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Kim Kardashian’s Former Assistant Stephanie Shepherd Says She Was ‘Fired in the Nicest Sense of the Word’
Kim Kardashian’s former assistant, Stephanie Shepherd, reflected on being fired from her position as COO of KKW Brands six years ago.
“It was such a huge deal at the time, and like, I mean fired in the nicest sense of the word. I was crying, she was crying. Because we are friends,” Stephanie, 33, said during the October 23 episode of “The Skinny Confidential Him & Her Podcast.” “That friendship is really important to both of us.”
Stephanie, a.k.a. “Steph Shep,” reflected on the opportunity to work for Kim, 43, calling it “incredible.” She praised all of the Kardashian family’s work ethics and business practices and said, “I always say it’s like my graduate school.”
The environmental advocate also reflected on how she accepted that it was time to end her professional relationship with Kim. “I think this theme in my life of kind of like where I’ve just inherently felt like, ‘Oh, it’s time to move on here. I don’t know if I have anything more I can contribute to this,” she continued. “And I think she probably felt that and saw that.”
Stephanie said that Kim wanted her to thrive and even refers to their professional split as “the most beautiful uncoupling” and she “still goes to [Kim] for personal and professional advice all the time.”
Stephanie began working for Kim in 2013 as her personal assistant. However, in 2017 Stephanie wanted to advance her career and take on a bigger role within Kim’s businesses. Unfortunately, the move didn’t work out for her.
People first reported on Kim’s decision to fire Stephanie in November of 2017 when a source claimed, “Kim made a decision to let Stephanie go. She was a good assistant, but when Stephanie wanted to transition into a larger role with Kim’s brand and businesses, it just didn’t work. Kim gave her the chance, but after a short period of time it became clear that Stephanie just didn’t have the knowledge to take on a role like that. Kim made an executive decision to part ways.”
At first, it appeared Stephanie’s firing caused a rift between the reality star and her assistant, and according to People, the two “weren’t even speaking.” Since then it appears as though they’ve made amends.
Stephanie married record producer Larry Jackson in June 2023, and several of the Kardashian family members attended. Since she and Kim parted ways, Stephanie has moved on to founding her own non-profit organization, Future Earth.
