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AN INFLUENCER has won £16,000 after Zara staff pulled back her changing room curtain as she tried on clothes.
TikToker Krystal Joyce, 20, was left distraught after a female security guard opened the partition while she was half-dressed at the store in Blanchardstown shopping centre, Dublin.
The content creator, who shares her life on the platform as an Irish traveller, was paid €20,000 in damages by Zara and the security company.
Krystal told Dublin Circuit Civil Court she had been questioned in front of other customers while standing half-dressed in her cubicle.
She claimed the security guard accused her of being “engaged in criminal activity” in front of other shoppers.
The 20-year-old argued this constituted as defamation because it could affect her image and job as an influencer.
A judge ruled in her favour and awarded the TikToker, who he said gave “honest and forthright evidence”, the large lump sum.
The court heard how Krystal asked to leave after feeling upset and embarrassed but was forced to stay on the shop floor.
Her barrister Esther Earley said she was being “interrogated” and a written report of the incident was “falsified” by the retail giant.
She said Krystal had merely been taking photos of her outfits while trying them on.
The barrister said the influencer enjoyed showing off new clothes to her followers, and sharing where they could buy them.
Judge Roderick Maguire said: “I find Ms Joyce was a truthful witness and was particularly upset because she has a social media presence through which she does her best to raise awareness for the Travelling community of which she is a member.”
He continued: “This was a public place she was used to frequenting and in the habit of trying on clothes. I accept there were other people there, and I fully accept her evidence.”
The judge also slammed Zara’s defence and testimonies from their eye-witnesses due to “glaring inconsistencies” in evidence.
Krystal was awarded €10,000 (£8k) in damages against ITX Retail Limited, which operates the Zara store.
She was given another €10,000 against Bidvest Noonan (ROI) Limited, the company from where the security guard had been sourced.
The content creator has not yet broken her silence on her ordeal.
Zara has been contacted for comment.
