As we learned last week, the Duchess of Sussex is fulfilling all of our dreams for her next act: a lifestyle brand called American Riviera Orchard, which will likely sell kitchenware, jams, cookbooks and more. Reportedly, Meghan will also have a cooking show too – which is something a lot of us have always suggested, given her interests. The response from the British media has been predictably unhinged and I’m probably not going to cover most of it, because it feels rote at this point. Meghan breathes and that coven of racist dumbf–ks bays for blood. It’s been over four years since Meghan left those people for good reason. Interestingly enough, it’s not wall-to-wall batsh-ttery over there though – British Vogue ran a pretty straight-forward defense of Meghan and her new venture. Some highlights:

While there are sparse details available about American Riviera Orchard at the moment, one thing that Meghan has included on the Instagram page is her royal title – the bio simply reads, “By Meghan, Duchess of Sussex. Established 2024” – which will no doubt irritate some corners of the internet, with the tired implication that she is somehow capitalising on her married status. Yet in many ways, Meghan’s career pivot isn’t at all unusual for a royal – they have been lifestyle influencers, popularising trends, promoting their favourite products and selling their own wares, for centuries now.

After all, what Meghan is doing with American Riviera Orchard isn’t dissimilar to what her father-in-law, King Charles III, did with his Duchy Originals brand – and not just because they both sell jam. Launched in 1990 as a passion project for the then Prince of Wales, it championed his belief in organic farming practices, with milk from cows fed an organic diet and eggs from chickens given ample space to roam and forage. Mocked for what were seen as slightly “out there” views on agriculture for years, Charles was ahead of the curve, and so was Waitrose, who snapped up a partnership with the brand exclusively in 1992. Fast forward 30 years and Duchy Originals has raised in excess of £30 million for The Prince of Wales’s Charitable Fund, which promotes building sustainable communities, with a reported £3.6 million in profits for Waitrose in 2021 alone.

“The notion that royalty can ever be separated from social and cultural influence is absurd,” shares historian Gareth Russell. “Royal support and royal patronage has huge clout. Obviously, as you enter the 20th century, this role of ‘influencer’ is complicated by the issue of potential commercial gain, but really if you look at things like the Duchy of Cornwall, which has been incredibly successful with its range of organic food, what the Duchess of Sussex is doing is essentially no different to other members of the royal family, including the most senior members.”

In addition to official seals of approval [meaning, royal warrants], the royals have long influenced how we live in other ways, too. “Historically we have seen them wield soft cultural power for brands,” shares Russell. “The popularity of Fabergé in Edwardian society was a direct result of the very public patronage given to them by King Edward VII’s wife, Queen Alexandra, who acquired her taste for Fabergé from her sister, the Empress Maria of Russia… [they] were often seen entering and exiting Fabergé’s store in London. It’s worth noting that neither of them paid full retail price for their pieces.”

Another element of Meghan’s new business suggests she will be either hosting events or that the couple will be renting out accommodation of some description, and again, this isn’t actually entirely new territory for a royal. An outbuilding on the grounds of the Queen Mother’s former home, Castle Mey, was restored and reopened as a bed and breakfast called The Granary by her beloved grandson Charles in 2019, while Prince William now rents out holiday cottages on the Duchy of Cornwall estate, complete with saunas, log burners and heated swimming pools.

“Prince William has done some extraordinary and pretty impressive work to ensure that his office and household are no longer funded by the British taxpayer but by the profits generated from the Duchy of Cornwall,” concludes Russell. “Obviously that’s not solely through commercial endorsements and revenue, and he is still a senior working royal, but it’s worth noting that there is a benefit to this kind of thing whereby royalty explores other options and sources of income, to cease being funded primarily or solely by tax-generated income.”

[From British Vogue]

The thing which irritates me the most about ALL of the conversations about Meghan “using” her title is that all she’s doing is simply going by her married name. Meghan’s critics never just say that – she’s a married woman, using her married name. They treat the Sussex title as their CLAIM on Meghan, that if she still goes by her married name, they still “own” her and her work. Meghan put “American” in the name of her brand on purpose – this is an American project from an American woman (who happens to be married to a British man). While I find this British Vogue piece to be surprisingly sympathetic towards Meghan, they’re still presupposing that Meghan is still expected to work or operate “as a royal.” Also: where did Meghan suggest that she’ll be hosting events or renting out anything? What a completely random claim.

Photos courtesy of Netflix, the Sussexes, Archewell.