A TikTok creator posting as @roamwithrachela has shared a cautionary travel story, telling viewers in a video watched more than 66,000 times that she ordered custom grillz from a shop in Tokyo, only to have weeks pass without receiving her order, leading her to warn fellow travelers that she believes she was scammed.
Her caption sets the tone with dark humor layered over genuine frustration: “Y’all come with me to get scammed in Japan. We ordered custom grillz from Ace of Jewels and, over…” the sentence trailing off before detailing the full extent of what went wrong, alongside hashtags including #japan, #tokyo, #grillz, and the shop’s name, #aceofjewels, naming the business directly in connection with her experience.
According to the creator, the order process began normally enough, with her and apparently others placing custom orders for grillz, a decorative dental accessory that requires precise measurements and custom fabrication, making the process inherently more involved than a typical retail purchase. As she describes it, the expected turnaround time came and went without her order materializing, and as the weeks continued to pass with no product delivered, her confidence in the legitimacy of the transaction eroded, ultimately leading her to characterize the experience publicly as a scam.
Custom, made-to-order purchases while traveling carry inherent risk that standard retail transactions don’t, since buyers are often required to pay upfront for a product that won’t be ready for pickup or shipping until well after they’ve left the country, removing the option of simply returning to the shop in person if something goes wrong. The creator’s experience highlights this particular vulnerability, an extended production timeline that outlasted her ability to easily follow up in person, leaving her reliant on remote communication with the shop to resolve an order that, by her account, never arrived.
Travel scam warning content has become an important subgenre within travel creation, with creators increasingly using their platforms to flag specific businesses or common scam patterns in popular tourist destinations, hoping to spare other travelers from similar experiences. By naming the shop directly, the creator’s video functions both as a personal account of her own frustration and as a practical warning aimed at anyone considering a similar custom purchase while visiting Tokyo.
The video’s reach suggests her warning found an audience among travelers either planning trips to Japan or generally interested in avoiding similar custom-order pitfalls while abroad.
The Takeaway
Travel experts generally advise caution with any custom or made-to-order purchase abroad, particularly ones requiring a deposit or full payment before the item is ready, since the buyer typically has little recourse once they’ve left the country if the order goes unfulfilled. Researching a shop’s reputation through recent, verifiable reviews before committing to a custom order, using a credit card rather than cash or a direct transfer when possible for added dispute protection, and getting a clear, written timeline and contact method for follow-up can all reduce the risk of an unresolved transaction. If an order does fall through, filing a dispute with the payment provider promptly, and documenting the transaction and communications thoroughly, gives travelers the best chance of recovering their money after the fact.
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