Every Tarte Influencer Trip Controversy: Drama, Unfair Room Sizes, More
#TrippingWithTarte: We know it, we love it and we (sometimes) raise our eyebrows at it.
If you’re anything like Us, you’ve been following Tarte influencer trips for years. From makeup gurus posting content from Turks and Caicos and Alix Earle bringing her mom on the brand’s Dubai trip to Ken Eurich and Brianna “Chickenfry” LaPaglia squashing their beef in the British Virgin Islands, the getaways are filled with drama, fun activities and more.
Tarte had their most recent brand trip in January 2025, where Eurich and LaPaglia became friends again, and JaNa Craig, Mei Mei Monstaa and more partied on the sandy beaches of Neckter Island, played tennis and created tons of content.
Some fans were upset to see the influencers partying while the greater Los Angeles wildfires spread, and shared their thoughts via social media.
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“Tarte never fails to make me roll my eyes anymore lol, their brand trips always leave a bad taste in my mouth but especially now sending all these influencers to this lavish private island while people are losing their homes and loved ones,” one person wrote via X.
Aware of the sensitive situation, Tarte donated $250,000 to Wold Central Kitchen to aid in the fires, as well as donated their proceeds from January 8 through January 11 to the non-profit.
They also donated $10,000 to the Los Angeles Department, as well as another $10,000 to California Wildfire Response Fund for wildlife rescue as the girls enjoyed a game of Neon Beach Olympics.
From friendships forming — and breaking — to unfair hotel room sizes, keep scrolling to see all the controversies that have happened on Tarte trips.
Influencers Spreading Rumors About Each Other
Tana Mongeua and Brooke Schofield shared that they planned to spread a fake rumor about someone on their Bora Bora Tarte trip until a tropical storm canceled the outing.
After “campaigning” for herself to go on a Tarte trip for “years,” Schofield had the idea to start “the most out of pocket rumor” and test how long it took for the girls on the trip to air it out on social media.
“We devised this evil plan for our live shows,” Mongeua explained. “If you guys have ever seen these trips you know how it goes. Rumors get spread, drama gets started, s— blows up on the internet.”
Schofield added, “We were like, ‘What kind of drama should we stir up on this trip?’” Although they didn’t have a chance to create a rumor about one of the travelers, there still has been a lot of other drama that went down before influencers.
Brianna Chickenfry and Kennedy Eurich Drama
During an episode of her “Dumber Blonde” podcast, Eurich called LaPaglia out for being mean to her on a previous press trip.
“I get the email about the Tarte trip,” Eurich said, referencing the January 2025 trip she took to Neckter Island, the British Virgin Islands.
After her manager told Tarte that Eurich was “down” to go and asked for a guest list, the cosmetics team asked her to hop on a phone call, making the TikTok star suspicious about who else was attending.
“I have a feeling it’s gonna be about: someone Kennedy doesn’t work well with is going.” On the call, Eurich found out that LaPaglia was also invited. “Here’s the thing,” she said. “If Brianna Chickenfry would have just said, ‘Hey girl, sorry I probably was a bitch to you, I would have been like, ‘Girl, you are so good.’”
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“Who knows?” she continued. “Maybe she’ll apologize on this trip and the world will be sunshine and rainbows and buttieflies but she doesn’t give me the vibe of a bitch who would apologize.”
Eurich posted the podcast clip to her TikTok account on Monday, January 13, as she was still vacationing with LaPaglia. In response, LaPaglia took to TikTok on Tuesday, January 14, to share a clip of her and Eurich telling fans they “squashed” their beef.
“It was squashed,” Eurich said, as LaPaglia admitted, “Ok listen, I was a c—.”
Eurich then replied, “No, I was a c—. We were both c—s.” LaPaglia suggested that they might “butt heads a lot” because of how similar their personalities are, and tested a vlog coming soon.
Unequal Hotel Room Sizes
Tarte caught heat in April 2023 when influencer Sri Lankan shared a room tour with her followers during the brand’s Turks and Caicos getaway.
Fans noticed that Lankan’s room was not nearly as nice as Meredith Duxbury’s, who had a beach-front view, a walk-in shower, two balconies, a vanity and more.
Lankan later addressed fans’ comments after returning from the trip, agreeing that her room was “way too small.”
“I’m a brown minority creator and a lot of the time I get the short end of the stick,” she said. “I hope people will understand it was never about the size of the room, it was about getting treated equally to my counterparts.” Lankan noted that she talked to the Tarte team and they explained that some of the rooms were assigned while others were picked out randomly.
PR Gifts
Not all gifts are created equal when it comes from Tarte. After a number of influencers including Halle Kate and Olivia Boblet, Lauren Wolfe received $700 Mini Hermès Kelly bracelets in a PR gift in September 2024, other creators shared via social media that they received a similar package from Tarte but with a $30 necklace replacing the designer accessory. Eurich was in the batch who received the Every Jewels name necklace, and took to TikTok to discuss the matter.
“They’re picking favorites and this is f—ed up,” she said. “Ya’ll are on my s— list for that. That’s sick and it’s twisted.”
Tarte later made it up to Eurich during their Neckter Island trip when the brand’s CEO and founder Maureen Kelly gifted the beauty guru an Hermès scarf and mini Kelly bracelet.
“Better late than never!” Kelly said in the clip.
How Much Do the Trips Cost?
With luxurious locations and five-star hotels such as Dubai, Bora Bora, Greece, Hawaii, Turks and Caicos and more, fans have wondered how much the influencer trips cost the brand, as they watch guests enjoy spa days, photoshoots, snorkeling, jet skiing and more. TikTok user Jill Justine, who claimed she used to manage the influencer trips, put fans’ minds at ease while she explained the vacations were “a lot more affordable [for the brand] than you think.”
“Most of the time, all of those things were free because we were partnering with the hotels, with the event, with the experience, because all of them are getting exposure as well,” she said.
“Honestly, the only thing we didn’t get for free sometimes were the flights,” she continued. “And even then, sometimes we would partner with the airlines and get those for free too.”
What is Tarte getting out of the trips?
Tarte benefits from their lavish trips by networking with influencers and being able to share content with their millions of followers.
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Kelly told Forbes in February 2024, “We believe that our investment in relationships has been mutually advantageous. We get to know our amazing influencers and appreciate their individual perspectives, they get a fun, relaxing experience and they get to know Tarte. She continued, “To us, this is far more valuable in the long term vs a one-off media campaign like a multi-million dollar Super Bowl commercial.”
Kelly also shared that “in the beginning we just couldn’t afford to take any other approach.” She added, “We had to be resourceful — we connected with influential people and media outlets and allowed them to discover and fall in love with the brand and products at their own pace and on their own terms.”