"Consistent Lack of Respect For Our Time": Joanne Peh Reveals What Led Her To Cancelling Sales Livestream & Calling Out Merchant In Emotional Video

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Those who tuned into Joanne Peh's livestream on June 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 of due to "zero respect from 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. Joanne 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 to 8days.sg, Joanne says: "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 tells us. 

There were also remarks made about other creators they had worked with previously that Joanne 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 Joanne 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 Joanne, 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 Joanne.

At the end of the livestream, Joanne 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 much grievances in your heart, why not share it with your fans'," shared Yuwu.

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

Joanne tells 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 says.

Joanne also acknowledges that merchants, platforms, creators, and teams all face their own pressures.

Joanne 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 says.