Kelly Clarkson and Art of Play, a Brooklyn shop, offered differing accounts on social media after the singer said she was treated dismissively while asking about a mechanical singing bird called Molly.
Clarkson said she had traveled to the store intending to shop and was directed toward a comparable item. In later posts, she said she asked about a price tag and was told a similar automaton could be obtained for $15,000. She criticized the store’s handling of the interaction and said small businesses should still treat customers respectfully.
Art of Play said Molly is attached to the shop’s wall and serves as its mascot, so that particular automaton was not for sale. The store said the machine’s creator had a nearly identical one available for $15,000. It also said staff offered to show Clarkson a different singing-bird automaton, priced at about $2,000, but she left before seeing it. The shop said it had contacted Clarkson in hopes of resolving the disagreement.
The store also said it received a large volume of hostile messages following Clarkson’s post. The figure of 8 million people, cited in its social media response, was the store’s own claim and was not independently verified in the supplied reporting.
Doug Eldridge, founder of Achilles PR, told Fox News Digital that celebrity statements can spread quickly online and that businesses should prepare for crisis communications. Jay Aldebert, an executive and business adviser, said the attention could bring negative reviews but might also create commercial opportunities for the shop. Aldebert said Clarkson could have first raised her concerns with the store’s owner before posting publicly.
The dispute remains based on the two sides’ conflicting descriptions. The source reports that a representative for Clarkson did not respond to a request for comment.
