TV presenter Holly Willoughby took to Instagram to promote her own perfume a day after her car collided with a moped rider – in what branding experts say is likely to have been an unfortunate social media screw-up.
The 44-year-old pleaded guilty to careless driving after starting to turn right into a side street in West London without indicating – straight into the path of a scooter overtaking on the outside.
Lavender Hill Crown Court heard that the incident on August 28 had left her ‘traumatised’; the moped rider was left with a broken neck and toe.
But just a day later, she posted a series of promotional images for a perfume sold under her Wylde Moon lifestyle brand.
The glamorous images showed her posing at a beach in a sunhat, pouting as she held the transparent bottle up to the camera.
Holly wrote: ‘As summer draws to an end and the pile of unlabelled school uniform looks impatiently at you from the corner, I swear mine tutted at me as I walked past! (winking emoji)
‘Here’s a little treat to raise your spirits…Starting now, we’re giving you 15% off our best-selling Eau de Parfum all weekend!’
There is no suggestion of wrongdoing on Holly’s part, and the post is likely to have been scheduled in advance to be published on her social media profile in line with the promotional offer.
It is also unknown whether Holly wrote and published the social media post herself.
The Daily Mail has contacted her team for comment.
Brand and culture expert Nick Ede told the Mail that the promotional post was highly unlikely to have been an off-the-cuff decision on the day – and had likely been scheduled in advance.
‘I think it’s important to remember that so much of what talent and brands post these days is pre-planned, pre-approved and scheduled weeks sometimes months in advance,’ he said.
‘Nothing about Holly’s post at the time looked deliberate or insensitive; it was just very unfortunate timing.
‘From what we know, the incident itself was clearly traumatic for everyone involved, Holly included, and I’m sure her focus at the time was entirely on the seriousness of what had happened.
‘The idea that she would then immediately pivot to promoting a product doesn’t ring true especially as we know what a compassionate and kind person she is, this is almost certainly a scheduled post that simply went out as planned.’
He added that celebrities need to be aware of ‘optics’ of a post – the way in which it might be perceived by the public once they are in full possession of the facts – particularly when scheduling them days, weeks or even months in advance.
‘The bigger learning here, for all celebrities and influencers, is that in an age of packed content calendars, it’s wise to have someone sense-check what’s scheduled when something unexpected happens,’ he continued.
‘It’s just about being aware of optics and making sure the timing doesn’t unintentionally send the wrong message. But in this case, I think it’s an example of bad timing rather than anything deliberate.’
Lavender Hill Magistrates Court heard on Tuesday how Holly had turned into the moped rider’s path without indicating, and may not have checked her mirrors for oncoming traffic.
CCTV footage from nearby buildings showed the moped careen into the front wing of Holly’s £25,000 Mini Cooper, unable to avoid it at the last second.
The rider was sent spiralling into the road as Holly hit the brakes. She got out the car and offered the man water and the use of her mobile phone. She admitted fault at the scene and pleaded guilty by post at the first opportunity.
Aisling Byrnes, defending, said of Holly: ‘She was traumatised to find she had caused this accident and the injury.
‘This was an unsafe manoeuvre. There was no indicator used. Whether she looked in her mirrors is unclear. The driver didn’t see the overtaking moped driver.
‘This error is one that was completely out of character for Mrs Baldwin, who is of otherwise exemplary character.’
The case was called in Holly’s married name: she is married to producer Daniel Baldwin.
A fine of £1,653 was reduced from £2,480 in light of her early guilty plea. Costs and surcharges took the total to £2,444 – and she was hit with six points on her licence.
Holly runs Wylde Moon – her answer to Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop – with her sister Kelly, who is seen as one of her closest confidantes as well as business associates.
