Elnaugh Vs. Paphitis. The Dragons are at war

by Rebecca Burn-Callander - Thursday, 26th June 2008 - (1) comment - Business comment

When Theo Paphitis suggested all women’s brains “turn to mush” when they get pregnant, fellow Dragon Rachel Elnaugh, entrepreneur and mother-of-five, breathed fire and brimstone.

Paphitis made the bold, if ill-advised, statement during a newspaper interview earlier this month. Elnaugh immediately bit back on her blog, encouraging women to boycott Paphitis’ portfolio of companies.

She wrote: “I’d like to urge ALL women who are customers of the Paphitis related brands (currently Ryman, La Senza, Contessa, Partners and Red Letter Days) to withdraw their considerable purchasing power by boycotting these brands, in protest at these outrageously outdated and sexist remarks.”

However, it seems the heat got too much for Elnaugh, who removed this post some days later. She dismissed her boycott appeal as “tongue-in-cheek”, saying, “I really don't want to cause any trouble, the point of the original post was that in business I think it is a mistake to insult women as they now make or influence 70 per cent of all purchasing decisions.”

In the final showdown, Elnaugh’s sheepish withdrawal from the war of words leads RB to believe that Ryman’s sales are unlikely to be dented. Paphitis, victorious, remains King of the Den.

Picture source

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1 Comments

June 26, 2008 3:51pm
Dan Martin Says:

As you can see if you click on the link to Rachel Elnaugh's blog above, the ex-Dragon hasn't escaped the controversy by removing her boycott post. Her comment that female entrepreneurs are more emotionally attached to their business then men has caused quite a stir! Dan Martin Editor, BusinessZone.co.uk