MEGHAN Markle’s decision to snub a potential Suits reboot was crazy, an expert has claimed – as her brand-new company also teeters on the brink of “failure”.
This week, the Duchess became caught up in another plagiarism row, with a New York clothing line claiming she had stolen the “As Ever” brand name.
Amid widespread criticism, royal correspondent Jack Royston believes that rejoining the hit Netflix show would have helped Meghan restore her name in America – a feat which her current Netflix deal has been unable to achieve.
He told Matt Wilkinson on The Sun’s Royal Exclusive show: “I have to say, I still cannot make out for the life of me why she didn’t do a Suits reboot.
“Acting is what first forged a relationship between Meghan and the American people.
“Suits has had an absolutely wild run recently that nobody saw coming.
“It’s been so successful and loved. Again, I cannot work out for the life of me why she didn’t just do a Suits relaunch.”
“It’s a crazy decision.”
“She’d barely need to be in it. She could do a few scenes here and there and that would make the relaunch of the show.
“So it’s madness to me that she didn’t just do what she’s good at, what she’s known for.
“It’s quick win, and it would have been fantastic. But yeah, for some reason she doesn’t want to.”
The royal experts also discussed the latest “plagiarism” rows that have scunnered Meg’s As Ever announcement.
Since sharing her video to fans on Instagram earlier this week, two small business owners and the mayor of Majorca have slammed the Duchess.
She came under fire for her choice of logo, which bore a striking resemblance to the Porrores coat of arms.
The former actress was then called out by a New York based clothing company owner and a photographer in Arizona for using the same name – As Ever,
Mr Royston added that Meghan’s recent debacle with the Spanish town was “embarrassing”, but the New York issue was a greater one.
“You can rebrand once and people are like, okay, this is a bit awkward. But if you rebrand twice, it’s just going to look like a failure,” he said.
“And this is actually a window for her where she could actually finally launch something that is successful, that Americans want to buy.
“It’s an important moment for Meghan and one she’ll want to get right.”
But, the Duchess also has new new cooking show With Love, Meghan, airing on March 4.
It will contain eight 33-minute episodes featuring the mum-of-two’s A-lister Hollywood pals and top chefs.
The docuseries is linked to As Ever, but the royal experts cast doubt over how well they will be perceived by a fanbase who have been waiting nearly a year.
“It doesn’t feel to me like jam can live up to the amount of pressure that she’s putting on it,” continued Mr Royston.
“She’s tied it to her Netflix show so the two things will succeed or fail together. So for Meghan, this really is the brand now.
“With the Netflix show, she’s making something that feels like linear, scheduled TV. It feels like an old-school, daytime bit of good fun, cooking TV and there was a place for that.
“But is there a market for that on streaming platforms? When people watch TV through streaming platforms, it’s a very different experience.
“You want to sit back. You want to watch a boxset. You want to watch ten episodes in a row.
“Is there a market for what Meghan’s doing in the modern world of streaming?
“She needs to find out really quickly whether this is going to work or not because if it doesn’t, she’s going to be moving on again to something and she’s going to have work out pretty quickly what that’s going to be.
“And every time something doesn’t quite land, it’s even more pressure on the next to be the one that makes her name in America again.”
Meghan Markle accused of copying logo for new lifestyle brand, As Ever
It has been claimed the Duchess of Sussex may have “copyright issues” after she announced her latest venture, As Ever.
Eagle-eyed fans have spotted similarities between her logo and the Coat of Arms of Porreres in Majorca.
Reddit users were quick to post the two designs side-by-side, showing both contain a palm tree and two birds.
Nick Ede, a brand and culture expert, told The Sun: “Yes the logo that she has used for the new brand As Ever is clearly very similar to the coat of arms for an area of Majorca.
“This is another brand set back as it looks like its been copied rather than a whole new brand identity created.
“This may potentially create copyright issues and a further headache for Meghan and her team.”
This comes after Meghan revealed the name of her new brand, As Ever, in an Instagram video this week.
Yesterday, the Duchess posted what appeared to be a vision board for her new lifestyle business, with handwritten notes and never before seen pics.
