Small Jewelry Business Owner Shares Harsh Email ‘Advice’ She Received From A Follower Hoping To ‘Boost Her Sales’ — ‘Don’t Take This The Wrong Way’
She thought she was being helpful but could not have been more insulting.
F8 studio | Shutterstock A small business owner shared a screenshot of what she dubbed the "worst email" she has ever received throughout her four-year career.
The customer who sent the email didn't have criticism regarding the products the woman was selling — just her physical appearance, and she believed her harsh advice would help the woman boost her jewelry sales.
The customer advised the woman to 'lose a little weight' and to 'put more effort' into her appearance to increase sales.
Leah, the owner of Ethereal Jewelry, a whimsical UK-based jewelry store, shared the insulting message she received from someone who claimed to be following her brand's social media accounts.
The email started with the sender, Helen, gushing about how beautiful the jewelry is and insisting she's qualified to offer advice because her aunt owns a "successful clothing business on TikTok."
fizkes | Shutterstock
“Don’t take this the wrong way," she wrote, "but honestly, if you lost a bit of weight and put more effort into your appearance, I think it would seriously help your brand."
“Your jewelry is stunning, and I just like it would sell even better if the person behind it looked a bit more polished," Helen continued. "Or you could hire someone more attractive to the face of it.”
“Just some honest feedback — I want to see your business grow, not you!”
The degrading email received mixed reactions in the comments.
Oddly enough, some people argued that the email sender had a valid point.
“She might actually be right,” one TikTok user wrote. “This is constructive feedback, no harm intended. At the end of the day every business wants to make sales,” another user commented.
Contrary to what some people may believe, no evidence supports the fact that the weight and appearance of jewelry business owners impact sales.
Thankfully, the majority of people were supportive of Leah being the face of her brand and urged her to ignore messages like this.
“You’re absolutely beautiful and worthy of being the face of your brand,” one TikTok user commented.
“I see a beautiful, talented, artistic woman," another kind user wrote. "Keep your head up. Don’t change; you’re amazing!"
Strangely enough, the customer’s advice did, in fact, boost Leah’s sales, just not in the way Helen intended. The viral email earned her more recognition and support — and she didn’t even have to change her appearance!
Luckily, the jewelry business owner appears to be taking the email and not-so-nice comments in stride, instead focusing on the good that has come out of it.
“I figured instead of crying all day about this email I received yesterday, I’m gonna make the most of the fact that my small business is reaching so many new people,” she said in a follow-up TikTok video before highlighting some of her favorite products.
In just one day, Leah had 74 orders placed from new and returning customers!
In another video, she addressed the rude comments she received, arguing "If you would choose not to support a business, especially one that sells jewelry, earrings, rings, necklaces, whatever, because of the shape of the seller's body, there is something wrong with you."
"There is so much hate in this world already. It really, really does cost nothing to show some people some love," she continued. "Just because I don't look like the Instagram models or size 4 people on TikTok doesn't mean that I don't deserve kindness."
Megan Quinn is a writer at YourTango who covers entertainment and news, self, love, and relationships.