After fellow cookbook author, Alison Roman made comments about Chrissy Teigen‘s success as a cookbook author, Teigen responded with how much the comments hurt her and then it got even uglier. While talking with The New Consumer, Roman brought up Teigen as an example of what she doesn’t want her success to look like.
While talking about Teigen, Roman said compare Teigen’s cookware line and Cravings brand to selling out.
“She had a successful cookbook. And then it was like—Boom, line at Target. Boom, now she has an Instagram page that has over a million followers where it’s just, like, people running a content farm for her. That horrifies me and it’s not something that I ever want to do. I don’t aspire to that.”
Roman also made similar comments about lifestyle guru Marie Kondo. “Like the idea that when Marie Kondo decided to capitalize on her fame and make stuff that you can buy, that is completely antithetical to everything she’s ever taught you… I’m like, damn, b*tch, you f*cking just sold out immediately! Someone’s like ‘you should make stuff,’ and she’s like, “okay, slap my name on it, I don’t give a sh*t!’”
However, the difference between Kondo and Teigen is that Kondo didn’t take to social media to respond to Roman’s comments about her. Teigen did.
After the article was made public, Teigen took to Twitter to share the article and also her thoughts on what Roman had to say about her brand’s success. “This is a huge bummer and hit me hard. I have made her recipes for years now, bought the cookbooks, supported her on social, and praised her in interviews. I even signed on to executive produce the very show she talks about doing in this article.”
Further, Teigen added, “I started cravings because I wanted something for myself. I wanted something John didn’t buy, I wanted something to do that calmed me, made me happy and made others happy, too. Cravings isn’t a ‘machine’ or ‘farmed content’. It’s me and 2 other women.”
“I didn’t ‘sellout’ by making my dreams come true. To have a cookware line, to get to be a part of that process start to finish, to see something go from sketch to in my hands, I love that. To see that thing in my hand being used by people around the world makes me so happy. Watching a company grow makes me happy. I get joy from it and lots of people do. I genuinely loved everything about Alison. [I] was jealous she got to have a book with food on the cover instead of a face!! I’ve made countless NYT recipes she’s created, posting along the way.”
But Teigen didn’t stop there saying that she didn’t think she’s “ever been so bummed out by the words of a fellow food-lover. I just had no idea I was perceived that way, by her especially.” The mom of two also defended Kondo.
“It has been crappy to deal with this all day but I couldn’t not say something,” Teigen said on Twitter. “I know the actual tears I put into the work I do and it’s really hard to see someone try to completely invalidate it. Someone I really liked.”
“…So to be called a sellout….hooooo it hurts.”
Sadly, as a result of her response to Roman’s statement about her, the trolls dug their claws in even deeper. As Teigen later revealed on Twitter, somehow her two children, Luna and Miles, got brought into the situation.
“I really hate what this drama has caused this week.”
Now, Romano is apologizing for her statements. “I’ve thought a lot this weekend about my interview and the things I said. I know this is a lengthy note (succinctness has never been my strong suit). I appreciate you taking the time to read.”
And on top of her lengthy letter, Roman also made it very clear that she’s not in the business of putting other women down for her own benefit. “Hi, Chrissy Teigen! I sent an email but also wanted to say here that I’m genuinely sorry I caused you pain with what I said. I shouldn’t have used you /your business (or Marie’s!) as an example to show what I wanted for my own career- it was flippant, careless and I’m so sorry.”
“Being a woman who takes down other women is absolutely not my thing and don’t think it’s yours, either (I obviously failed to effectively communicate that). I hope we can meet one day, I think we’d probably get along.”
And Teigen later thanked Roman for her apology. “To be clear, it never once crossed my mind for u to apologize for what you genuinely thought! The comments stung, but they more so stung because they came from you! It wasn’t my usual news break of some random person hating everything about me!”
After a nearly two day break, Teigen has put her Twitter back to public and has since continued sharing videos of her and her children cooking up some delectable treats and some delicious looking pasta. Like Teigen said, “in an industry that doesn’t really lend itself to supporting more than a handful of people at a time, I feel like all we have are each other!”