A small frozen yogurt shop in Los Angeles is reportedly seeing a huge boom in business after Demi Lovato shamed it on social media.
Last weekend, the singer took umbrage with The Bigg Chill for giving sugar-free varieties prime placement in their stores, saying it was "triggering" for her as someone recovering from an eating disorder. She called the shop "diet culture vultures."
After calling out the mom-and-pop shop, The Bigg Chill responded to the singer on Instagram and said it has indulgent varieties but also carries items for vegans, diabetics and people with Celiac disease. Still, Demi continued her barrage of criticism, spurring the shop to simply begin ignoring her. As some of the dust was settling, Demi recorded a video in which she somewhat apologized for the flap.
"It's also important to know that my intentions were not to come in and bully a small business, but I walked in and walked out because I was so triggered," she said on the Instagram Live. "It made me really sad. I'm genuinely sorry people took it wrong, but I just get really passionate."
Demi was also critical of the shop's messaging and the media.
Demi was dragged online throughout much of this, and plenty of people accused her of actively trying to put The Big Chill, a female-owned shop, out of business. However, the opposite is actually happening.
The Blast reported that the viral dustup has resulted in "an avalanche" of sales and that "loyal customers from around Los Angeles have shown up to show support and spend cash."
"When @ddlovato attacks your local neighborhood yogurt shop, you fight back with sugar free yogurt for the whole family," one man wrote on Instagram after leaving the store on Monday.
Another duo took a not-so-veiled shot at Demi, writing on Instagram, "The sugar & fat free options tried to trigger us but we made it out alive."
"Demi Lovato chose to drag this wonderful small business for no good reason. PLEASE join me in supporting The Bigg Chill & eating their ice cream sammys," another fan said.
As sales poured into the store, The Bigg Chill also corrected false rumors and doctored Internet screenshots that claim Demi made amends with a donation.
"We have not received donations from Demi's team. Nor do we want one," the store said on its Instagram Story on April 21. "We have not made any changes to our menu. We have not heard anything from Demi since her 'Sorry, Not Sorry' apology on Monday. We have not heard from her team."
Considering the sales and media attention, perhaps it's accurate say: Revenge, like fro-yo, is a dish best served cold.