This may put a dimple in her career.
Body-positive fashion influencer Iskra Lawrence is begging for forgiveness after posting an ad promoting a body cream that claims to reduce the appearance of cellulite.
“I’m not just about to let something blow over and not admit to my mistakes or be accountable,” Lawrence, 32, said in a video shared to her Instagram Monday.
“The most important thing I can do is apologize, first and foremost, and try to make amends.”
The swimsuit model called herself an “overly ambitious person” and admitted that she had a “delusional idea” to disrupt and change the marketing of such a product.
“I was wrong,” she said. “Regardless, in my head of how I felt I was communicating, the words that I used, it was triggering for many of you, and it was disheartening, and for that I am forever, ever heartbroken.”
Lawrence emphasized that she is the sole person managing her account and that sometimes people make mistakes.
“It’s a human on the other end. I do not have anyone manage the account. I never have,” she said, adding that she made her apology video a “Get Ready With Me” post because she “had to do something so [she] wasn’t just stood here like an emotional wreck.”
The Saltair founder ended the post by promising to donate the profits she made from the controversial promotional video and saying she is “open to all feedback on how to remedy this.”
“I’m sorry. I will not profit from my mistake $ will be donated to NEDA [National Eating Disorder Association],” she captioned her post.
Strangely, the former AerieREAL Role Model, who has built her career off self-love, told her followers that she “cannot be your role model.”
“no one but you should be your role model because you already have everything you need inside of you to build your sense of self worth,” she wrote.
“For those who have leaned on me I tried, I really did try. The pressure to never mess up is a lot and living so much of my life online and actually me relying on you as a community so much means when I F up it breaks me. and I need to figure out moving forward how to nurture a safe space again and I will do whatever it takes – thank you for those still here and still reading this.”
Lawrence called the fumble a “humbling” experience that will allow her to learn and grow.
“It’s also a reminder that people hold you to a certain standard because they care, if they didn’t they wouldn’t be disappointed in you or your decisions – I’m always hear to support and thank you to all my friends who checked in on me today💕,” she concluded.
Lawrence shocked her fan base over the weekend when she shared a sponsored post hawking Peter Thomas Roth’s FIRMx Tight & Toned Cellulite Treatment ($49).
“It is clinically proven to reduce the look of cellulite in just two weeks, I’m one week in and can already see and feel results,” she captioned the ad, which was still on her page as of Tuesday.
“And you know me I’m all about body acceptance but I also do the most when it comes to looking after my body and skin,” she continued. “I noticed I lost firmness postpartum which is perfectly fine but also why not try something to help?”
In the video, she shared that the brand chose her to try the product so she could show the actual results without using Photoshop or a filter.
“I’ll be back in one more week to show you my two-week results with the FIRMx treatment.” she said. “In the meantime, wear the skirt, wear the shorts, and stay cellu-lit.”
Lawrence, who has since turned off the comments section on her post, immediately faced backlash.
“I’m really disappointed that you actively tried to play your audience with that ad,” one person commented on her apology post.
“I’m sorry I just don’t really believe you were trying to change the market industry or something. You made profit off of advertising a product that (supposedly) changes the way your body looks, just because so many people have asked you about how they can change their body’s natural texture. I thought the point was to accept all parts of your body,” another critic wrote.
However, several supporters of the influencer commended her for taking accountability and owning her mistakes.
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“I can’t believe people gave you crap. I didn’t think twice about that ad. Some people would like to get rid of cellulite and you have bills to pay,” one fan wrote.
“Iskra. Do you! It’s your account! It’s your body! You are not these people’s saviour. Ah ah. Small cream and they are up in arms? Ridiculous. People really need to get a grip. You are beautiful. Sooo ambitious! So driven. I really don’t understand what the fuss is about,” a second commented.
“I want to cry. I’m frustrated as hell….you worded the ad so carefully and STILL it was taken so wrong,” another wrote.
“Disappointed in the backlash you received,” someone added. “It’s pretty obvious you mean well and meant no harm and you were promoting a product that targets an area of which many are self conscious about and given your history of promoting self love no matter whatever ‘flaw’ you think you have, I can understand people may have had concerns but I think it is important to look at the overall picture of how you promote love and kindness and embracing yourself.”
The curvy model’s career took off when she became a spokesperson for Aerie. Since then, she has become known for posting content about loving one’s body and “flaws,” and even her skincare line used the slogan, “Every body is welcome here.”
Lawerence, who has been open about battling an eating disorder in the past, was also an ambassador for NEDA and often posts content about how to embrace ones curves.
“Being curvier, I think it’s important to break the rules, and I think it’s important to show that you’re confident in whatever you wear and make an impact on the red carpet when, for so long, we’ve only seen one body type and size make waves,” the British model told Page Six Style in 2019.
“I’m really trying to break through and say that no matter what size you are, you can rock it.”
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