As the controversy surrounding Sean "Diddy" Combs grows, it's beginning to hit him in the wallet. So far, 18 brands have cut ties with the rapper and entrepreneur's new e-commerce platform, the companies confirm to Rolling Stone. Combs recently launched Empower Global, an online marketplace for Black-owned businesses, and said in July he was more excited about the new venture than he had been in 1993 when launching his record label, Bad Boy Entertainment. More than 160 brands are currently listed on the site. But when R&B singer Casandra "Cassie" Ventura sued Combs for sexual assault (a lawsuit that was quickly settled), the departures started.
"This decision was made on the day that Casandra Ventura filed her lawsuit," the founder of luxury brand House of Takura tells the magazine. Three more lawsuits followed; Combs has denied all the allegations. "As a women-owned and -led company, we do not and will not linger in a gray area about the mistreatment of women," says the founder of another luxury brand, Tsuri. There are more quotes like that in the Rolling Stone article, but one anonymous founder who is sticking with Empower explains that it is standing behind the creation of Khadijah Robinson, the company's former CEO, who first created e-commerce directory the Nile List before Combs acquired it. Robinson has since left the company. Combs also recently stepped down as CEO of Revolt, a multimedia company he co-founded, the Hill reports. (More Sean Combs stories.)
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