Entertainment
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ByLeah MulroneyandJoey Keogh/
For many years now, influencer, entrepreneur, and CEO Rachel Hollis has been holding the attention of millions of fans all over the world. Her glossy photos, and cheeky book titles — such as "Girl, Wash Your Face" and "Girl, Stop Apologizing" — have cultivated a cult-like following for the social media superstar, and she's gone out of her way to include her fans in all of the ups and downs of her life. For more than a decade and a half, her late ex-husband, Dave Hollis, took center stage and their adoring fans were happy to follow along.
Hollis met her former partner, who sadly passed away in February 2023 (via Variety) after making a big move to Los Angeles, according to Netline.They dated for two years before officially tying the knot in 2004. The self-proclaimed "high-end, stylish wedding planner" reported in a 2012 article forHuffPost that she doesn't exactly look back fondly on the day, citing her use of decor and details that she would now consider to be tacky.
While the plastic chairs and tulle accents Rachel used may not be the height of class and refinement in the world of wedding planning, it's fair to say that focusing on the details rather than the marriage itself might have been the first sign of trouble for the Hollises. However, the couple would ultimately stay married for 16 years, welcoming three children naturally and adopting a fourth, perIt's Fine I'm Fine. Their relationship was complex, to say the least.
The couple often mixed business with their personal life
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In addition to building a family, Rachel Hollis also created her business empire during her marriage to Dave Hollis. She first achieved success with the founding of her first company, a lifestyle content company (via Insider), and made her way into the public eye by sharing photo evidence of her post-pregnancy stretch marks on a trip to the beach in 2015. Rachel made yet another splash in 2018 with her first book, "Girl, Wash Your Face," which became a New York Times best-seller.
The very same year, Rachel and Dave decided to work together for Hollis Co., the revamped version of Chic Media. This would mark the beginning of the integration of business with their marriage as the company grew to orbit around their relationship. In addition to the hyper-feminine focus of the company, the couple began doing daily live streams for their fans. Also in 2018,Rachel and Dave Hollis began their joint podcast, "Rise Together," where they often revealed intimate details about their marriage and discussed relationships more generally too.
The couple consistently maintained their picture-perfect internet presence, regularly sharing glossy photos with their fans, which were accompanied by heartfelt captions that would lead anyone to believe that Rachel and Dave were happy and thriving. The celebrity duo was fully committed to maintaining their public image, which made their divorce announcement in June of 2020 a shock for devoted followers.
A not-so-shocking divorce announcement
While the divorce felt like it came out of nowhere to those who had been faithfully following the Hollis family for years, it's likely that their separation had been in the works for quite some time before the announcement hit Instagram. Employees reported a dramatic change in Rachel Hollis's persona in the workplace, according to Insider, a shift that may have signified the beginning of the end for the then-power couple.
The original Instagram post on Rachel's account, in which she announced the divorce, stated, "We have worked endlessly over the last three years to make this work and have come to the conclusion that it is healthier and more respectful for us to choose this as the end of our journey as a married couple. We remain dear friends as we raise our family as co-parents and run our company as partners."
Three years is certainly a long time to keep impending divorce proceedings under wraps, but the pair were committed to maintaining their ultra-positive personas and status as relationship gurus until their marriage came to a screeching halt. Although he had planned to continue working with his soon-to-be ex-wife, Dave Hollis left the companybut the Hollis Co. site does still sell his book, "Get Out Of Your Own Way."
Dave Hollis didn't initiate the divorce
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As the weeks went on, more details about the Hollises' marital dissolution came to light. Much of the revelations came from Dave Hollis himself. On July 26, 2020, almost two months after Rachel Hollis announced the divorce, Dave posted his own statement to his Instagram account, sending shockwaves through the former couple's loyal fanbase. His post included a photo from their 16th wedding anniversary that was taken just two days before they reportedly decided to move forward with the split.
Dave noted, "I put this picture up on our anniversary in May, then took it down two days later. It was our 16th, a year from this shot renewing our vows, married a 4th time after ceremonies every five years, one of the best days ever. Two days later, Rae told me she didn't want to be married anymore" (via It's Fine I'm Fine). Although Dave wanted to stay together, he didn't appear to be harboring any ill will toward his former wife. He even continued posting supportive comments on her Instagram account.
Both Rachel and Dave managed to move on with their lives
Dave Hollis wasn't exactly happy about the divorce, but he didn't dwell on his failed marriage either. In February of 2021, news broke that the former husband of blogger extraordinaire Rachel Hollis had begun dating another influencer. In a lengthy post shared on Valentine's Day, Dave gushed about the new woman in his life (via Gomi Blog). She was Heidi Powell, a fitness blogger who was navigating her own divorce at the time.
Dave reportedly conducted an interview with the influencer about divorce and relationships, and the calls, texts, and flirtation continued and, as they say, the rest is history — much like Dave's relationship with his former wife. He wasn't the only one who moved on either. In June of 2021, Rachel Hollis reportedly signed up for a dating app to find some new people to hang out with, according to HITC.
In a subsequent Youtube video, the influencer explained that one of those friends had evolved into something a bit more romantic. Though she didn't confirm the identity of her new beau, Rachel described him as "really attractive." She's since goneInstagram official with her boyfriend Cez Darke. All things considered, it was nice to see the couple keeping it civil post-divorce and evidently, they remained close.
Rachel was devastated by her ex-husband's untimely passing
In February 2023, a number of outlets confirmed that Dave Hollis had passed away at the age of just 47, following a recent hospitalization for "heart issues,"as a spokesperson confirmed to the Los Angeles Times.He worked at Disney for 17 years before pivoting to focus on helping his former wife Rachel Hollis run her then-burgeoning company. The influencer was "devastated" by the news, admitting on Instagram: "I have no words and my heart is too broken to find them."
According to People, during a subsequent episode of her podcast, Rachel shared, "His death is traumatic and awful and just, it's just devastating." She found it particularly tough because, at the time of writing, the family is still waiting for the full report on what caused Dave's untimely passing. The former Disney employee was quietly suffering from undisclosed heart problems. But, as Rachel explained, "Whatever he died from, we're still in the same space, which is just deep grief."
The children were obviously taking it very hard, while Rachel did her best to support them as she struggled with the mourning process herself. The bestselling author revealed that Dave's death hit her especially hard because she'd seen him just two days prior and didn't notice anything off about her former husband."We're sad, we're angry, we're confused and we're all the feelings," Rachel continued. "But we are very strong. We are very close. ... It's gonna take some time, but we are going to be okay."
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