Ultimo boss Michelle Mone admits bingeing on alcohol after marriage breakdown
Tuesday 21 August 2012
The glamorous boss of lingerie label Ultimo has admitted turning to booze to get over the breakdown of her 19 year marriage last year.
Blonde beauty Michelle Mone was so devastated when her marriage ended at the end of 2011; she frequently went on solitary binges to block out the pain.
The underwear tycoon discovered that her husband and business partner Michael, had been seeing an employee, bra designer Samantha Bunn.
Heartbreakingly, Mone considered Bunn a close friend and had even let her live in a house next door to her own, inviting her over for family meals.
And although the company couldn’t have been doing better (being estimated at around £45 million), Michelle’s personal life began to fall apart.
“I don’t like unhealthy foods now, so I didn’t turn to junk foods” the 40-year-old told a British magazine of her reaction to the split.
She famously lost 6stone in 2010 after she said working with underwear models left her feeling self-conscious. But no longer feeling comfort food was an option, the businesswoman turned to alcohol for comfort.
“What I did do was open a bottle of wine a night. It was getting to be every single night. I would open a bottle of wine and then it would be gone.”
Michelle’s personal trainer Matt Roberts (who also trains the PM and supermodel Naomi Campbell) quickly picked up on what she was doing.
“Funnily enough the heartbreak diet meant that I wasn't putting any weight on, but once I told my trainer how much I was drinking he made me realise how unhealthy it was.”
“Now I’m only allowed a couple of glasses a week,” she added.
The svelte Glaswegian admitted that at first she struggled not to crack open the wine bottle every night, but after a while she adjusted to her new lifestyle.
Since splitting with her husband, Michelle has found love with Dubai businessman Karl French, who she met out there earlier this year.
“My family, my children and Karl have been incredible in supporting me and getting me through this.
“Today I feel fitter, healthier and more focused that I ever have and I am getting my life back on track.”
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