Ray Makes Things founder and jewellery designer Rayane Chami says poor organisation surrounding a Miu Miu event at Harrods left her working for 11 hours while six months pregnant and that she is still owed £1,600 for her work. More than three months later, Chami says the payment remains outstanding as she approaches the end of her pregnancy.
Chami detailed the experience in an Instagram carousel, saying a Miu Miu regional retail events manager based in France contacted her on 29 May about an activation taking place just one week later. She was hired to make sunglasses chains for customers but said the materials arrived on 3 June and the instructions followed at 4.28 pm on 4 June, the day before the event.
Chami Says the Design Did Not Work as Planned
Chami said she quickly discovered a problem with the proposed sunglasses-chain design, which she estimated would take at least 45 minutes to make despite an expected turnaround of 15 to 20 minutes. With little time to prepare, she said she stayed awake until 2 am figuring out how to make the concept work using her own materials.
When she arrived at Harrods at 9.35 am on 5 June, Chami said the Miu Miu team on site were 'lovely' but soon realised poor communication had resulted in too many clients being booked. She said she managed just a 10-minute lunch break and a five-minute toilet break during the 11-hour shift.
'An 11-hour shift on a stool at 6 months pregnant is not for the faint-hearted, and my body paid for it for the following week,' Chami wrote.
She said a Harrods manager repeatedly encouraged her to take a break, but she felt unable to do so because customers were becoming increasingly frustrated by the wait.
The Work Continued After the Event
Chami said she worked an additional 5.5 hours after taking unfinished materials home, after first confirming that she would be able to charge for the extra time.
Just one week later, she said another creative was booked for the brand's next event through the same Miu Miu contact and struggled to make the design work.
Chami said she put together guidance explaining how she had solved the problem and even sent her own pliers and materials to the event because she did not want the other artist to face the same difficulties.
By then, however, Chami said she had already begun what would become a months-long effort to secure payment.
She Says £1,600 Is Still Outstanding
According to Chami, the event had been booked too late for her to be registered as a supplier on Prada Group's eProcurement system before the job. She said she had told the Miu Miu manager from the outset that she expected payment by the end of June but spent the following weeks chasing updates, with many of her emails going unanswered.
On 3 August, Chami said her eProcurement account was approved within minutes of her emailing to say she intended to take legal action and go public.
She later contacted Prada Group's eProcurement support team, who she says told her there was no trace of her invoice and that it appeared to have been submitted outside the normal process.
Chami says the event was completed more than three months ago and that she is now more than 37 weeks pregnant, with £1,600 still outstanding.
'I am tired of spending the little energy I have left doing this,' she wrote before asking followers to share her story.
Miu Miu Faces Backlash Over Chami's Claims
Chami's post has since triggered criticism of Miu Miu in the comments, with users questioning why an independent creative said she had spent months chasing a £1,600 payment from a global luxury brand.
One of the most-liked responses, with more than 12,000 likes in Chami's screenshot, tagged Miu Miu and wrote: 'This is literally half a handbag of yours which you'd probs send to a big influencer or celeb for free – c'mon.'
Another commenter accused the brand of failing to support smaller businesses properly, writing: 'Can we stop with all the greed and bullshit and pay small business owners what they actually deserve?!'
A third commenter described Chami's account as an example of a large global company allegedly taking advantage of a local artist. The reactions reflect commenters' responses to Chami's allegations and are not independent evidence that Miu Miu acted unlawfully or intentionally withheld payment.
The allegations and payment timeline are Chami's account of the dispute. Portions of her correspondence and procurement communications have been shared publicly, but the complete contractual record and full correspondence between the parties have not been made public.
Fashion Times has not independently verified the outstanding payment or received a public response from Miu Miu or Prada Group addressing Chami's allegations.
