Actress Joanne Peh cancels sales livestream in China due to 'zero respect from merchant'

Those who tuned in to Joanne Peh's livestream on Wednesday (Jun 17) would know that it was a highly emotional night for the former Mediacorp actress.

The 43-year-old was scheduled for a TikTok sales livestream in Guangzhou, but cancelled it on the day due to "zero respect from [the] merchant", she wrote in her TikTok story.

"This is the one merchant that I think you are so full of yourself. If you think you can go ahead and stream all by yourself, then don't invite the creators," she said later that night on a livestream.

Peh was visibly upset about the disrespect she experienced while working with said merchant, whom she did not name.

The actress broke down in tears several times as she recounted the incident during the stream that lasted over an hour.

"I think our team has been very reasonable to a lot of merchants. We don't demand a lot of things," she averred.

"But if today I need to come [to your office] for a live stream and you make me feel like we're imposing on your space, you don't even have the decency to not smoke in my presence, and you tell me: 'This is my office', shouldn't I tell you [to get lost]?"

Speaking with 8days.sg, Peh said: "Cancelling a stream is not something I would ever do casually or emotionally."

"In this case, the decision was not based on one isolated incident, but on repeated interactions that raised concerns for me. Across several meetings, there was a consistent lack of respect for our time, effort and sincerity in wanting to understand the brand and products properly," she added.

There were also remarks made about other creators they had worked with previously that Peh felt were disrespectful.

"On the day itself, when we arrived, the streaming area was also not properly set up. In isolation, some of these things may seem small, but collectively, they reflected a pattern I could not ignore," she elaborated.

"For me, this was not about feeling upset or wanting sympathy. It was about drawing a professional boundary."

While she explained that any adversity can help her grow as a livestreamer, this experience had taught her the importance of standing up for herself.

"If it's wrong, it's wrong. If [they were] rude, [they were] rude. This is something I still want to talk about. Regardless of how good your products are, I won't suffer in silence," she said on her own livestream.

According to Peh, her team intentionally arrived early to prepare and spent a great deal of time doing their homework for the livestream, even if it meant forgoing the opportunity to do another livestream in Hangzhou.

Walking away from a stream also meant that none of her team members, including herself, would be paid for the session.

"It's a lot of responsibility on my part when I have to make a call like that, but you know what, I tell myself, and I'm telling this to all of you as well, when somebody disrespects you, you stand up for yourself. You don't let them disrespect you this way," said Peh.

At the end of the livestream, she was joined by her husband, Qi Yuwu, who turned out to be the one who suggested she go live to tell her side of the story.

"After the incident happened just now, you came to find me and I brought you out to eat something nice. I told you: 'Since you have so [many] grievances in your heart, why not share [them] with your fans'," shared Qi.

"I'm so happy I made that decision and gave [you] that suggestion," he smiled.

Peh told 8days.sg that she was "very aware that this can easily be misunderstood as a personal grievance", or as [her] telling a "sob story".

"That is not my intention at all. I’ve been in this industry long enough to know that work is never perfect. Things change, people get stressed, and not every collaboration will be smooth," she said.

She also acknowledged that merchants, platforms, creators, and teams all face their own pressures.

Peh also stressed the importance of basic mutual respect in helping the industry grow in a healthy and sustainable manner.

"I chose not to proceed because I did not want myself, my team or my audience to support a working culture where people’s time, effort and trust are not respected, and where people are made to feel like they are just there to help make sales," she said.

This story was originally published in 8Days.

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