Rachel Zoe is weighing in on Amanda Frances’ controversial first season, and offering some advice as tensions continue to build.
During the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills After Show, Rachel revealed that she encouraged Amanda to be more transparent about who she is, rather than relying on numbers and business talk to define herself.
“I do remember saying to her, ‘Just be honest about who you are and what you do, and stop giving us numbers and statistics. That doesn’t describe who you are and what you do,’” Rachel shared.
Her comments come as Amanda finds herself at the center of ongoing criticism from the group, particularly when it comes to her manifestation business.
Bozoma “Boz” Saint John took things a step further during the episode, suggesting Amanda may need a “rebranding” — and even raising eyebrows by questioning whether her business operates more like a “cult.”
Amanda didn’t hold back in her response.
“I’m dumbfounded, shocked, like, bewildered. That’s insane. It’s a cult cuz people love me? It’s a cult because people who are in my work appreciate the work?” she said.
She pushed back on the idea entirely, explaining that there is no control involved in how her business operates.
“For it to be a cult, I would have to, like, have some way to control them. If people are interested in a course, they go to a sales page, and they buy the course. Later, if they want another course, they go get another. We don’t even email people saying, ‘Here’s the next course.’”
According to Amanda, the bigger issue wasn’t just the criticism, it was that she didn’t know it was happening.
“What’s more frustrating than anything was I didn’t know they were questioning it. I’m asked in Sedona. I thought I cleared it up. So there’s a whole gap of time where apparently they’re questioning and talking, but I don’t know about it.”
She also suggested that not everyone’s confusion is genuine.
“Some people are pretending not to understand. Some people are not listening, but none of that is my fault.”
“And even if these women don’t f*cking get it, can they not respect that a lot of people clearly do?”
While some of the women questioned her business, others offered a more balanced perspective.
Sutton Stracke noted that Amanda could improve how she explains what she does, while Jennifer Tilly admitted it can be “hard to follow” at times — but not necessarily wrong.
Boz, meanwhile, clarified that she doesn’t take issue with the concept itself.
“When we first met, that’s what she told me she was doing, which I actually thought was very noble because you want people to have a good relationship with their money,” she said.
But she still believes Amanda’s messaging could use some work.
“If you’re going to tell people that by doing these steps, you’re going to make money, I think she just needs a rebranding.”
Dorit Kemsley echoed that sentiment, suggesting confidence plays a role in how Amanda handles criticism.
“If you’ve got confidence and you believe in what you’re doing, then…” she began, as Boz added, “Then you wouldn’t be sensitive.”
“Exactly,” Dorit continued. “If you want to be a real businesswoman, you’ve got to be okay with a little bit of criticism.”
With Rachel urging Amanda to open up more, and Boz continuing to question her approach, it’s clear this storyline is far from over.