"Her fault for not taking a deposit": Internet divided as Tesla reportedly cancels $16k pie order from a San Jose bakery at last minute

By Aaron Antony

Modified Feb 23, 2024 16:33 GMT

Bakery owner claims to have incurred loss after Tesla unexpectedly cancelled on huge order (Image via Instagram/@thegivingpies, Photo by Milan Csizmadia on Unsplash)

A small San Jose, California, bakery has gone viral after losing thousands of dollars to Elon Musk's Tesla. On February 14, Valentine's Day, The Giving Pies in Willow Glen, San Jose, received an order from a Tesla representative to supply thousands worth of mini-pies for a Black History Month event. The deal was worth $16,000, and the bakery owner reportedly took extra effort to prepare the order.

However, Tesla, after initially doubling their order, allegedly canceled the order only two days after placing it, with a simple text message. The bakery owner incurred a hefty loss. Tesla had also not paid the bakery yet. A lot of social media users stated that the bakery owner should have taken a deposit or made the company sign an appropriate contract. One X user stated:

Netizens blamed the restaurant for not taking a deposit (Image via X/@abe_r_84)

Netizens blame restaurant owner for not taking a deposit for Tesla's large order

According to a social media post, Voahangy Rasetarinera, the owner of The Giving Pies in Willow Glen, San Jose, supposedly received a Valentine's Day order from a Tesla representative named Laura. She was asked to deliver thousands of pies—2000 to be exact—in a catering gig for a Black History Month event. An invoice was exchanged, and a company representative approved a quote sent by Rasetarinera.

The total cost of the order was $16,000. However, after not receiving her due payment, the restaurant owner contacted the company representative, who apologized for the vendor not paying and claimed that this was probably because they were new. According to the New York Post, the representative then doubled the order of pies, which Rasetarinera agreed to.

According to NBC Bay Area News, Rasetarinera had to make her staff work extra hours and buy the packaging materials and additional ingredients. Apart from this, the outlet reported that the restaurant owner canceled around three other orders due to Tesla's one large order.

However, Rasetarinera claimed that Tesla canned the owner with a simple text message, just a couple of days later. This led to a loss of over $16,000. Although the restaurant did have a cancellation policy, it was ineffective as the company had not paid her yet. The New York Post quoted the message that Voahangy Rasetarinera received from Tesla, which said:

"It unfortunately sounds like we will be changing plans and will not be needing this order. Thank you so much for your support I appreciate it."

Despite the loss of money for the restaurant, a plethora of social media users criticized the owner for not taking a deposit for huge pie orders and for not having an adequate contract or cancellation policy. Some even thought that the whole situation was quite suspicious.

However, a handful of users felt that Elon Musk should step in and take care of the situation.

Rasetarinera's story went viral (Image via X/@nypost)

Voahangy Rasetarinera wrote on The Giving Pies' social media post that she had left a "heartfelt message" to Laura, the representative. She wrote:

"I emphasized the disregard for the commitments made and the repercussions felt by a small business struggling to survive in a challenging economic climate. Laura's attempt to shift blame to upper management only compounded the betrayal I felt."

She added:

"To me, it was clear that Tesla's corporate culture prioritized convenience over accountability, disregarding the livelihoods of small business owners like myself. This experience serves as a stark reminder of the vulnerability faced by small businesses when dealing with larger corporations."

NBC Bay Area News mentioned that The Giving Pies is quite a popular destination for big events and companies. The bakery has provided big orders for weddings and even to companies like Google and Apple.

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