Paige Thorne has admitted she went through the “darkest time of her life” after Love Island.
The Swansea native appeared on Love Island last summer, and placed fifth alongside her former beau Adam Collard.
Just weeks after she left the villa, it was reported that the 25-year-old had signed a six-figure deal with the global fashion brand Forever Unique, which is owned by The Real Housewives of Cheshire star Seema Malhotra.
The partnership marked Forever Unique’s first collaboration with a Love Island alum.
But just seven months after their collaboration was announced, MailOnline reported that Paige was set to take legal action against the brand for an alleged breach of contract.
Goss.ie has contacted Forever Unique for a comment on this.
Paige has since broken her silence on the reports, and alleged that the collaboration turned into a “nightmare” and claimed she went through the “darkest time of her life”.
Speaking to OK! Magazine, Paige claimed: “I was literally like, ‘Oh my God, I’m owed money. Like, what am I meant to do?’ I’m a home owner and I was so stressed about paying my bills that I was crying to my parents every day, saying, ‘What am I going to do?’ I was relying on that contract so much.”
“They welcomed me into the Forever Unique family and promised me the world. I felt like everything had fallen into place, but it quickly turned into a nightmare for me.”
The Love Island star continued to allege: “Forever Unique was one of the first brands I went to go and meet with, and I chose them over some of the other options that I had due to their brand values.”
“I went to their office in Manchester, where Seema and the team couldn’t have been more accommodating and lovely,” she claimed. “They seemed to really care about the partners they worked with. They said I’d be welcomed into the team and be part of the family and if my initial collection did well, there would be talks of another one in the spring.”
“It was really exciting,” Paige recalled. “I got to pick out all of the bits for my collection, and it was just an amazing experience. I chose to go with Forever Unique because they were family run and so down-to-earth when I met them.”
The 25-year-old alleges that she fulfilled her side of their deal, and claimed that Forever Unique still owed her money, but their “responses were very, very delayed”.
“It just made me feel like, I’m not doing well enough, or they obviously don’t like me any more.” She said she felt like “they [Forever Unique] basically wanted me to flood my whole Instagram with stories and constantly do more posts outside of the contract.”
“I did all the content, I did all the posting, and tried my absolute best to have a good relationship with them,” Paige alleged.
“I came out of the bubble of the villa quite vulnerable and then to be exposed to that, it hurt,” Paige continued. “And with Seema, I thought we had a good relationship, because we got on so well.”
The Love Island star alleged: “It’s shaken my confidence. I wish I could say it was a good experience, but it’s just been an absolute nightmare, and it’s ongoing.”
“It felt like the darkest time of my life, and it put so much stress on my family as well – they were so worried about me.”
“I went through a stage of drinking and partying in my dark days, and then I realised how bad drink was for my mental health,” the reality star admitted. “So I stopped that seven months ago, and I’m now completely sober. My anxiety is so much better for it and I’m much more driven now that I have cut that out of my life.”
Announcing her partnership with the fashion brand at the time, Paige wrote: “IT’S OFFICIAL… Paige Thorne X Forever Unique 😭🤯!”
“So excited to announce my first ever collection with a brand I’ve loved for so long! My partywear collection is everything and more and I’m so excited for you all to see it!”
“Feeling so overwhelmed and grateful, hope you all love it as much as I do! Bring on party season!! ✨✨✨.”
The collaboration announcement post has since been deleted from Instagram.
Meanwhile, Seema admitted that she loved Paige since the first episode of Love Island 2022, and believed she was a “perfect fit” for the brand.
“We are beyond excited to announce Paige as our latest celebrity signing!,” she told MailOnline at the time. “We were drawn to Paige immediately in the villa and love what she stands for as a strong, independent and driven female.”
“She knows what she wants and that is at the core of our ethos as a brand. The new collection has been designed to make a statement and I can’t wait for you all to see it.”
