Vancouver Candle Co. initially tried to get a Vancouver woman to take down her Instagram post alleging its owner sent racist messages before changing tactics and issuing an apology.
Christina McDaniel, founding partner of a boutique sales agency that used to represent Vancouver Candle Co.’s products, shared screenshots June 6 of three messages she says were from the candle company’s founder.
McDaniel parted ways from the candle company in 2018 after her contract with them ended. She told Daily Hive the company was no longer a good fit for her agency.
The candle-maker posted an apology June 7, acknowledging founder Nicholas Rabuchin sent two of the messages — one referring to a store owner who carried the candles as a “fucking Jew” and another one defending the use of the N-word.
Rabuchin denied sending the third message, where the sender calls McDaniel the N-word and says they hope her store burns to the ground with her inside.
But Daily Hive has learned that in between the two posts going live, Vancouver Candle Co.’s lawyer sent McDaniel a cease-and-desist letter trying to get the screenshots taken down.
In the letter emailed to McDaniel early in the morning on June 7 and seen by Daily Hive, lawyer Helena Plecko says the post provides “misleading facts” about her client and is apparently “breaching Mr. Rabuchin’s privacy rights by publishing his name and phone number.”
The only image with a visible phone number McDaniel shared was the one calling her the N-word, the one Rabuchin denied sending.
The letter also alleged McDaniel was “using the current political climate to further your own agenda of harming my client’s reputation.”
It finished by asking McDaniel to cease and desist with publishing “slanderous messages about my clients.”
But later that day, the candle company issued a public apology acknowledging it sent two of the messages.
Daily Hive attempted to get in touch with Vancouver Candle Co. and two of its lawyers for this story through email, phone, and social media messages. Neither the company nor the lawyers responded before press time.
McDaniel told Daily Hive she found the ordeal “completely ludicrous.”
“How do you get a lawyer up to draft a cease and desist for 4 in the morning?” referring to when she opened the letter, which by the email time stamp was actually sent at 1:56 am.
Kelowna florist HOST Floral also told Daily Hive that Vancouver Candle Co. accused McDaniel of lying about the messages before posting its apology. HOST Floral shared screenshots with DH that showed the candle company telling the florist it would never use the term “fucking Jew” because the sender’s mother is Jewish.
Instagram messages between HOST Floral and Vancouver Candle Co. (Submitted)
Major retailers Indigo and Nordstrom have both dropped Vancouver Candle Co.’s products over the issue.
“Nordstrom doesn’t tolerate discrimination and we expect the same of our partners,” spokesperson Lauren Adey said.
Read Vancouver Candle Co.’s two apology posts below:
