Daisy Chain Fields Vendor Claims Unpaid Fees and Poor Management

Daisy Chain Fields faces vendor criticism after Ugly Oats Kitchen alleges unpaid sales, unexpected fees, weak planning, and difficult working conditions.

The glow of a major festival can look dazzling from the crowd, but behind the stages and selfie spots, small businesses are often doing the heavy lifting. Now, a food vendor from Olivia Rodrigo’s inaugural Daisy Chain Fields event has shared an open letter alleging unpaid fees, poor communication, and serious management problems.

A Festival Built Around Community and Women’s Causes

Before the complaints surfaced, Daisy Chain Fields had been framed as an ambitious celebration of women in music, community, and advocacy. The single-day event took place at Great Park in Irvine, California, at the end of August and was inspired by the Lilith Fair festivals of the 1990s.

The lineup brought together a striking mix of artists, including Chappell Roan, Bikini Kill, Doechii, Garbage, and others. For longtime music fans, the bill carried the kind of colorful, genre-spanning energy that makes a festival feel bigger than a standard concert. It was designed to be a shared space rather than simply a stage with a few food trucks parked nearby.

The event also had a major charitable mission. Before the festival began, Rodrigo announced that $10 million would be donated to nonprofit partners. During the event, that figure grew after additional fundraising efforts, with the money directed toward organizations supporting and advocating for women and girls.

Those groups included:

• Baby2Baby
• Black Mamas Matter Alliance
• Center for Reproductive Rights
• FreeFrom
• Johns Hopkins Center for Indigenous Health
• National Women’s Law Center
• Planned Parenthood

The festival later confirmed that $10 million had been raised for its 10 nonprofit partners. Melinda French Gates then matched the original total, bringing the event’s reported fundraising amount to $20 million.

On paper, it was a powerful mission. But, as one vendor now argues, the treatment of some women-owned businesses did not always seem to match the event’s wider message.

Ugly Oats Kitchen Raises Concerns About Payment

The issue became public when Mary Chacon, owner of Ugly Oats Kitchen, posted an open letter on Instagram addressed to Rodrigo and her team. Chacon said she contacted them two days after the festival because her business had not yet received payment for its sales, which she described as a breach of its contract.

She explained that she had been reluctant to speak publicly. Her concern, she said, was that raising complaints might damage her company’s reputation. Eventually, though, she decided that the situation needed attention and that sharing her experience might encourage a response.

Chacon began the letter by thanking Rodrigo for organizing what she called a safe and historic event. She described it as a privilege to participate, especially because Rodrigo’s music had helped her through some of her most difficult days.

She also praised the singer’s public support for women and the risks she takes in advocating for women’s causes. That made the criticism especially personal: Chacon said that, while she supported the event’s charitable mission, it felt as if some of the money raised for women had come at the expense of women vendors working on-site.

“I love everything that you stand for and the risks you take to fight for women everywhere,” Chacon wrote, before saying the fundraising felt as though it was “done at the expense of some of the women vendors.” — Mary Chacon

That contrast sits at the heart of the dispute. The festival’s ideals were expansive and hopeful, but Chacon’s account describes a much more stressful reality behind the scenes.

Thousands of Cookies and a Bakery Shut Down

According to Chacon, Ugly Oats Kitchen was asked to participate and was warned that vendors would be fined if they ran out of food. In response, the business prepared thousands of cookies and shut down its bakery to meet the expected demand.

That preparation required more than simply baking extra treats. A small food business has to plan staff, supplies, transportation, packaging, equipment, and production time. Closing the bakery also meant putting regular operations on hold, all for the chance to serve at a high-profile event.

Chacon said the company was later told it would need to pay approximately $1,400 in fees and give the festival 35 percent of its sales. She said the arrangement ultimately cost the business several thousand dollars.

For a large corporate food operation, those expenses might be absorbed as part of a promotional budget. For an independent bakery, they can land very differently. A slow event, unexpected costs, or delayed payment can quickly turn a promising opportunity into a financial burden.

Last-Minute Details Created Pressure

Chacon’s complaints extended beyond the payment dispute. She described a pattern of poor management, including being told about major purchases required for the event at the last minute.

She also said setup information did not arrive until only a few hours before the company was supposed to reach the festival. That left the team struggling to get on-site and ready to serve.

Anyone who has ever tried to navigate a large festival knows that timing matters. A missing access pass, unclear unloading instructions, or late-arriving setup map can turn a straightforward arrival into a logistical maze. For a food vendor carrying equipment and perishable goods, the pressure is even greater.

The situation, according to Chacon, became more frustrating once the festival was underway. Ugly Oats Kitchen did not see many customers, and some concertgoers told the team they had not realized food was available in that part of the site.

