Meghan Markle‘s latest business venture, American Riviera Orchard (ARO), is turning out to be a tutorial on how not to launch a business. Months have passed since the brand’s reveal, and ARO’s shelves are still empty.
The buzz around ARO began with a splashy announcement in March. The Duchess of Sussex launched an Instagram account and a website for the business. She promised fans a taste of a luxe lifestyle, complete with products from pet food to yoga mats. But nearly eight months after the fanfare launch, the brand’s lifestyle products remain unseen and unavailable for purchase. ARO’s website and Instagram account feature only the logo of the company.
According to Richard Eden, a royal commentator for the Daily Mail, ARO’s launch was rushed in an attempt to stop him from running a story about Meghan’s new business. “I contacted Meghan’s office in March to inform them that I planned to run an item about her plans to launch a lifestyle company called American Riviera Orchard. Meghan was apparently so desperate for the news not to appear first in the Daily Mail that she immediately launched the Instagram page for her company, complete with a glitzy video,” wrote Eden in his hit piece.
Since the rushed reveal, ARO has struggled to move beyond the hype. Products are yet to hit the market. Trademark filings reveal that ARO has aspirations to span almost every lifestyle lane. But despite early promotional efforts like sending homemade jam to Kris Jenner and Chrissy Teigen, the brand is far from establishing itself. The absence of actual products has dimmed the initial buzz. Enthusiasm among followers who were excited about the royal-inspired lifestyle is waning. Eden’s “how not to launch a business” critique is hitting hard.
We rarely see positive stuff about the Duke and Duchess of Sussex in the media, especially since they stepped down as royals. The Daily Mail has been covering ARO’s story religiously. Vanity Fair‘s former editor, Tina Brown, also joined in. She has gone so far as to call the Sussexes’ post-royal decisions a “disaster.” Brown singled out Meghan’s business moves as “the worst judgment of anyone in the entire world.” The hits from Daily Mail are based on some truths, however. Meghan is having some trouble with trademarking the name of the brand and the logo.
Meghan can still revive ARO’s debut with a good product launch. Eden’s hit piece may have been too harsh. Launching a business takes time, even if you are the Duchess of Sussex. Meghan’s biggest mistake was trying to get ahead of a story. It’s not as much a business failure as it is a PR one. If Meghan can manage to ignore the media heat she is getting, a successful business is something we can look forward to.
Although it’s hard to ignore Meghan’s shady business moves, we don’t want to hit anyone while they are down. It’s obvious that she rushed the launch of ARO. But that doesn’t mean that the business has failed. There is still time for Meghan to sort out issues with the trademarks and release products. We’re sure that fans will go wild for some royal lifestyle products.