J.C. Penney, Walgreens, Sears, Kmart and QVC have now followed the slew of companies distancing themselves from the scandal-plagued Paula Deen.
“We can confirm that jcpenney has decided to discontinue selling Paula Deen branded merchandise,” J.C. Penney said in a statement to The Huffington Post.
Sears Holdings, the owner of Sears and Kmart stores, told TMZ, “After careful consideration of all available information, we have made the decision to phase out all products tied to [Paula Deen’s] brand.”
Mai Lee Ua, a spokesperson for Walgreens, told HuffPo that the drug store chain is “phasing out” its Paula Deen products. Walgreens owns regional drug store Duane Reade and Internet retailer Drugstore.com, along with its namesake brand.
Deciding to take a softer approach, QVC company announced on their Web site that they will “take a pause” from the celeb cook.
QVC president and CEO Mike George explained that QVC, Deen and her team have “talked extensively over the last several days, and together we have considered what is best for our customers, for Paula and for QVC. For now, we have decided to take a pause.”
“Paula won’t be appearing on any upcoming broadcasts and we will phase out her product assortment on our online sales channels over the next few months,” he continued. “We all think it’s important, at this moment, for Paula to concentrate on responding to the allegations against her and on her path forward.”
Leaving the door open, George wrote, “Some of you may wonder whether this is a ‘forever’ decision — whether we are simply ending our association with Paula. We don’t think that’s how relationships work. People deserve second chances. And we always strive to do the right thing.”
Deen released her own statement on the QVC split: “As you know, I have some important things to work on right now, both personally and professionally. And so we’ve agreed that it’s best for me to step back from QVC and focus on setting things right.”
Twelve companies in all have now bolted from Deen’s empire. Yesterday, Target announced that it is ending its relationship and diabetes drug maker Novo Nordisk says it is suspending their partnership.
The Food Network, Smithfield Foods, Walmart, Home Depot and casino giant Caesar’s Entertainment announced this week that they were terminating partnerships with the Southern cook.
For now, Deen still has partnerships with Alice Travel, Ladies Candies, Hoffman Media, Random House, Metropolitan Cooking Expo, Springer Mountain Farms and Epicurean Butter.