Sobbing Brooklyn coffee shop owner goes viral on TikTok, sparks a surge of support

The internet is full of bad things — you might even posit, not entirely incorrectly, that it's become mostly bad things. But sometimes it sparks a bit of magical positivity. It actually can bring people together.

Take Buddies Coffee Roasters in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Owner Rachel, TikTok handle @its.rachel.rose, posted about her business struggles. The nearly seven-minute video is worth watching in full, but she goes in depth about her difficulties — many of which are outside her control. Her lease is running out in a few months, and the rent is set to go up. A new, seemingly corporate-owned coffee shop is moving in next door. She's worked endlessly, with no financial backing, and still won't be able to make it work.

"Today, I just got word that I might not be able to stay in the same lease because of rent increase, which is the reality for so many people," she said in the TikTok. "But not only that, right next door to me they're putting [in] a coffee shop. And I don't know if I sound so stupid, crying and complaining. But it just feels like you just can't win. The small people can't win."

It's emotional, and she sobs as she talks about her uncertain future. Rachel correctly pointed out that Williamsburg — before becoming a hipster haven turned uber-expensive luxury neighborhood — has a rich history of Puerto Rican residents. While some Puerto Rican mainstays remain — Buddies is actually just a couple blocks down from Toñita's, where Bad Bunny celebrated his recent album release — so much has disappeared. Rachel described being proud to open a new Puerto Rican-owned business in Williamsburg. 

"I won't regret posting this. It's important to see raw emotion," she said. "It's important to see... what people push through, what people have to deal with, why native New Yorkers roll their eyes at gentrification."

The TikTok took off. Her raw honesty resonated, especially with New Yorkers. It's racked up more than 3 million views. It seems like every TikTokker in New York City is posting about it. Hell, Joe Jonas commented, showed up, and posted about going to Buddies. The line was out the door just a day later.

So many people had placed online orders that Buddies' website had a pop-up notice that shipping might take longer than usual.

Soon enough, Rachel posted a thank-you for all the support, noting that "vulnerability is power." Her tearful message certainly generated a response. (Mashable reached out to Buddies and will update if we receive a response.)

It's unclear what Buddies' future might look like — but for now the present is lots and lots of business. And the internet actually did something good.