Pip Edwards breaks silence on Jackie O as she reunites with former bestie Leah Simmons… Plus, crumbling perfume brand’s OTHER embarrassing business fail: THE GROUP CHAT

by

Join Lucy Manly in The Group Chat for the latest buzz and insider news from the Australian social scene – you’ll hear the hottest gossip before anyone else!

Smells like failure

It was meant to be their big international moment.

In January 2025, Raquel Bouris and her husband, Adam (the nephew of Mark Bouris), moved their family to London to expand their fragrance company, Who Is Elijah, internationally.

The company recently made a deal with Boots, a major UK drugstore chain. While their promotional materials might suggest a partnership with a high-end retailer like Harrods, the truth is much more down-to-earth. Boots is similar to stores like Chemist Warehouse – I think of it as the ‘female version of a hardware store,’ rather than a place for luxury beauty products.

And then, almost as quickly as it began, it was over.

After just nine weeks, the family returned to their home in Sydney’s Sutherland Shire, the area they affectionately call ‘God’s country.’ But what caused them to unexpectedly end their highly publicized move overseas?

For years, people in the industry had suspected the company’s success wasn’t as strong as it seemed, even before the Bourises returned. They doubted the consistently positive stories about the brand, which was claimed to be worth $20 million.

Now, those whispers are only getting louder. 

CreditorWatch currently identifies Who Is Elijah as a high financial risk. The company owes over $1 million in unpaid taxes and more than $280,000 to its suppliers.

The company seems to be facing financial difficulties, with reports of unpaid invoices totaling over $280,000. Baker & Co., a perfume supplier in Sydney, is reportedly owed $224,378 since November, and Ecom Nation, an e-commerce company in Adelaide, claims $57,808 has been outstanding since December.

The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has reportedly filed a default of $1.41 million as of mid-March, which usually happens when a debt is over 90 days past due.

Okay, so I’ve been digging into everything about this brand, and I stumbled upon something really interesting – they’re using Shopify Capital. It’s basically like a quick loan against what they expect to sell in the future. Shopify was really pushing it as a way to help businesses with cash flow and keeping things stocked, but now I’m starting to wonder… is this money actually helping them, or is it just making things worse in the long run? It’s like, are they patching holes in a sinking ship, you know? I’m totally obsessed with figuring this out!

I called Raquel on Tuesday, but she didn’t answer and sent me to voicemail. She did eventually reply to my text, saying the claims were false.

‘The ATO misplaced our payments, which created the default. Which has now been lifted,’ she said.

She responded with the same message she’s given to all reporters who’ve contacted her this week: ‘Stop criticizing women.’

After reports that the company previously sent employees on international business trips, it recently laid off staff in February and then closed its factory in Taren Point.

I saw Adam later that Tuesday at their warehouse in Sydney, which looked like he was in the process of moving out, packing things into boxes and large bins.

While I was writing this article on Wednesday, Raquel shared a video on Instagram announcing that the ‘Who is Elijah’ project was still active.

Honestly, it’s just awful to watch. She keeps saying she’s been totally destroyed in the media ever since all this came out about the company owing back taxes. And she still insists it was just a simple mistake, some kind of paperwork issue. It’s like she can’t admit anything else! I just want her to be okay, but it’s hard when she keeps repeating the same thing and acting like everyone is out to get her.

Insisting the issue had now been resolved, she said, ‘The ATO and I are besties’. 

Raquel acknowledged the company had left its Sydney warehouse, explaining that this was due to the brand’s fast growth and expansion.

Even though people are starting to wonder about her finances, rumors are circulating that Raquel is still driving her Porsche despite accumulating debts. Let’s hope it’s not actually hers, but a rented vehicle!

Tat’s amore 

Ruby Adler, a British reality TV personality and the current partner of real estate mogul Gavin Rubinstein (co-founder of The Rubinstein Group), has announced she’s getting 80% of her hand tattoos removed, even those on the hand where she wears her engagement ring.

If that isn’t an unsubtle hint for him to ‘put a ring on it’, I don’t know what is.

During a recent podcast episode, Sadie Adler revealed she has a ‘9’ and an alien tattooed on her ring finger, instead of wearing an engagement ring.

She explained that she wants to avoid any involvement with the project, wanting a fresh start without any lingering connections.

She explained that she prefers the look of clean hands and doesn’t want her tattoos to be visible when picking up her children from school.

Okay, seriously, who’s kids are we picking up? Ruby, are you secretly working as a nanny? It’s starting to feel like people are already planning our wedding before Gavin and I are even engaged! They’re picturing me as Mrs. Rubinstein way too soon, before he’s even proposed! It’s a bit much, honestly.

It’s unclear if this is just a style choice or a sign of a growing romance with the real estate agent, but Adler is definitely the talk of Sydney’s exclusive eastern suburbs. She’s lived there since October, and everyone is curious about what she’s planning.

I’ll be watching closely to see what happens next, and you’ll be the first to know.

Besties back on 

It was a celebration of women’s health – but all eyes were on an unexpected reunion.

Sydney’s top wellness influencers gathered at Bondi Icebergs on Tuesday to launch a new partnership between P.E. Nation’s Pip Edwards and the menopause supplement company, Biolae.

The exclusive event unexpectedly became the setting for a surprising reunion, as Pip and her former best friend, Leah Simmons, saw each other for the first time since their falling out last year.

Everyone at the event remarked how much like their old selves the couple seemed, as they spent the whole time talking, laughing, and sitting together.

Leah enthusiastically applauded Pip after Pip shared a moving speech about her experiences with perimenopause and how those experiences inspired her to work with Biolae.

It’s a far cry from where things stood just over a year ago.

The two friends, who used to be very close and were often seen together in matching workout clothes along Campbell Parade, reportedly had a falling out in late 2024. The trouble started when Pip began dating Joshua Clapp, who is Leah’s ex-boyfriend and the father of her teenage son.

Pip and Joshua started dating publicly right before the New Year, but their relationship ended by March 2025.

However, the rift was evident when Leah didn’t attend Pip’s extravagant 45th birthday party the next month.

It was no wonder the pair’s united front at Tuesday’s event raised more than a few eyebrows. 

It was also strange that Jackie ‘O’ Henderson wasn’t there – she’s usually with Pip, especially when they’re out having fun at Icebergs.

Guests at the party immediately started asking about their relationship, but Pip assured the Daily Mail that they were still good friends.

As for Leah, it seems time may have healed old wounds.

The pair first met back in 2004 and quickly became inseparable.

Leah shared a memorable story about how she first met her future partner in a 2016 interview with Marie Claire. She explained that a friend insisted she meet his new girlfriend to give her the ‘okay.’ Leah remembers being immediately charmed by this ‘little punk’ who showed up for lunch wearing a spotted outfit and with a unique hairstyle – it was love at first sight!

‘We ditched the boyfriend and have been best friends ever since,’ she added.

Pip, for her part, once described them as ‘more like twin sisters than friends.’

Additional reporting by Monique Friedlander

Read More

2026-04-02 15:50