But a PR pro claimed it was “staged” by Netflix and the mum-of-two is trying to resurrect her life before Harry.
Expert Nick Ede labelled the move “cringey” and all “about Meghan”.
He told The Sun: “Memory Lane to her is not being part of the royal family.
“It’s not actually about her own family. It’s about the Tig which was her blog, which she did when she was doing Suits.
“She’s referencing that, she even has a little bit from the Tig on that mood board.
“There’s nothing to do with even a reference to Suits, her old job.
“Her memory Lane is pictures of her and Harry and their dog that sadly passed away. But it’s very much about her life, her life with Harry, and referencing a past life when she had a brand.”
There was one drawing on the mood board titled ‘Signature Tig Cup’.
It has images of what appears to be mint, cucumber, grapefruit, lime and ice.
“Some of the little notices she’s put on there about love and my bum being bigger than my heart, they’re all references back to when she was on the Tig, because that’s got a Tig little motif on it,” Mr Ede added.
“It’s very sanitized. It’s not really about Harry. It’s not really about the royal family. It’s not really about her family, it’s about Meghan.”
But he added: “I don’t know how many people remember the Tig. To be honest it was something that she was very, very passionate about, and she did create this brand, which was quite similar to the early days of Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop, but never really got to as big as that.
“And I think Megan has always wanted to really do that. So you know, when we talk about authenticity, this is what she’s trying to do.”
Meghan Markle keeps ‘reinventing’ herself for cash while clinging to royal links AND using kids for clout
By Ryan Merrifield
FICKLE Meghan Markle has to keep reinventing herself while clinging to her royal links – and she is shamelessly using her kids for clout, an expert claims.
The Duchess of Sussex announced a shock name change for her American Rivera Orchard lifestyle brand today.
Announced less than a year ago, the project is now called As Ever, ahead of its official launch to tie in with new Netflix cookery show With Love, Meghan next month.
In her Instagram announcement, the duchess, 43, said the change meant she was no longer “limited” to selling products from the part of Santa Barbara where she grew up.
But she failed to touch on the trademark issues that have dogged the launch, with officials saying she cannot have exclusive rights to “American Rivera” going forward.
Royal author Hugo Vickers told The Sun: “I think there’s a lot of sort of jumping in and then rethinking.”
He said this reflects much of the ventures Meghan and Harry, 40, have undertaken since stepping down as working royals in 2020.
“It’s always this sort of rebranding of themselves, and reinventing themselves so that they’re always in view of the public…” he explained.
“It does all seem a little bit…how do you put it? Incredibly commercial. It’s obviously aimed at marketing. But from what I read, all this has happened quite suddenly.
“There’s lots of applications being put in and things being registered, and so forth. I think it’s all a little bit sort of done on the hoof, to be honest.”
Today’s rebrand announcement video – filmed presumably in the Sussexes’ garden in Montecito – features Harry’s voice playfully telling his wife at the start “it’s recording” before she giggles.
Mr Vickers, pointing out the duke also featured briefly in the brand’s introductory video, said he’s still essentially the main draw.
“I was going to say ‘product placing’, but ‘Meghan placing’, I mean, we watch her because she’s married to Prince Harry,” he said.
“That’s the reason we watch her, and really the only reason, to be quite honest.”
He added: “I rather wonder what will happen if ever the day comes when she doesn’t need him. But that’s all in the future.
“I’ve said this a million times, but that is why we watch them – because he is Prince Harry…he’s put her on the map.
“She was quite well known before she got involved with him. But she’s extremely well known as a result of having married Prince Harry. That’s what it’s all about.”
The As Ever website also features a rare photo of their daughter Lilibet, and Mr Vickers said this, unfortunately, feels like a commercial decision as well.
“I’m personally rather against people using their children for advertising purposes, especially when their children are officially members of the Royal Family,” he said.
“They’ve been given princely titles. So, once again it’s exploiting the royal side, and also…we don’t often see the children. In fact, do we ever see them full on?
“We see the back of the head, occasionally, or we see a hand, or we see something. It’s all rather tantalising.
“It’s been like that right since the start. So I suppose that when they do appear it’s like gosh, there they are, they exist.”
