Woman behind business awards allegedly scammed $30k from traders, homeless charity
Dozens of Frankston business owners who paid $175 to accept “prestigious” awards at a “black tie” fundraiser arrived to find party pies and sausage rolls. Now the organiser has allegedly run off with $30,000 while the benefiting charity hasn’t seen a cent.
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The woman behind a Frankston small business awards night has allegedly scammed about $30,000 from unwitting participants.
Former Telstra Businesswoman of the Year nominee Rhiannon Pilton promoted the event as a charity fundraiser, but the nominated group, homelessness support network Donation Chain Inc, never saw a cent of the cash.
Furious local traders, awards-night guests and venue managers are trying to track down Ms Pilton, who claimed to be the director for event company Agency83.
Dozens of people who attended the February 21 Frankston Business Awards have labelled the gala night as a “sham”.
The Leader believes about 180 people accepted Ms Pilton’s invitation to the “not-for-profit” event following a series of congratulatory emails notifying small-business owners of their seemingly prestigious nomination.
Each paid $175 to attend the “black tie, red carpet” event, which promised a three-course meal, house drinks and table service at Functions by the Bay.
Other “award nominees” paid $75 to accept their nomination.
The 23 categories — which Ms Pilton said were sponsored by EastLink, Telstra and NAB — included awards for hairdressing, pet services, business coach, hospitality, rising star and emerging business of the year.
A NAB spokeswoman confirmed the bank had provided a donation to the Peninsula awards “as part of our ongoing support for the local community”.
She told the Leader the bank had referred the cancelled Mornington Peninsula event to its investigation team after their donation to it “did not go towards recognising small business achievements”.
Donation Chain Inc founder Helena Blomeley said despite her group being grateful for any donation, they were perplexed to find out the well-attended gala night was only forwarding $1100 to the charity — but even that never materialised.
“As the charity benefactor for such a big event, that amount sounded off,” Ms Blomeley said.
“However, even that amount would have meant so much to us … it would have covered four month’s rent.”
Ms Blomeley said she felt “let down” when Ms Pilton failed to make the payment and blocked her phone and social media account.
“I wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt and wait for her to pay everyone back … but she’s obviously run off,” she said.
“She rounded up a group of people who are really passionate and excited about Frankston and this is what she’s done … it’s disgusting.”
Ms Blomeley said despite the financial setback her team was forging ahead with plans to open the Frankston Comfort Station, which will provide a hot shower facility for vulnerable members of the community.
EastLink spokesman Doug Spencer-Roy confirmed the organisation withdrew its non-financial support from the event in February.
Frankston City Council also denied any affiliation with the event in a statement released the same month.
“Upon becoming aware of some controversy surrounding the event and for operational reasons EastLink informed the event organiser that it was withdrawing from the event,” Mr Spencer-Roy said.
Megan Pearce, who attended with husband and EFM Health Clubs owner Shaun as nominees for the ‘Health Practitioner/Body Winner’ award, said the event was a “total sham”.
Ms Pearce said the bar tab ran for “half an hour” and whispers regarding the event’s legitimacy circled around the crowd.
“Rhiannon got up on stage and said all the trophies had been stolen and that she could not present them to the winners,” she said.
“There was also no three-course meal, it was just party pies and sausage rolls.”
Ms Pearce said multiple guests were left seeing red when Ms Pilton failed to notify some nominees of a late venue change after Patterson Lakes Golf Club management cancelled her booking when they did not receive full payment.
“Rhiannon made up so many excuses, including that she was receiving cancer treatment,” Ms Pearce said.
Mr Pearce said he received a small and un-engraved trophy two months after the gala.
Dart Newborn Photography owner and award nominee Sarah Richardson said Ms Pilton told her she was nominated by a client she had never heard of.
MC and DJ Bruce Harrison said on Facebook that Ms Pilton called him in a desperate attempt to find a host just hours before start time.
One member of the Functions by the Bay group, who did not want to be named, said there was a “tone of desperation” in Ms Pilton’s voice when she scrambled to arrange a new venue on February 19.
“She ended up paying most of the money three days after the event, but it was only after I hounded her,” they said.
“I have had dozens of calls from traders, the MC and even the belly dancers from the night … it is absolutely devastating she has done this to the charity.”
A notice of re-entry is stuck on the window of Ms Pilton’s previous business, PWR Consulting, which is now vacant on Ninth Ave at Rosebud.
“Being in breach of the said lease, we hereby enter into and upon the premises,” the statement by Nicols Crowders Property Solutions reads.
“ … we require PWR Consulting Pty Ltd to quit and deliver up the premises forthwith on October 3, 2019.”
Ms Pilton was also behind the inaugural Mornington Peninsula Business Awards night in May 2018 at the Mornington Racing Club, which attracted up to 200 attendees.
Following controversy surrounding the inaugural Frankston event, she took to Facebook to cancel the second Mornington Peninsula gala scheduled for this year.
The Agency83 Facebook page, which displayed the cancellation notice along with all of Ms Pilton’s websites and contact details, has since been taken down.
A Mornington Racing Club spokesman, who did not want to be named, said the venue never received a full payment for the May 2, 2018 gala but would not disclose the outstanding amount.
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Dozens more attendees took to social media to complain about the Frankston awards, with Langwarrin counsellor and Rainbow Light Therapies owner Kim Norton describing the debacle as an “absolute disgrace”.
Pets of the Homeless Australia founder Yvonne Hong said she felt sorry for people who had been “duped” by emails from Agency83, which contained spelling mistakes and poor graphics.
“The bad graphic design job in the emails should (have been) an indication (it was) a shonky operation … the agency director signed off emails with the first letter of her name instead of her full name, the whole thing was just super unprofessional,” she wrote on Facebook.
“I was spammed continuously by them even after I emailed them to stop.”
A Victoria Police spokesman told the Leader they had not been made aware of the situation.
Rhiannon Pilton could not be contacted for comment.
Donations to the Donation Chain Inc can be made at:
Westpac
Donation Chain Inc
BSB 033179
Account: 335548