MAFS Bride Katie Johnston Breaks Down Over Repaying Employees’ Unpaid Superannuation

Katie Johnston has broken down in tears as she repaid an outstanding debt to her employees on Wednesday. 

The Married At First Sight bride is the director of the Wild The Lifestyle Co Pty Ltd, which went into liquidation in 2023 while owing $400,000, which included over $150,000 in unpaid superannuation.

Johnston says she fell behind financially during the Covid pandemic and this week announced that she has returned $150,000 in unpaid super to her employees. 

A video shared on Instagram showed the 37-year-old swatting away tears as she pressed ‘send’ on a final transfer of the funds.

‘I just paid off the last of the superannuation debt that had built up during COVID –  and honestly, it feels surreal,’ she wrote in a lengthy Instagram caption. 

Katie Johnston (pictured) has broken down in tears as she repaid an outstanding debt to her employees on Wednesday

‘After years of working tirelessly, making sacrifices, and holding onto hope, this moment feels like a quiet victory. I’ve been carrying the weight of those hard times for a long time, and today I finally get to let some of it go,’ Katie continued. 

‘To my past and current staff – thank you. Your patience, your understanding, and your belief in me gave me the strength to keep going. You’ve shown me what real loyalty and humanity look like, and I’ll never forget it.

‘If you’re still fighting through the financial aftermath of COVID – you are not alone. So many of us struggled, and there should be no shame in doing your best to survive a global crisis. Everyone’s situation is different, and the decisions you made to protect your family, your staff, or even just your own well-being were not easy.’

She concluded: ‘Walk with your head high. I know what it’s like to go to war within yourself trying to avoid the tough choices. Just remember: you’re not weak, you’re resilient. And anyone who makes you feel otherwise has no idea what you’ve carried.

‘This chapter closes with gratitude, grace, and the hope that we all rise – not despite the struggle, but because of it.’

In the clip, Katie was accompanied by her accountant from In Depth Accounting and acknowledged that some employees may have felt they were part of a ‘horror story’.

‘I just want to say a massive thanks to the staff for riding that horrible wave with me,’ Katie said in the video. 

‘I know some of you were really upset and that we had to all go through that.

A video shared on Instagram showed the 37-year-old swatting away tears as she pressed ‘send’ on a final transfer of the funds

‘But you have not missed out on anything. I am really sorry that I had to make really hard decisions but thank you for those who were patient with me and really understanding.

‘It made this last year a lot more manageable and I am insanely grateful for your grace and patience and understanding.’

The TV star broke down after pressing the confirmation button, after stating, ‘I hope I don’t cry that would be awkward. I’m going to cry’. 

What Katie had described as a ‘social enterprise’ business while she was a participant on the reality TV juggernaut Married at First Sight had debts of nearly half a million dollars, including unpaid superannuation to its employees. 

Documents from the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) show Wild The Lifestyle Co Pty Ltd – directed by Katie Johnston – was placed into liquidation on June 28, 2023.

Johnston described her job on an episode of the show as being ‘CEO of a social enterprise group of restaurants – we split our profits helping others who are doing it tough and help them with emergency food and emergency housing’. 

The group known as EATS has a number of restaurants in southeast Queensland and Wild the Lifestyle Co was the business responsible for two Sunshine Coast locations at Eumundi and Sunshine Plaza.

Johnston is not accused of any wrongdoing and EATS, which stands for Empowering All Through Support, is still operating despite the collapse of Wild the Lifestyle Co business. 

The Married At First Sight bride is the director of the Wild The Lifestyle Co Pty Ltd, which went into liquidation in 2023 while owing $400,000, which included over $150,000 in unpaid superannuation (one of its venues at Eumundi on the Sunshine Coast is pictured)

According to the liquidator’s report, the company owed $493,927 when it collapsed.

Unpaid superannuation accounted for $150,709, while $190,980 was owed to the tax office, and $141,174 was owed to Mercedes Benz Financial Services relating to loans for two cars – a 2020 Mercedes Benz GLE300D and a 2017 Mercedes-Benz SLC200.

Following the liquidation EATS Eumundi was sold to the company EATS Nambour Pty Ltd, also owned by Johnston, while EATS Sunshine Plaza closed its doors. 

Johnston said she intended to repay the money.

‘The repayment plan is in place and being maintained. Covid ruined a lot of businesses and continues to ruin people’s lives as we struggle with cost of living and mass business closures,’ Johnston told The Sunshine Coast Daily. 

The group still operates restaurants at Carindale, Kawana and Pacific Fair along with the Eumundi location.

Among the causes it donates money to are poverty stricken communities in Peru. 

Johnston was a finalist in the 2021 Young Business Woman of the Year Awards held by the Sunshine Coast Women’s Business Network.

She was paired on MAFS this year with Tim Gromie. Pictured on MAFS 

A year earlier in 2020, Katie revealed her devastation after discovering her Sunshine Coast restaurant had been robbed during COVID lockdowns, with thieves making off with iPads and cash. 

And two years prior, Katie bravely penned an open letter in the local newspaper about bullies on Noosa’s beaches, who had targeted her with hurtful comments. 

Her response received overwhelming public support. 

Katie was paired on MAFS this year with Tim Gromie.

He was quick to establish himself as one of the show’s ‘villains’ after a bizarre text he sent to a former MAFS participant was revealed.

He also complained to a producer he wanted to be matched with someone ‘petite and blonde’. 

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Johnston’s PR for comment.