Luis Ruelas has been caught in a firestorm again involving Vinivia, a company he invested in. The Real Housewives of New Jersey star is not listed on the company website as a member of staff or owner, but multiple employees have called him out for failing to pay them. Most recently, Alana Hunter reported not receiving her paycheck for the past two months. This isn’t a good look for the Bravo star.
Multiple Vinivia employees are sharing their story
Real Housewives of New Jersey fans have often questioned what it is that Luis does for a living. The social media influencer and digital producer, took to TikTok to air her grievances with Luis and the company. Alana joined Vinvia in February 2024 in the role of Social Media Strategist. She has become so jaded by the company that she turned to social media for help. Alana posted a video with the caption, “This was my first time working in tech, but I’ve worked for many other start-ups that NEVER had issues like this. It has been an incredibly stressful time for my team and I both financially and mentally, and truly, I just wish this nightmare would end and we would get fairly compensated.”
Alana shared she was “Exposing the company that stopped paying me two months ago.” The influencer shared that the video “marks just over two months of not being paid by my company, Vinivia. From canceled health insurance to missing 401k contributions, I’m DONE being silent about this and will be posting the details shortly.” She also alleged that one payment was even reversed from her bank account. Alana stated that Vinivia had a major launch party complete with A-list celebrities. Hence, she never thought they were having “money issues.”
This isn’t the first issue with Vinivia
Alana is not the first to complain about her employer. The party planner for the launch party also blasted the company on social media for allegedly failing to pay their outstanding tab of $300,000.
Luis has been ignoring the allegations and instead has doubled down on promoting his new business. In a recent video, he noted, “Augmented reality and artificial intelligence is one of our specialties here at Vinivia.” Luis doesn’t seem worried yet, and as an investor, maybe he shouldn’t be.
The people who make up the company, though? That could be a whole other story.
Here’s Brand Marketing Manager, Nicole Fava, with her own story:
