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MAFS bride Bec Zacharia has emotionally declared her livelihood “is gone” and her life “crumbled” after having her Instagram pages deactivated amid a furore over comments she made during a red carpet interview.
Speaking to The Gloss Podcast during Australian Fashion Week, Bec claimed that she spent more than $20,000 during her time on Married at First Sight, and was the “only bride” to have “bought her own dresses” on the show.
The comments didn’t sit well with two designer dress hire companies who subsequently accused her of misleading fans.
Savannah Lee, the owner of RESRVD – which supplied Bec with the dress she wore to the Final Vows – told WHO that she had sent multiple gowns for the bride to try, with the hire price valued at more than $9450, and the retail price more than $30,000.
Another hire company – Sustainably Dress Hire – also claimed to have dressed her for the show.
Hours before her Instagram accounts were deactivated, Bec posted an apology online, explaining that Final Vows was “one of the most emotional difficult days I’ve ever experienced”.
“There was never any intention to overlook or disrespect Savannah & @resrvdhire and I sincerely apologise that it came across that way. In the chaos and emotion surrounding that time, I simply didn’t handle it perfectly,” she wrote.
Explaining more to Daily Mail, Bec revealed the fallout from the furore had left her facing financial ruin from not having access to her Instagram accounts.
“This is my only form of income, and that has now been taken away from me,” Bec told the outlet.
“I am a small business now. All of the deals that I’ve got going on rely on me having my Instagram, and the hate that I’m getting every five minutes, I’m getting abuse.”
Bec did tag Savannah from RESERVD in a post featuring her Final Vows gown on her burner Instagram account, and was “under the impression she was happy with what I did”.
She also claimed the comments she made about spending $20,000 during her time on the show had been misconstrued.
“I didn’t say I spent $20,000 on dresses. That’s not what I said,” she explained. “Over the whole four months of the experience, that’s the money I spent.”
“When I said I dressed myself, I curated my looks for commitment ceremonies, dinner parties, accessories. It was never intended to not mention my Final Vows wedding dress. It just didn’t come to mind in that moment.
“It was a one-minute-and-thirty-second interview,” the reality star added. “’It wasn’t maliciously intended at all.”
She is now desperate for Meta to reinstate her accounts so she can continue working.
“My small business is now completely gone. It’s my livelihood,” Bec told the outlet. “I just need my Instagram back.”
In separate comments to News.com.au, Bec said: “I’m new to this. I’m learning. It’s an honest mistake. I’ve apologised and said I never intended to upset her. But I think the problem is that it’s just not stopping now.
“My life is crumbled, and I can’t get away from abuse.”
One person having no trouble using Instagram to embrace new and lucrative opportunities is Bec’s outspoken MAFS rival Gia Fleur, who weighed in on the furore surrounding Bec’s blunder by posting her own video shoutout to RESRVD and Sustainably Dress Hire and another hire company, The Couture Sisters.
“On the show you are essentially gifted rental dresses for each week for dinner parties and it’s a lot. If we had to buy these dresses it would be a lot every week,” she explained in her video.
“I did see a little video of somebody… saying that they were buying $20,000 worth of dresses and I’ve got to call bulls**t on that because that person in particular I know hired these dresses, and I just think credit where credit is due.”
Gia herself was recently unveiled as the face of the high-profile Ms Collins’ Winter Showcase, posing for a photoshoot in a custom Aron Katona gown worth $1500, with Christian Louboutin heels and a Gucci bag.
With high profile celebrity agent Max Markson as her publicist, she appears to be one of the few stars from this season of MAFS turning their reality show stint into a lucrative new chapter.
“Usually cast members come off the show with huge Instagram growth, management deals, fashion partnerships and endless influencer opportunities,” a source previously told Daily Mail.
“This year feels very different. The market is oversaturated, brands are more cautious, and contestants are having to hustle much harder for deals.”
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