The interior designer says their friendship blossomed into love after meeting at a personal growth retreat
NEED TO KNOW
- Alison Victoria is opening up about meeting boyfriend Brandt Andersen at a personal growth retreat after her previous eight-year relationship ended
- The couple went public in June 2024 and sparked engagement rumors earlier this month
- Victoria launched Sin City Rehab in 2025 after her show Battle on the Beach was canceled
Alison Victoria is opening up about meeting her boyfriend Brandt Andersen.
On a Thursday, April 23, episode of the Wife of the Party podcast, the HGTV star, 44, spoke about meeting her boyfriend Brandt Andersen at a low point in her life following a tough breakup.
“I was in this relationship for eight years. It was just not for me, but I just kept staying in it and hoping for a different result,” said Victoria of her previous relationship.
Following that breakup, Victoria says she attended a seven-day personal-growth retreat to help her break her patterns and explore her childhood traumas. There, she met Andersen, who was also participating in the retreat.
She says she was at a "breaking point" when she came to the retreat. "I'm rock bottom. I'm devastated… And I was very lucky because I found the love of my life there."
Though she met Andersen there, the interior designer says she “felt nothing” for him at first.
“I was not there to meet anyone,” said Victoria. “In fact, at the Hoffman Process, if you have feelings for people or anyone in there, you have to go talk. They say it, ‘If you have feelings for anybody while you're here, you have to come talk to us because that you're derailing your process, right?'”
Credit: Paul Archuleta/Getty
After leaving the retreat, Victoria says the two kept in touch. "We just became so close as friends," she continued. "After talking with him for a while, I fell in love with him. It's the most beautiful story."
The couple first went public with their relationship in June 2024 when they walked the red carpet together at the 51st Annual Daytime Emmy Creative Arts & Lifestyle Awards. Shortly after, they made things Instagram official. Since then, the two have often packed on the PDA in Instagram posts.
Credit: Alison Victoria/Instagram
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Earlier this month, the pair sparked engagement rumors when the Windy City Rehab star was seen wearing a large ring on her left ring finger while getting her hair done at a salon. The selfie caused fans to speculate that the pair had gotten engaged. PEOPLE later confirmed that the pair are not engaged.
"Alison and Brandt are still happily in love and in partnership with one another," a source told PEOPLE.
In July 2025, Victoria opened up about the cancellation of one of her HGTV shows, Battle on the Beach.
"I did a show called Battle on the Beach. I love that show. It was so fun and funny. And then all of a sudden, I watched the episode, I'm like, 'Well, where'd all that [great content] go?' I get it, it's a lot of content to try to put into 42 minutes, but where is it? Where's the great editing?" she said during an appearance on the Pap Smear Podcast. "You'll lose a show that way. I truly believe that."
Victoria launched a spinoff of her long-running show Windy City Rehab, Sin City Rehab, in September 2025.
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