NOBODY would be able to top Ris Low as the most scandal-ridden beauty queen in Singapore.
But one could argue that beleaguered Miss Singapore Universe 2009 Rachel Kum came rather close.
Her year-long reign ended when Tania Lim succeeded her last May and she has since reinvented herself as Rachel Kum the entrepreneur.
But controversy continued to dog her.
The 26-year-old launched her makeup line, Rachel K Cosmetics, earlier this month and it retails exclusively at Watsons across 30 stores islandwide.
In December, My Paper reported that Kum received an apology letter from Ms Chua Sim Bian, 19, who was said to have leaked photos of Kum in compromising positions, and an out-of-court settlement of $12,000 in legal fees.
Kum obtained a restraining order against Ms Chua, who had also used the website rachelkum.com to post defamatory comments about her.
When The New Paper asked Kum about the case, she declined to comment.
But it showed just how much of a lightning rod she has been for those who love to hate her.
The brickbats started coming from the moment she won Miss Singapore Universe 2009, which some claimed had been "rigged" - netizens claimed she had slept with a judge.
After she was crowned, "unbecoming" photos of her in suggestive positions were circulated online, sparking calls from netizens to strip her of her title.
The New Paper New Face 2007 finalist has also been called unflattering names online.
When asked if she feels she has been misunderstood, Kum told The New Paper: "In a way, yes. "It's disappointing that beauty queens and pageants enjoy great support from their countrymen, but Singaporeans don't seem to do so."
She understands that Singaporeans expect a beauty queen to be a good role model.
But "you can't please everybody", she said.
"If I'm a businesswoman and nobody knows about it, that's okay. As long as I'm running a business and getting an income from it, that's all that matters. My family and their thoughts about me are all thatmatter."
She has even sought inspiration from these negative experiences when formulating her business plans.
'You don't want to upset people'
Her conclusion: You don't want to upset people.
Her strategy must be working.
Kum said Watsons has ordered 2,200 tubes of Mineral Color Control Cream and 1,000 compact cases of Mineral CC Pressed Powder, which is "a pretty big order for a start-up".
Still, Kum can't seem to escape the negative talk that she relied on connections to get ahead - in particular, her friendship with Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin, who lives in Singapore.
Kum, who was introduced to Mr Saverin by mutual friends two years ago in Singapore, flatly denies this and insists they are not dating.
They catch up with each other when their schedules allow and used to club together at The Butter Factory occasionally.
She said of Mr Saverin: "He's just inspirational, having attained success at such a young age... Most of the time when we do meet, which is not frequent, we just hang out. We don't talk much about business."
Kum, who is single, said she has three business partners who have invested in Rachel K Cosmetics. "When I do business, I don't like to ask for favours. If I really need help, I'll approach my family. I will not approach friends. Money can ruin a friendship," she said.
It also seems her partying ways are behind her.
These days, she works seven days a week and is the marketing, branding and delivery person all rolled into one.
"Now that I have a business and something good going on right now... I don't want to jeopardise my image by doing silly things - well, if you consider clubbing silly.
"Somehow, when you go to a club, people make you out to be a party animal and it gets out of hand. "I'm not really concerned with how hard I need to work to keep a good image because I hardly go out anymore," said Kum.
"I just have to be careful with what I say. People may take things out of context and you create a burden for yourself unnecessarily, which is what I don't want to do."
gerlim@sph.com.sg
This article was first published in The New Paper.
