Chef Pii, who went viral in 2022 for the invention of her Pink Sauce, is now speaking out about the trajectory of her business after her sauce launched in Walmart stores late last year. The business owner began a partnership with Dave’s Gourmet to help her get her product on store shelves nationwide, but she is now saying that the company has not paid her and she is going broke.
Chef Pii’s Newest Challenge With The Pink Sauce
Chef Pii, whose name is Veronica Shaw, has recently shared a GoFundMe campaign asking for donations, with a goal of $100,000. On the site, she detailed her struggles.
“As a young entrepreneur with big dreams, I followed my intuition and went forth toward my dreams to create something new,” she wrote in the campaign. “I made a few mistakes on the way. Which lead me to trust a company that is trying to take everything away from me. They lied to me. They are not paying me and are not being transparent about records.”
She continues to explain, without mentioning any names directly, that the company she was working with has failed to reimburse her for marketing expenses for the Pink Sauce, which she says came out of her own pocket.
“I have been silienced and financially sabotaged,” she continued to share. “I am a single mom and I do everything for my kids. Right now I don’t even have enough money to buy my kids food on my own.”
Dave’s Gourmet has since denied the claims. In a statement made to Blavity, the company says that it is not at fault.
“Dave’s Gourmet has adhered to the terms of the agreement with Ms. Shaw. We disagree with Ms. Shaw’s allegations,” the statement read. “Dave’s Gourmet has paid Chef Pii over $120,000 to date and it continues to make all payments as due and on time based upon the terms of the contract. We’ve offered to reimburse Ms. Shaw for her lawyer’s time to go over the terms of the agreement and how it relates to the payments that were made to Ms. Shaw. She indicated that she’s open to an amicable resolution of the dispute and the parties are in discussions.”