Stacey Solomon has firmly pushed back against accusations that she skipped the queue and bought most of the Pokemon card stock at a local store.
On Wednesday, the hugely popular Pokemon Trading Card Game marked its 30th birthday by releasing celebration packs, which led to hundreds queuing at gaming shops nationwide as players raced to get their hands on the coveted stock.
Included in this number were celebrity couple Stacey and her husband Joe Swash, who were attempting to buy some packs in between the school run as they raced from place to place.
However, one X user, We Love Pokemon, took to social media with a supposed video of angry customers at Geek Retreat Chelmsford.
They claimed that after being told they couldn’t park outside the shop, they had to wait until 30 mins before opening to queue, and the limit was one pack per person.
‘All of that went out the window when two celebrities (Joe Swash & Stacey Solomon) showed up. They parked right outside, skipped the queue and bought most of the stock, leaving about 10 items for the 200+ people still waiting,’ the user then shared.
The Sort Your Life Out star immediately set the record straight, calling this story the ‘biggest lie’ and harmful to the small business.
She continued: ‘We joined the queue like everyone else as soon as it started forming. We were sold the exact same limit as everyone else, and they were all opened like everyone else’s.
‘My son and I have been collecting Pokémon cards for years. We’ve queued at many places, many times like everyone else.’
She went on to share all the other places they had queued that morning with no success, including a Waterstones and a Smyths.
The mum-of-five concluded: ‘So the absolute lies in this post that are having a negative impact on Geek Retreat Chelmsford are so unwarranted and unfair. They handled the situation so well given what they were dealing with.’
The store has also backed Stacey’s version of events in a statement on Facebook saying it was ‘simply not true’ they were given ‘special treatment’.
The statement added: ‘We did not know that any famous people were attending until we saw them outside.
‘They were not allowed in early, they were not given extra stock, and they were subject to exactly the same one of each product per-person limits as everyone else.
‘They happened to be second in the queue when we opened, and no member of our team allowed them to skip the queue.’
As for the accusations that they bought well over the limit, the store told Metro: ‘There were four people in their party. Their purchases were placed together in a box to make them easier to carry. Each person was subject to the same limit as every other customer. They were dropped off outside the shop.’
The frenzy for Pokemon cards shows no signs of slowing down. Some viral videos have even shown some fans offering valuable French bulldog puppies in exchange for cards.
Showing just what lengths people will go to for the game.