When bakery-owner Hillary Assael got a private message from Bethenny Frankel’s assistant asking her to make a ‘huge custom cake’ for the reality star’s 55th birthday, she was ecstatic.
Back in November, Assael thought it would be a great opportunity for her small business, Sugar Hi, to get some publicity.
Her employees labored over the extravagant Scarface-themed multi-layer cake, which she estimated to be worth $4,000, before she then had a staffer travel over four hours to deliver it.
Assael assumed that the hard work would be worth it in the end, and couldn’t wait to see how many customers she would get after Frankel posted it to her more than four million followers.
But her excitement soon turned to frustration when she saw that the businesswoman had shared numerous photos and reels of her celebration without so much as a mention of Sugar Hi, despite the cake appearing in many of the pictures and videos from the evening.
While Frankel’s glam squad, DJ, venue and photographer were credited in several captions, Assael told the Daily Mail that her business was not appropriately mentioned until ‘a day or two later,’ when she claimed that Frankel added her tag to one of the posts.
Six months on from the ordeal, she has seen a now-viral post about another small business owner with a similar tale, and said she finally feels brave enough to lambast Frankel publicly.
Speaking exclusively to the Daily Mail, Assael explained she felt jilted by the self-made entrepreneur when she didn’t shout out the brand – even though she recognized her mistake in not initiating a pre-written arrangement with Frankel or her team.
Bethenny Frankel at her birthday party, standing next to her custom cake by Sugar Hi – the co-owner of which, Hillary Assael, slammed Frankel, claiming she didn’t get appropriate credit on social media
‘If she’s reaching out and asking people to do things for her or expecting free product, then she should 100 percent pay it forward,’ Assael told the Daily Mail.
‘I adored Bethenny and really looked up to her. I bought so much stuff that she has influenced me on, but I think it’s just bad behavior.’
In a video shared to Sugar Hi’s Instagram page on Tuesday, Assael alleged that Frankel’s representative had approached her for the cake via DM and had ‘offered to pay,’ but she felt the offer was worded in a way where ‘you know they don’t mean it.’
‘[Her team wrote:] “Are you sure you can’t let us pay for this or give you a deposit?”‘ Assael told the Daily Mail. ‘It was like, one of those. And the truth is, when somebody wants to pay you, they do. If I had quoted them a price, they were gonna go somewhere else. I said, “No, we’re happy for the opportunity [to provide the cake free of charge].”‘
She said in the video that she asked for Frankel to please tag the business if she posted it online.
The baker also noted that Frankel’s team said they could not guarantee her brand would be tagged, and said in her video that she ‘took a gamble as a business owner.’
Knowing the risk, Assael proceeded and had her best decorator flown from New York to Boca Raton, where the bakery is located, to make Frankel’s cake. She also added that it took four hours of driving each way to drop the showstopper off in Miami, where Frankel’s party was held.
‘The next day, Bethenny posted the cake everywhere,’ Assael continued, claiming that Frankel had tagged her venue, photographer, glam team and videographer but did not initially tag Sugar Hi.
‘Eventually we got tagged after tons of people were asking where the cake was from,’ she said.
Frankel’s birthday cake at her party – Assael’s employees labored over the extravagant Scarface-themed multi-layer confection
Assael told followers about her experience via Instagram video. She said the cake was worth $4,000 and she thought it would be a great opportunity for her small bakery business to get some publicity
Frankel at her party standing next to the Sugar Hi cake, which Assael claimed she was eventually given credit for in the form of a tag on Frankel’s already-live Instagram post
‘And honestly, we got no business from it. No followers.’
The Daily Mail has reached out to Frankel’s representative for comment.
Assael blasted Frankel for her ‘entitlement’ and claimed she never heard so much as a thank you from the reality star after she delivered the freebie.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, Assael voiced her regret over not having a contractual agreement with Frankel’s team in place.
‘I wish I didn’t have to learn my lesson the hard way,’ she said. ‘It’s sort of a wink and a nod and a handshake in this business of influencing.
‘I think that failure, or learning from your mistakes, is part of being successful and growing – and I’m happy to have them. I learned a lot from it.’
Assael said she would ‘love’ an apology from Frankel but is not expecting one.
‘I would love it because that means growth on her part too, right?’ she said. ‘Would it be nice? Sure. Am I expecting it? Absolutely not.’
What bothered Assael the most was not the loss of revenue from making Frankel’s cake but the ‘lack of acknowledgement.’
‘Not even a thank you, and that’s entitlement,’ she said in her video.
Frankel celebrated her 55th birthday at ZZ’s Club in Miami, Florida, on November 15
Assael went on to claim that Frankel requested her services again just two weeks ago. But the business owner said she was ultimately ghosted when she asked the television personality to come collect the cake rather than sending another employee to deliver it.
‘Plot twist, two weeks ago she DMs me again asking for a gift for a billionaire friend who [was having a party for their] granddaughter,’ she claimed, saying the message came from Frankel’s Instagram account.
‘This time, instead of offering delivery, I said, “When do you want to pick it up?” Oh surprise, she ghosted me, which tells you everything you need to know.
‘Oh, and the best part is, I’m literally best friends with the billionaire’s sister so thanks for the “favor” – for thinking you’re giving me access to people.’
Assael told the Daily Mail she has now been blocked by Frankel on the platform. ‘She blocked me personally, my business, my daughter,’ the baker claimed.
She insisted that her complaints aren’t solely aimed at Frankel but at influencer behavior in general.
A source told Daily Mail that Frankel and her team ‘have paid for cakes from this baker and tagged her in the past.’
When asked about the claim, Assael told the Daily Mail she was unaware of any prior purchases. ‘If they’ve come in and paid, it wasn’t her, and they did not say who they were,’ she said.
Frankel at her birthday party in Miami in November
Assael’s account comes just days after Alexia ‘Lexi’ Ioannou, the daughter of Real Housewives of New Jersey alum Dina Cantin, née Manzo, alleged that the Skinnygirl founder failed to promote her fashion brand, Nou.
Ioannou berated Frankel after she saw the star had worn shoes that she had been gifted by Nou.
Rather than crediting Nou in a photo posted to her Instagram Stories, Frankel instead directed followers to a similar shoe with an affiliate link.
Ioannou voiced her upset in a video shared online in which she called Frankel a ‘weirdo.’
‘I sent her a pair of shoes from Nou almost a year ago because I look up to her,’ she said. ‘[She is a] female entrepreneur, [from the] Bravo universe, like me.
‘I guess she’s got to get that bag in some sort of way? So, she got the shoes for free from a woman-founded brand, mine, and then she made money sending her followers somewhere else.’
Frankel later responded to Ioannou’s claims, stating that she read the label on the shoes in what was, at the time, a forthcoming video of the outfit.
‘I don’t usually respond to things like this, but I think there’s a business lesson here,’ she also said in her reply.
‘I have stated multiple times, you send me something I have no obligation to link, like, use, wear, buy, tag. I can do whatever I want.
‘Playing the short game and whining and being a cry-baby about something that didn’t go your way in business means you’re not a real businessperson and you have a lot to learn.
‘I would’ve worn all of the shoes on your site and you would’ve sold thousands of pairs and made hundreds of thousands of dollars.
‘My account, my body, my choice. Once you send those shoes into my house, my shoes. You’re welcome.’
