Kim Kardashian and Lewis Hamilton were photographed shopping together in Los Angeles in recent weeks, fuelling fresh claims that the celebrity pairing are dating — but multiple industry sources insist the Kardashian–Hamilton romance is a carefully choreographed publicity exercise rather than a love story. The pair, worth a reported £1.6 billion between them, have been repeatedly 'spotted' at high-profile venues since January, almost always by the same photo agency.

Rumours about Kardashian and Hamilton first flared earlier this year, after they were linked to a stay at the ultra‑exclusive Estelle Manor members' club in the Cotswolds. Since then, the narrative of an unlikely jet‑set couple has unfolded in a series of strategically cinematic moments: a discreet hotel arrival in Paris, a stroll through Tokyo, sun‑kissedsurfing in Malibu. At every stage, the pictures have done most of the talking.

The latest talking point was the pair's low‑key trip to a luxury rug shop in LA, dressed down in oversized jumpers and sunglasses. On the surface, it looked mundane. Behind the scenes, people who work with celebrities for a living saw something else entirely.

'It's a blatant set‑up,' one industry insider said, arguing that Kardashian and Hamilton know precisely how such scenes will be read. The simple idea of 'Kim and Lewis interiors shopping' quickly invites speculation about themmoving in together, extending the life of the story without either of them having to say a word.

That scepticism rests on more than gut instinct. Kardashian herself has admitted on her sister Khloé's podcast that she had barely set foot in a supermarket for 15 years, aside from a staged scene forKeeping Up With the Kardashians. If she wanted a rug, one source remarked, the retailers would come to her house.

Lewis Hamilton and Kim Kardashian at Nobu.pic.twitter.com/poKatlefsi

Kardashian's track record backs that up. During nearly a decade of marriage to Kanye West, she largely disappeared from everyday public life unless cameras were invited in. She even told her sisters in 2019 she was constantly looking for places 'where no one will see us.' Hamilton, too, has tended to keep everyday errands off‑limits, despite an on‑off eight‑year relationship with Nicole Scherzinger that played out in public but not in supermarket aisles.

Against that background, the sudden abundance of 'accidental' sightings in the four months since Kim and Lewis were first linked is striking. They have been photographed together around ten times and in each case by the same Los Angeles–based agency, Backgrid.

Within celebrity media circles, Backgrid's name is loaded. It is, according to multiple insiders, an 'open secret' that appearances in its archives often indicate that a star or publicist has tipped off photographers or actively staged the moment. Kardashian is said to have longstanding links to the agency dating back to her early fame‑seeking days. 'If Kim is pictured by them, it's almost always on purpose,' one source claimed, calling the Hamilton pairing 'atextbook showmance.'

The pattern extends beyond the car park. Recent shots of Kim and Lewis surfing in Malibu show them running down an almost deserted beach, clinging to each other in the waves, apparently oblivious to a paparazzo metres away. There are no visible security guards, which is unusual given Kardashian has spoken of being 'traumatised' after an armed robbery in Paris nearly a decade ago.

Source: International Business Times UK