An Aussie makeup artist has shared her chilling experience with an obsessive customer that has left residents around the world stunned.
Melbourne woman Danielle Hendricks said she received an inquiry from a customer who wanted to make a 'birthday' booking for a hair and makeup appointment.
What followed was a bizarre interaction that involved the customer asking for Ms Hendricks' address, questioning if the pair could be friends, and then creating fake bookings while warning the makeup artist she wouldn't know which one was real.
Ms Hendricks was so taken aback by the entire ordeal that she nicknamed the customer 'Birthday Reindeer' - a homage to 'Baby Reindeer', which is a popular Netflix series about a stalker infatuated with a young comedian.
She has documented her ordeal on TikTok, with her story going global and social media users claiming they are watching her videos from countries like Singapore, Kenya and South Africa.
Ms Hendricks had settled on a date to do the customer's hair and makeup after she received the initial message.
The pair agreed the service would cost $250, and Ms Hendricks sent across the details of the booking for August 24 along with a request for a small deposit.
But the customer said she could not pay the deposit, claiming she had issues with the bank, and asked for a small ‘birthday discount’, adding she had been ‘scammed’ by makeup artists before.
Successful Melbourne make-up artist Danielle Hendricks (above) shared a disturbing exchange with a potential client with 5million viewers online
Ms Hendricks, who had maintained a professional tone, said that was when alarm bells began to ring.
'Being in this industry for so long and being recognised as a reputable sole trader business, most people who enquire with me trust me and send me a deposit right away. The interaction is usually no more than 4 messages in total,' she told the Daily Mail.
The customer sent several further enquiries, promising she would ‘definitely come’, and asked for the artist’s address.
Ms Hendricks had previously shared her address with the customer for the booking, but later edited the iMessage to redact her street and property number.
Following a further exchange, the makeup artist said she would make an exception about the deposit and added, ‘I don’t know what else you want’.
‘Okay, I understand. Thank you lovely x,’ the customer replied.
‘Appreciate it. Can we be friends?’
Ms Hendricks shared the video with 5.1million viewers on TikTok who were immediately concerned for her safety.
The makeup artist (pictured) faced threats after sharing the details of her interaction with the unnamed client, she revealed
Ms Hendricks (pictured) said she tried to maintain a professional attitude throughout the interaction, despite the client's bizarre claims and attempts to hassle her business
‘This thread has just been red flag after red flag,' Ms Hendricks said.
'I can't think of a single green flag aside from her desperation that she really wants a makeup artist, because why else would you message someone so much? But I really think this person is having a laugh.
‘I don't know what this is. Would you cancel this booking, and how would you go about it because of this? I don't know if I want to even meet this person.’
Social media sleuths claimed the customer was a woman who had been accused of running a business that had failed to send products to clients.
They claimed the client also set up fundraisers online, claiming she needed help for medical assistance and food, and had begged viewers for help on TikTok live videos.
One messaged Ms Hendricks, accusing the client of being a scammer.
Ms Hendricks revealed the customer had found her online booking form and inundated her with several phony bookings under fake names.
She warned the makeup artist she wouldn't know which ones were real.
Ms Hendricks adjusted her booking system to require a deposit upon scheduling to weed out the client's messages.
The would-be client asked if the pair 'could be friends' after arranging the booking before turning on Ms Hendricks after a video detailing their bizarre exchange went viral (pictured)
She said she then faced backlash from the customer after ‘spreading awareness’ of the issue.
The client - who Ms Hendricks said is ‘well-known to police’ - messaged the makeup artist about her TikTok videos.
‘I didn’t realise she actually messaged me on Friday night,’ Ms Hendricks said.
‘It was just “I have a question”, and I said, “let me guess, you want to be friends”.
‘And she said, “the post about the makeup, I’d like you to delete it because it wasn’t me, it was my sister messaging you, and if you don’t delete it, I’ll take you to the police for posting stuff without my consent or permission, and I’ll make you lose your job”.’
Ms Hendricks, who is self-employed, said she never shared any information directly about the client and had just raised awareness about the issue.
‘I said “multiple people are the ones who informed me about you, so please do go to the police if you like, I’d be interested to know who they think the real criminal is”,’ the makeup artist said.
‘And then she says, “I’ll be going to the police if it’s not deleted by today, I’ve got your address details and information as well, plus TikTok and photos”.
Ms Hendricks shared another screenshot of the exchange over text
‘I was planning to give the police my address anyway so they know which house to protect.’
Ms Hendricks joked that, ‘aside from the threats’, the client had been ‘relatively polite’.
She said she had everything to support her case and was not afraid of the client.
‘I haven’t really done anything, I was just telling a funny story online and then it developed into me spreading awareness about this person who does all of these weird scams just to get a bit of money from people,’ she said.
‘I’m confident in my strength, and I’m also confident that I’ve done nothing wrong.’
Social media users were left horrified by Ms Hendricks' experience.
‘I'm sorry you’re going through this,' one wrote.
'As someone who has been stalked before, try not to mention any similarities like having the ‘same police station’ or the name of the area you both live in - people are crazy and can use the smallest details to find out your (information).'
‘You’ve done nothing wrong. She’s just added more nails to her coffin by sending threatening messages,’ another said.
‘This is like a toxic relationship you didn’t ask to be a part of,’ a third added.
Ms Hendricks told the Daily Mail she had been 'left with more questions than answers'.
'What is even more confusing is the fact that she keeps reaching out to other makeup artists in the area with a similar script,' she said.
'Does she actually want her hair and makeup done? Will someone end up locking in her booking without a deposit end will she actually rock up? Why did she ask me if we can be friends?'
She now believes the client is 'a pathological liar who would fake anything to seem at a disadvantage in the hopes of getting sympathy donations'.
'I definitely did not expect this bizarre enquiry to turn into going down this deep rabbit hole finding out who this person is and how she sits on TikTok lives all day, and scams people online.'
Ms Hendricks warned other businesses she has learned scammers will concoct fake scam stories about themselves to 'slip through the cracks'.
'Ultimately, it’s important we all put our foot down and not waver no matter what. No deposit, No booking,' she said.
