BossBabes

BossBabes is a New Zealand reality television series produced by Warner Bros. International Television New Zealand for TVNZ OnDemand. It debuted on August 6, 2019 and concluded on May 12, 2020. The show follows two Auckland influencers and businesswomen, Iyia Liu and Edna Swart, who run their own social media e-commerce businesses.

BossBabes
GenreReality TV
StarringIyia Liu
Edna Swart
Opening themeStacking That Paper by Ill Esha
Country of originNew Zealand
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons2
No. of episodes14
Production
Production locationsAuckland, New Zealand
Sydney, Australia
Bali, Indonesia
Pretoria, South Africa
Running time25-32 minutes per episode
Release
Original networkTVNZ OnDemand
Original release6 August 2019 (2019-08-06) –
12 May 2020 (2020-05-12)

During the first season, Iyia Liu owns a confectionary delivery company, Celebration Box, while helping her friend Edna launch a bodycare product line titled Ed&i Body as a "complimentary side product to Ed&i Swimwear".[1] Liu is also featured undergoing a Brazilian butt lift procedure before her first pregnancy with her boyfriend Jordan Delmont, whom she first meets in the first episode. Episodes for the first season were filmed in Auckland, New Zealand, Sydney, Australia and Bali, Indonesia. Episodes for the second season were filmed in Auckland and Pretoria, South Africa.[2]

The series was produced by Warner Bros. International Television Production NZ. It was not renewed for a third season.[2][3]

Series overview
SeasonEpisodesOriginally aired
First airedLast aired
18August 6, 2019 (2019-08-06)September 17, 2019
26April 7, 2020May 12, 2020

Cast
BossBabes Cast
Name Season 1 Season 2
Iyia Liu Main Cast - entrepreneur, Celebration Box, Girls in Business, Tidal Hair Main
Edna Swart Main Cast - entrepreneur, Ed&i Swim & Body Main
Rosie Crawford Midwife, model, friends with Iyia and Edna
Jordan Delmont Iyia's boyfriend
Harry Ferreira Edna's business partner and former boyfriend
Mikey B Edna and Harry's business partner
Sophie Maitland Iyia's friend and a Marketing and Social Media Manager
Briar Howard Iyia's friend and business partner
Brittany Wickes Edna's best friend and stay at home Mum
Briahna Barrett Iyia and Edna's intern
Alex McNaughten Edna's boyfriend

Controversy

While media critics and influencers initially praised and promoted the series, BossBabes became the subject of criticism on social media. Most criticism was aimed at Iyia Liu and problems surrounding her dessert delivery company, Celebration Box, which was under investigation by the Commerce Commission for possibly violating the Fair Trading Act.[4][5][6]

Iyia Liu was also featured in an investigation into money laundering by the National Business Review and Auckland blogger Alex Janssen,[7][8] citing Liu's financial ties to a defunct property scheme, called Future Living, run by her mother and controversial developer, Dan "Robert" McEwan. As a result of the investigation, Iyia Liu's ties to the alleged pyramid scheme were exposed, linking her to a series of corporate registrations and investments through a personal family trust, which included the purchase and a mortgage for property in the affluent rural community of Coatesville.[9] The suspect property, a partly built mansion, was featured by 1 News and other news outlets in 2018 as her second mansion, despite records showing that she only owned the Coatesville property that is under construction.[7][10][11]

National Business Review journalist, Calida Stuart-Menteath, won New Zealand Business Journalist of 2019 at the Voyager Media Awards because her investigation into Iyia Liu "provided important and highly relevant context about her family connections."[12]

During filming of BossBabe's second season, Liu founded a new company Tidal Hair, which like the name suggests mainly focuses on hair-styling tools/products. Her new company drew questions over its suspiciously high follower count upon launch.[13] As a result, Tidal Hair's Instagram page was removed in February 2020, but was later reactivated.[14]

References
  1. "BossBabes | TVNZ OnDemand". www.tvnz.co.nz. Archived from the original on 29 December 2019. Retrieved 29 December 2019.
  2. "TVNZ moving into 'influencer' world with new Iyia Liu reality show BossBabes". 13 April 2019. ISSN 1170-0777. Archived from the original on 25 November 2019. Retrieved 29 December 2019.
  3. "Here's what we're screaming about in 2020 from TVNZ". The Spinoff. 7 November 2019. Archived from the original on 29 December 2019. Retrieved 29 December 2019.
  4. Casey, Alex (6 August 2019). "Review: BossBabes is the least relatable thing I've ever seen". The Spinoff. Archived from the original on 29 December 2019. Retrieved 29 December 2019.
  5. "Most read: Complaints made to Commerce Commission after Celebration Box's sweet startup gig turns sour online". TVNZ. Archived from the original on 29 December 2019. Retrieved 29 December 2019.
  6. "Celebration Box may have breached Fair Trading Act, Commerce Commission finds". TVNZ. Retrieved 30 December 2019.
  7. Janssen, Alex (26 November 2019). "Celebration Box: Iyia Liu and the Media's Underlying Credibility Crisis". Medium. Archived from the original on 29 December 2019. Retrieved 29 December 2019.
  8. "Iyia Liu and the Media's Credibility Crisis". New Zealand Free Press. 8 January 2019. Retrieved 17 April 2020.
  9. "The mixed results of a millennial success story". NBR. 26 October 2018. Archived from the original on 29 December 2019. Retrieved 29 December 2019.
  10. "Millionaire 24-year-old Kiwi businesswoman talks life lessons". TVNZ. Retrieved 29 December 2019.
  11. "She's only 24 and on to her fifth business". NBR. 1 May 2018. Retrieved 29 December 2019.
  12. "Business journalist of the year". NBR. 20 May 2019. Retrieved 29 December 2019.
  13. "New venture from Celebration Box founder questioned over high Instagram follower count". TVNZ. Archived from the original on 29 December 2019. Retrieved 29 December 2019.
  14. "'Boss Babe' Iyia Liu's new business has Instagram account shut down for 'inauthentic behaviour'". TVNZ. Archived from the original on 14 February 2020. Retrieved 11 February 2020.
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