Jenna Leurquin has spent nearly five years building her pastry shop in Scottsdale, Arizona. Influencer Aurora Griffo—known on TikTok as ‘Glamorama’—posted a negative review of her pastries and coffee.
What Griffo did not expect was that Leurquin had another version of the events. The owner of JL Patisserie responded with a video in which she accused the influencer of asking her for free food in exchange for a favorable review, and of trying to blackmail the business when she was told there was no budget for collaborations. To refute the criticism, she showed on camera the pistachio paste imported from Italy, the European flour, and the six-month-old sourdough starter she uses in every recipe.
Leurquin’s video blew up: more than 73 million views on TikTok. Griffo tried to defend herself by denying that she acted out of spite, but the pressure did not let up, and she ended up posting a public apology acknowledging the harm she caused the pastry shop with her words.