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A content creator stumbled upon what she thought might have been a PR gift that was allegedly sent to Jennifer Hudson in a thrift shop. While some viewers worried that the brand behind the gift would be offended, the bag’s designer actually defended Hudson’s decision.
Crystelle Charles (@hicrystelle) posted the video of her finding a Sonique Saturday bag that retails between $230 and $530. In her video, she claimed to have even found a handwritten letter inside the purse addressed to “Ms. Jennifer Hudson.”
“I hope you enjoy this as much as I enjoyed making it for you,” Saturday had written.
While Charles was clearly thrilled with her find, the video received some mixed reactions from viewers who assumed from the handwritten note that the singer-songwriter had donated the PR package without even checking inside.
“This is soooo messy!” posted one commenter. “The note didn’t need to be posted on social media. I hope this doesn’t hurt or cause pain to Sonique. Smh.”
“I feel sorry for the individual who sent her this bag. They have to find out via social media, that she tossed it,” wrote another.
But Saturday was not upset about the video nor by the idea that Hudson would have donated her purse. In an interview with TMZ, Saturday clarified that the bag was from 2014 and that Hudson’s team had actually purchased it as a gift for the singer.
Saturday also told TMZ that she viewed the viral moment as an opportunity to highlight a Black-owned business and holds no grudges against Hudson.
It’s not completely clear how or why the bag ended up in a thrift shop, but if Hudson was overwhelmed with gifts, it wouldn’t be a surprise. Many PR companies have been accused of using wasteful packaging to market their products.
Not only are the products themselves often wasted, but there is also the packaging — part of the PR branding and appeal – that creates waste, too. For instance, a 2022 report by Traackr found that “inefficiencies and product waste” among PR products sent to influencers “run rampant.”
According to the report, over 61% of marketers responsible for the PR packages and products sent to influencers reported that less than 50% of the influencers who receive gifted items even post them to social media, let alone use them. And yet, marketers continue to lavish products on influencers, with 65% of the marketers saying their brand will continue to send gifts to an influencer, even if said influencer doesn’t post about the product.
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“Not only does this indicate that brands are wasting valuable time and money, it has major implications for the negative impact that product seeding campaigns can have on the environment,” the report concluded. “This notion of toxic consumerism and wasteful gifting is well documented in the industry, and should be top of mind for all brands considering running product seeding campaigns.”
Real-life influencers agree. “The reality that I’ve realized my first year being an influencer is that the waste and PR packages is so incredibly high,” Isaias Hernandez (@queerbrownvegan), an environmental educator and content creator, told Gizmodo in 2022.
If influencers are overwhelmed by PR gifts and products, one can only imagine how many gifted items celebrities receive. And as @issa.princess_____ pointed out, despite any misgivings some people have about the situation, it does appear this is at least one case of an unwanted celebrity item going to good use:
“at least she donated it… just imagine keeping every handbag you get gifted as a celebrity,” they wrote. “what was she gonna do give the handbag back to the person who gifted it to her? Like come on lol”
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