Cake freebie request from The Voice 'abysmal'

An independent bakery owner has said it was a "kick in the teeth" to be asked by The Voice UK to provide the ITV show's guests and judges with free cakes.

Rich Myers, 37, from Get Baked, which has its flagship store in Manchester, described the request as a "total disgrace", adding that large companies should not ask small businesses to supply products in return for so-called "exposure".

Myers shared the email on Instagram, which said ITV was unable to pay but the food would be seen by "highly influential" coaches, presenters and contestants.

Lifted Entertainment, which makes The Voice UK for ITV, apologised and said "steps had been taken to ensure this type of request is never made again".

In the email, The Voice staff asked whether Get Baked, which has its production bakery in Leeds, could supply products for talent dressing rooms and green rooms during filming for no payment.

It said ITV would be "unable to offer anything monetary or otherwise in return".

Myers said at first he thought it was "a wind up" but then realised it was "totally real".

"ITV and Lifted Entertainment, you're a total disgrace," he wrote on Instagram.

"Honestly, how did we get here?

"Stop whatever this is because I wanna get off.

The email suggested the "very high calibre of talent" on the show would be able to enjoy the food provided.

Myers told the BBC: "Putting it backstage for someone to eat, as if that results in exposure, means nothing to anyone."

Get Baked sells online across the UK, and recently opened a shop in Covent Garden, London.

Myers said an order for a green room for one day might have cost about £100 and would have provided enough food for 20 to 25 people.

"We're not talking thousands of pounds," he said.

But he said he was passionate about his opposition to this "gifting culture", adding: "We've been doing this for 15 years and we've never gifted anything to anyone really."

He said he had A-list celebrity customers who had never once asked for cakes for free.

Other independent businesses have revealed they had received similar requests, he said.

"When you're new to it all, you get an email from someone like The Voice and it's got ITV on the signature," he said.

"You think of the name, the exposure, all the facade of it all."

He said he did not blame the person who sent the email, but said the wording of the request was "the worst part".

It was "absolutely abysmal", he added.

Myers said he had since been told by The Voice team that the email was "not in line with their usual way of working" or "standards we expect".

A Lifted Entertainment spokesperson told the BBC: "We apologise for any upset this has caused and are reaching out to Rich Myers directly.

"Immediate steps have been taken to ensure this type of request is never made again."

Myers said it would be a "massive win" if "this whole thing actually results in the end of them asking for freebies from independents".

"Time will tell," he added.

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