A few weeks back, I noticed that the Anthroholic blog link was not working. It was stating the blog had been made private. Not being an Anthro-blogger, and only a casual fan of the line and site, I mentally shrugged and removed the link. Little did I know of the massive shit-storm that had struck the blogging community.
While browsing another fashion blog, the author made reference to Kim and their IRL friendship, and how devastating what Kim had done was to her personally. "WTF? Kim from Anthroholic? Fraud? How can I find out more?" Googling 'kim anthroholic scandal' unleashed a plethora of posts and reactions.
The basic gist: she had set up a "personal shopper" service through her blog, where she would purchase Anthropologie items and ship them to help individuals defray shipping costs to their countries, or by hunting out difficult-to-find items for them. For a fee. Now, this practice isn't completely unheard of in the blogging community, particularly with Anthro-bloggers. The vast majority of fashion bloggers are warm, friendly, and generous to a fault. And that's why Kim's actions caused such an uproar.
She'd pocket the money, and use whatever excuse possible to put off her clients for as long as possible. Reading the accounts of her victims, and believe me, they are indeed victims, she acts like a middle schooler who's trying to con the teacher into giving her more time to complete an assignment.
From the information I've read, I'd classify her as suffering from oniomania, or shopping addiction. Let me stress that I am not a qualified mental health expert, nor do I know Kim personally. I'm just saying, as a casual observer, if she isn't intentionally defrauding these individuals, then oniomania makes sense. I have had episodes of oniomania, which I turned to as a means of easing my depression, which could have spiraled rapidly out of control, had I not sought the help of medical professionals.
As a member of the fashion blogging community, I can't help but think that the materialism and flippant use of words like "need" and "want" can contribute to this disease, or even feeling like keeping up with the Jones'. I will make a point of being real with you readers about my spending, lusting, and manner of obtaining the items I present on here. This scandal has bothered me greatly, and I hope the best for Kim and her victims. May they recieve restitution, and may she find the help she needs.