Chacon suggested that the event had booked too many dessert vendors and not enough businesses serving full meals. In her view, that imbalance created a difficult day for both vendors and attendees.

She also said staff were not told where they could access food and drinks. Those basic omissions became serious when one member of her team suffered heat exhaustion and was unable to find proper food after beginning to vomit.

“It was the most miserable day my staff and I have experienced as part of Ugly Oats,” Chacon wrote, adding that it could take the business months to recover its losses. — Mary Chacon

Despite everything, Chacon said she still viewed the invitation as a privilege. Her goal in speaking out was to highlight the experiences of women entrepreneurs working on the ground, particularly if Daisy Chain Fields returns for a potential 2027 edition.

Other Vendors Report Similar Problems

Ugly Oats Kitchen was not the only food business to raise concerns. Dessert company Por Suerte also posted about its experience, saying it suffered a significant financial loss after operating a stall at Daisy Chain Fields and had not yet received payment.

The company later shared an update saying that event organizers had contacted them and were very receptive to their complaints. Por Suerte confirmed that it had since received payment from the festival.

Ugly Oats Kitchen also posted an update after its original letter gained attention. According to the company, two festival executives reached out directly. Chacon described them as kind, apologetic, and genuinely interested in addressing the problems she had outlined.

The executives were also said to be advocating for Ugly Oats Kitchen with DLS and considering changes that could improve the experience for vendors at future events. An Instagram Story from the bakery then confirmed the key development: the company had been paid.

That update changes the shape of the story, though it doesn’t erase the problems described in the original letter. Payment eventually arriving is important, but so are the planning failures, the unexpected costs, and the physical strain reported by staff.

A Star-Studded Headline Set

While vendors dealt with the difficulties behind the scenes, Rodrigo’s headline performance delivered one of the festival’s biggest musical moments. She was joined onstage by Stevie Nicks, Alanis Morissette, and Sarah McLachlan.

Together, they performed:

• “Landslide”
• “Ironic”
• “Building A Mystery”
• “Angel”

For fans, that kind of surprise collaboration is the stuff of festival memories—the sort of setlist moment people talk about on the drive home and replay in their heads weeks later. It also helped reinforce the event’s larger emphasis on women artists from different generations and corners of music.

The festival was later praised as a beautiful and empowering triumph in a four-and-a-half-star review. That positive response reflected the strength of the performances, the atmosphere, and the event’s stated mission.

Still, a festival can be artistically successful while operationally flawed. Those two truths can exist side by side. The music may soar, the fundraising may be substantial, and the crowd may leave thrilled, while vendors are left sorting through losses and unanswered questions.

What Happens Next for Daisy Chain Fields?

The response from organizers to Ugly Oats Kitchen and Por Suerte suggests that at least some of the immediate payment issues were addressed. Both businesses said they eventually received what they were owed after raising their concerns.

The larger questions remain focused on how a future edition might handle vendors. Clearer contracts, earlier setup information, better site maps, balanced food planning, access to meals and water, and reliable payment procedures could all make a meaningful difference.

Those improvements matter because small businesses are not decorative extras at a festival. They are part of the event’s infrastructure. They feed the crowd, employ staff, bring local character, and take on financial risk long before the first artist walks onstage.

Daisy Chain Fields represents a memorable chapter in music-festival culture, while a favorite album cover poster can bring that same feeling home. Browse the curated collection for a warm, music-filled addition to your wall.

Since Daisy Chain Fields wrapped up, Rodrigo has also launched her “Unraveled” world tour in Connecticut, performing songs from her third album, You Seem Pretty Sad For A Girl So In Love. Her festival has already made a strong mark through its lineup and charitable ambitions. Whether it can build on that foundation will depend not only on the performers and fundraising totals, but also on how it treats the people working behind the scenes.

FAQ

• What is Daisy Chain Fields?
  Daisy Chain Fields is a single-day festival organized around music, women’s advocacy, community-focused organizations, and charitable fundraising. It was inspired by the Lilith Fair festivals of the 1990s.
• What did Ugly Oats Kitchen allege?
  Owner Mary Chacon said the business experienced poor communication, unexpected expenses, limited customer traffic, difficult working conditions, and delayed payment after serving at the festival.
• How much did Chacon say the company paid in fees?
  Chacon said Ugly Oats Kitchen was required to pay about $1,400 in fees and forfeit 35 percent of its sales, resulting in several thousand dollars in losses.
• Was Ugly Oats Kitchen eventually paid?
  Yes. After festival executives contacted the company and discussed its concerns, Ugly Oats Kitchen confirmed that it had received payment.
• Did other vendors report similar issues?
  Yes. Dessert company Por Suerte said it experienced a significant financial loss and had not initially been paid. The company later confirmed that organizers contacted them and that payment was received.

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