,” he says, so he grabbed three.

The dates appear to point to early October. The creator says he was told to come back on the second, which fell on a Friday, and then returned the following Sunday, Oct. 4.

Target’s ACOTAR collection was not set to launch until Oct 11, according to Time Out, which may explain why the store wanted the cups back. The retailer describes the ACOTAR merchandise as a limited-edition collection, with nearly 85% of the assortment available only at Target. The lineup includes BrüMate’s Starfall and Cursebreaker drinkware, along with clothing, jewelry, fragrances, games and other collectibles tied to the series.

Towards the end of the video, he shows the original Target receipt, with the BrüMate cups listed on it. He then shows a second receipt from the return, which appears to show the cups were returned.

The video does not show the interaction itself. He says “some lady” approached him “after I already checked out,” but he does not identify her or explain why she wanted the cups returned. Disputes over scarce merch at Target have come up before. He ends the video by saying, “I’m running out of time.”

Many commenters sided with him. One wrote that “they can’t force you to return them, once you pay it’s your property not targets.” Another said “it seems like every target is different,” and described a store where cups were stocked after staff had been told they could not sell them. A third wrote “Per brumate they are allowed to sell 10/4 online will be 10/11 they shouldn’t have made you return them.” That claim could not be independently verified.

Limited-edition cups have caused their own shopping scrambles before. A recent Snoopy-themed cup release at Starbucks led to a confrontation after one customer was accused of cutting the line.

For now, the creator’s account and the receipts he shows are the only evidence available. Target has not publicly commented on the incident, and the woman who stopped him has not been identified.