You can't pay your mortgage with a shoutout on Instagram. You can't buy ingredients with a promise that a famous person might look at your product. Yet, multimillion-pound television networks and wealthy celebrities still seem to think small businesses should feel privileged to work for them for absolutely nothing.
The latest corporate giant to face the heat is ITV's hit show The Voice UK. Producers recently reached out to Rich Myers, the founder of the viral Manchester-based bakery Get Baked, asking him to supply his famous baked goods for the show’s green rooms and dressing rooms. The catch? They explicitly stated they were "unable to offer anything monetary or otherwise in return." Instead, they offered the classic, deeply flawed currency: exposure.
The Real Cost of Corporate Entitlement
Myers didn't hold back. He shared the email exchange with his 361,000 followers, calling the request a "total disgrace" and pointing out the absurdity of a massive media conglomerate asking an independent bakery for free food. ITV plc routinely posts pre-tax profits worth hundreds of millions of pounds. The idea that their production budget can't cover a few hundred quid for premium chocolate cakes is laughable.
It gets worse when you look at what they actually promised. The email claimed the bakery would get exposure to "highly influential coaches and presenters." But as Myers quickly countered, The Voice isn't exactly pulling in the numbers it used to. Viewership dropped from a peak of 8.6 million in 2015 down to just 2.8 million in 2024.
This isn't an isolated mistake by a rogue junior researcher. It's a systemic culture inside major television productions. Back in 2017, ITV’s The X Factor tried the exact same stunt with a Liverpool cake maker, offering audience tickets instead of cash. The response from the baking community back then was identical: we don't work for free.
Why the Exposure Economy Is Ruining Independent Brands
When a massive brand asks you for a "contra deal" or a "gifted collaboration," they are trying to offload their production costs onto your balance sheet. For a small business, a request like this carries significant costs:
- Hard ingredient costs: High-end bakeries use real butter, premium chocolate, and fresh ingredients that cost real money.
- Labor hours: Crafting specialty items takes hours of manual work from skilled staff who must be paid legal wages.
- Opportunity cost: Every free item made for a celebrity green room is an item that cannot be sold to a paying customer over the counter.
The math just doesn't work. If an influencer or a TV star genuinely loves a product, the most supportive thing they can do is pay full price for it. Lifted Entertainment, the production company behind the show, quickly issued a public apology to Myers and claimed they would ensure this doesn't happen again. But the apology only came because they got caught and publicly roasted.
How Independent Businesses Can Protect Their Bottom Line
If you run a small business, you will eventually get an email asking for freebies in exchange for clout. You need a strategy to handle it without losing your temper or your margins.
First, establish a firm corporate policy regarding complimentary products. Decide immediately whether you do influencer marketing or not. If you do, demand to see their conversion data, not just their follower counts. Most celebrity dressing room placements result in zero trackable sales for the business involved.
Second, flip the script on the request. When a production company asks for free goods, reply with your standard wholesale rate card and a polite note stating that you don't offer unpaid product placements. If they truly value your work, they will find the budget. If they don't, you just saved yourself time and money.
Stop letting big corporations value your hard work at zero. Say no to exposure, demand real payment, and keep your business sustainable.
