Reading Time: 3 minutes
Meghan Markle launched her As Ever brand early this year.
She knew that the name change would attract attention. And she was right.
Now, the Duchess of Sussex is opening up about the “complete U-turn” that she took with her lifestyle brand.
Launching something like this “can be incredibly lonely.” Her big-name business partnerships have helped.
After launching As Ever, Meghan Markle is reflecting upon the complexities of a lifestyle brand launch
On the Tuesday, May 27 episode of the Confessions of a Female Founder podcast, Meghan Markle admitted how much her major partnerships have changed the experience of running her personal brand.
“When you only have yourself to answer to, I think it’s two-fold,” the Duchess of Sussex explained.
“It can be incredibly liberating,” Meghan described, “and it can be incredibly lonely.”
Meghan recalled how she had initially intended to launch As Ever, her lifestyle brand, “all by myself” and all “on my own.” Then, something changed.
“I … took a complete U-turn because I really believe in what Netflix and their CPG [consumer packaged goods] department are doing,” she noted.
There is a lot of power in coordinating launches and more.
In April, Meghan launched her debut Confessions of a Female Founder episode and also opened her first run of As Ever products. The latter almost instantly sold out.
She also sees ‘the flip side’ of this as a mentor
Meghan Markle has invested in other entrepreneurs, like Kadi Lee of Highbrow Hippie and Hannah Mendoza of Clevr Blends.
“I’m really conscious [about making it clear that] … I’m not in the business of trying to dilute you — I’m in the business of trying to uplift you,” she affirmed.
“You want to be the person they call when they have a quality control issue,” Meghan elaborated, “or they just feel uncertain as they all do.”
As we previously reported, Meghan’s brand changed its name from American Riviera Orchard to As Ever. This was the result of a trademark issue … mostly.
“It’s no different than … if you have an idea of what you’re gonna name that baby, you keep it so close to your heart until that baby is here and it’s named,” she advised.
“Don’t ask anyone’s opinion!” Meghan counseled. “
It becomes like Survey Monkey at the beginning of a business.”
Launching a business comes with highs and lows
As we have noted in the past, Meghan Markle became an easy target for jokes when she announced her lifestyle brand. Changing the name to As Ever furthered that.
But then, people have been making fun of Meghan since the moment that she and Prince Harry became an item.
Her nationality and the color of her skin as she married Britain’s most eligible bachelor seemed to enrage some folks.
If people are going to be mean to you no matter what you do, you might as well keep living life — and run a successful business in the process.
