“ i desire selena , the billionaire , can help the employee course their families , ” someone wrote in reception to Forbes ’ report , which claimed that Selena ’s mom took out a loanword so as to pay their company ’s outstanding debts .
Over the weekend,Forbespublished an article detailing the alleged financial woes ofSelena Gomez’sstartup,Wondermind.
Co-founded by Selena and her mom, Mandy Teefey, Wondermind is a“mental fitness” outletthat was launched in 2021. According toForbes, the company employs around 15 people — and while it raised $5 million at a $100 million valuation in 2022, it’s currently “in the midst of a crisis.”
Forbes alleged that Wondermind failed to pay its staff on more than one occasion; according to the outlet, two anonymous employees claimed that the company owes $60,000 to a firm it worked with in the past, while another alleged that tens of thousands of dollars are owed to freelance writers. Most recently, Forbes alleged that Wondermind missed payroll on April 30, and that employees have not been paid since.
As well as employees allegedly pretermit multiple paycheck , the retail store claimed that health benefit were suddenly whip a couple of month ago .
What’s more, Selena’s mom purportedly told employees that she took out a loan against her home to pay back the company’s outstanding debts. An insider has since alleged toPeoplethat this claim is false.
Forbes take that a spokesperson for Wondermind pronounce that the fiscal crisis has since been “ rectified , ” and that those who are owed money will receive it today .
The Forbes article has sparked huge criticism online, especially in light of Selena’s extremely wealthy status as one of America’s richest self-made entrepreneurs. Last October, theBloomberg Billionaires Indexestimated that Selena is now worth upwards of$1 billion— namely due to her brand Rare Beauty, which accounts for a large majority of her wealth. The recent piece from Forbes estimates that she’s worth $700 million.
“ She is one of the fat people in America , this is insufferable , ” one personwrote . “ Not paying them is unsufferable , ” echoedanother .
“ i hope selena , the billionaire , can facilitate the employees fertilize their families and not lose their housing , ” someone elsesaid .
Amid growing backlash, an insider purportedly toldPeoplethat Selena “immediately” took action and “invested more money” into Wondermind upon hearing about the financial crisis. “Selena has invested millions of dollars over the years into Wondermind to support her mother and their shared passion for mental health, including when she was alerted about the most recent financial setback, and immediately invested more money as she’s not involved in the day-to-day operations,” the sourceclaimed.
BuzzFeed has reached out to Selena’s reps for comment, and we’ll keep you posted if anything else unfolds.
