TikToker says shoppers at a New Jersey mall were told a free gift card promotion had already ended hours before opening

Shoppers at the Menlo Park Mall in New Jersey had a frustrating morning after finding out that a gift card giveaway had already ended hours before the mall even opened. The giveaway was said to be advertised for the 10:00 AM opening time, but people who showed up as early as 8:00 AM left with nothing.

The story spread widely on TikTok after a user named coolvintagejeans posted a video of the scene. The creator wrote in the post, “Free gift cards were supposed to be handed out at opening (10:00 am), we got there at 8 and were told the gift cards were gone by 4 am😭”. The video has been viewed more than 3.6 million times, showing how surprised people were by the early cutoff.

When the store stayed closed, a large group gathered outside to ask what happened. A notice on the door said the promotion had already ended, and that the first 100 people had already received their gift cards. This did not satisfy the crowd, and one woman in the video can be heard accusing the store of misleading customers. She pointed out that handing out the cards at 4:00 AM was long before normal store hours that most shoppers expect.

Police were called to the mall as the crowd grew frustrated

The disagreement turned into a tense standoff, and according to the video, local police were called to the scene. New Jersey officers reportedly talked with store staff and accepted their explanation for what happened. The police then told the crowd to leave, explaining that the mall allows early walkers inside before the stores officially open for the day.

Online, the incident has led to a big debate about whether the store was honest about how the giveaway was handled. One commenter asked, “If the mall opens at 10 am, who the heck was at the store working at 4 am to hand out those gift cards? Something isn’t right here.” 

Another user pushed back on that idea, writing, “Yall funny sometimes retail workers come in at 4 in the morning for setting up the store for new products etc 😭”. Retail giveaways disappointing customers is not a new complaint, as seen when a fan was disappointed by a fast food meal after spending money expecting more.

Some commenters were suspicious of the staff’s role in the mix-up. One person wrote, “i know the workers kept gift cards for themselves too”, while another questioned the whole point of the giveaway, asking, “Isn’t it for customers? How would they be a customer if they didn’t open until 10am???” 

A third commenter suggested a simple way to clear things up, writing, “Ask security. They would know.” Not everyone took the situation seriously, with one commenter joking, “All this for a 20 dollar gift card 💀😂”. 

The store has not given any other public statement beyond the notice posted on its door. It is also unclear how the first 100 winners were chosen or confirmed, or whether mall security had any role in managing the early crowd. Giveaway promotions causing public backlash have happened before, including a card giveaway that sparked fan backlash over how it was handled.