Source : PERTHNOW NEWS
Influencers and businesses are rushing to distance themselves from Sam Wood and his fitness empire as the reality TV star and fitness guru remains behind bars facing domestic violence charges.
The fallout has spread across the fitness and wellness industries, with commercial partners terminating agreements and fellow personalities publicly clarifying their professional ties.
The latest development includes Wood’s gym The Woodshed in Brighton, Victoria, remaining operational but being given an overnight makeover.
The rise of Sam Wood’s fitness empire
Wood rose to national prominence as the star of The Bachelor Australia in 2015, before co-founding Australian Life Tech the following year.
The company developed the 28 by Sam Wood exercise app and nutrition program, which grew into a major home fitness business.
Through this, Wood became a familiar face in Australia’s fitness industry, building a public profile around exercise, nutrition and healthy living while securing commercial partnerships and collaborations with other personalities.
In 2022, Australian Life Tech was acquired by Melbourne-based company myDNA for $71 million.
The business now operates as 28 Group under pharmaceutical company DBG Health.
What we know about the case
Wood was arrested at a property on Hastings Street in Noosa on October 3 following an alleged domestic violence incident involving his wife Snezana.
He has been charged with assault occasioning bodily harm and strangulation in a domestic setting.
Wood appeared before Maroochydore Magistrates Court, where his legal team indicated he would defend the charges.
The court heard Snezana told police she had been choked to “cessation of breath” and thought she was going to die.
She also described having her head banged against the floor and being unable to breathe, with the alleged assault stopping when someone called out.
Wood’s lawyer told the court his client denied strangling Snezana and may be entitled to argue self-defence, saying there had been hostilities and that Snezana had moved towards him and continued yelling before he pushed her away.
He was refused bail and remains in custody, transferred to Brisbane’s Wacol facility on Friday. His lawyers are preparing to challenge the bail decision in the Queensland Supreme Court.
He is expected to return to Maroochydore Magistrates Court in November.
Businesses cut ties as fallout grows
The fallout since Wood’s arrest has now extended to his own gym, The Woodshed in Brighton East, which has had his logo painted over.
Until Saturday morning, the name The Woodshed was plastered across the building on the front and side. But local residents woke to the change with the front of building now bare.
It remains operational. 7NEWS understands there has been no communication between Wood and the employees at the gym since his arrest.
The gym did not respond to 7NEWS’ request for comment when asked whether it will retain the name The Woodshed.
It comes after DBG Health terminated all commercial arrangements with Wood, effective immediately, earlier this week.
The decision followed a previous announcement that he had been placed on indefinite leave.
“DBG Health does not tolerate domestic violence in any form, and our thoughts are with people impacted by it,” the company said.
DBG Health said 28 would continue operating under the leadership of Mark Watkin, supported by a broader group of health and wellness experts.
Foxes Den has also severed its partnership with the fitness brand.
“We’re aware of the serious charges that have been reported, and while this matter is before the courts, we’ve made the decision to step away from this partnership,” the company said.
Influencers make their positions clear
Married At First Sight personality and entrepreneur Jules Robinson has announced she is ending her partnership with 28 by Sam Wood.
Robinson, who has a substantial following across social media, said she would not comment on the court matter but made clear where she stood on domestic and family violence.
“In light of the circumstances, I have made the decision to end my partnership with 28 by Sam Wood,” she wrote on Instagram.
“This is a decision I have made in line with my values and what I believe is right.”
Fitness After 40 founder Tania Monk has also announced she will no longer work under the 28 by Sam Wood brand.
Monk said her work centred on advocating for women, supporting them and building trust.
“For that reason, I will not continue professional under the 28 by Sam Wood brand or attach my name to a program that remains associated with Sam,” she wrote.
“That is not a statement about guilt or innocence, that is for the courts.
“This is about my values and where I draw my own professional line.”
“You have trusted me with your health, your stories, your struggles and your successes,” she wrote.
“I don’t take that trust lightly.
“My name, my reputation and what I stand for are my own.
“And I have a responsibility to protect them.”
Actress and fitness personality Tammin Sursok has also paused her partnership with Wood and his businesses, removing related promotional content from her social media accounts.
Former The Biggest Loser trainer Tiffiny Hall, meanwhile, clarified that her professional relationship with the brand had already ended before the allegations emerged.
“My time with 28 by Sam Wood had already come to an end and I had moved on to focus on other projects. I have no ongoing role or involvement with the program,” she wrote.
“I will continue to empower women to be safe, strong and support in any way I can.”
Former Bachelor stars speak out
Former Bachelor Matt Agnew has also publicly condemned the alleged behaviour, making clear that knowing Wood personally would not “soften” his position.
“Domestic violence is abhorrent. I condemn it absolutely and unequivocally,” he continued.
“Knowing someone is not a reason to look away. It is not a reason to stay quiet. If anything, it creates a greater responsibility to speak clearly. And on this, there is no ambiguity.”
Former Bachelor Matt Johnson also spoke out about the allegations, saying he was shocked when he heard the charges.
“I know that domestic violence doesn’t discriminate. But I think I’d naively, like so many of us, allowed myself to believe that I could recognise the type of person who might commit such acts of violence,” he said.
“What makes this so confronting isn’t just the gravity of the allegations. It’s how they contradict the image many of us had mistakenly formed of him.
“The man I once saw as a benchmark for success has now been charged for a crime that represents the very worst in what men are capable of.”
Former Bachelor contestants Laura Byrne, Johnson’s wife, and Brittany Hockley have also addressed the allegations on their podcast Life Uncut, describing the alleged behaviour as “absolutely abhorrent and disgusting”.
Former Bachelorette Angie Kent also weighed in, pushing back against assumptions that contestants from the franchise belonged to a close-knit circle.
“Just because I was the Bachelorette 84 years ago, it does NOT mean I am in some secret club with former Bachelors/Bachettes, or that I even know Sam,” she wrote.
“Let’s keep the focus on what actually matters here.
“A quick reminder…. I have zero space on my page for the ‘not all men’ talk, or victim blaming.”
Wood remains in custody as he prepares to challenge the bail refusal in the Queensland Supreme Court.
