“I shop at Primark, I’ll wear a £10 t-shirt”

Love Island 2023 winners Kai and Sanam have opened up about how they rejected huge brand deals since the show and have both returned to their day jobs. The couple said in an interview that they prefer “normal” life to the influencer lifestyle the show can offer.

Kai and Sanam won the winter love island in 2023. They were the first ever Casa Amor couple to win the show. They were drama-free and to this day remain the healthiest winners the show has ever had.

Today the couple said they had given up on fame and instead turned down offers of big-name contracts, returning to the jobs they had before the villa. Usually all you hear about is Islanders giving up their day jobs and signing six-figure contracts with fashion and beauty brands, trying to cash in as much as possible, as quickly as possible.

Kai and Sanam already said they were giving up fameand now they told MailOnline it all depends on this choice. Kai has returned to work as a PE teacher and Sanam is back as a social worker.

“I went to college for five years to do something I’m extremely passionate about,” Sanam said. “It didn’t feel right to give up what I had learned, what I had developed a passion for. Also knowing that you are making a difference in the lives of so many young children and adoptive parents is a huge feeling of fulfillment. I love my job and it didn’t feel right to walk away from everything when I work so hard. I wasn’t ready to give up.

She shut down the idea that if you go back to work after Love Island you’re “a failure” and said for herself she feels the opposite. “I’m really grateful for the opportunities and experiences that Love Island has brought us, but also for waking up every morning and feeling like I’m actually making an impact in some way,” Sanam said.

“We both work directly with children and the fact that we can do this makes us feel like we are making a difference in our world. That’s what’s important to me.

Kai added that he loved his job too much to give it up and said he went on Love Island to find a partner, not to change careers. He also said the opportunities after Love Island could be “amazing” but said: “What I really wanted to do was go back to education in some sort of capacity.”

Kai and Sanam have said they have turned down many big deals since Love Island. The couple said they preferred to be their authentic selves rather than chasing money. A year ago, the couple said they haven’t had many opportunities since Love Island. They said they felt they “weren’t what they (the brands) wanted.” However, they now say they found work and turned it down.

“There was one fashion that I refused because the demands were very high. It was basically going to take over all of my social media, so it wouldn’t be me,” Kai said. “You had to like the publication three times a week. Make coils. Basically, I’m just producing this concept of this fashion brand. With the amount of content I would have to create, I couldn’t be myself on my own platform.

Sanam added: “I would rather work with a brand for a lower salary and it will be 100% me than get a six-figure contract and have to be sort of unhappy about it. »

Kai continued: “Since I won Love Island, I haven’t bought anything extravagant or expensive. I didn’t buy any designer clothes or anything. It’s crazy because when I was younger, I was pretty materialistic. I would go out and spend £500 on a t-shirt. But as I get older, I will happily go shopping at Primark.

“I’ll wear a £10 t-shirt and I’ll still feel a million pounds. As long as I look smart, clean and neat, I don’t mind. Materialism no longer matters to me.

Sanam added: “I have always been a saver. The money we had (from the Love Island prize) was useful to us in terms of Kai and I moved in together. It was also going to my family and supporting my mother. I’m like Kai, I don’t do designer stuff. I have nothing against it, but if I buy things, it is well within the limits of current prices.

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