Meghan Markle’s monetising her mates! Duchess uses her selling power to promote her friends’ brands – while American Riviera Orchard remains quiet

As Meghan Markle makes moves in the world of investment since stepping down as a senior royal, she has put her friends front and centre in her new ventures – to the point where her own business interests have taken a back seat.

Just last week, the Duchess, 43, was spotted boogying the night away at the launch party of her friend Kadi Lee’s haircare line in LA California after investing in the Highbrow Hippie range – which comes on top of the wellness salon in Venice, LA, already owned by Lee.

Meghan’s interest in Highbrow Hippie is just one of many of the investments she has made since moving to California – where she has also lent her support to boutique and sustainable bag label Cesta Collective and coffee brand Clevr Blends.

In lending a hand to her friends’ brands, the Duchess has touted her selling power in promoting the labels which are given a huge boost by association. She explained to the New York Times that when she knows there will be a ‘global spotlight’ on what she is wearing, she will ‘support designers that [she has] really great friendships with, and smaller, up-and-coming brands that haven’t gotten the attention that they should be getting’.

However, as the Duchess announces her new partnerships with glee, some may be left wondering what has happened to her own project, American Riviera Orchard, which has gone silent after a star-studded marketing campaign when it launched in March this year.

Following the launch of the ARO website and Instagram account, which posted nine plush tiles teasing the brand’s logo complete with Meghan’s own calligraphy, the Duchess’s friends in high places, including Mindy Kaling and Kris Jenner, posted photos of jars of strawberry jam they’d received from the orchard, delivered in an aesthetically pleasing bowl of vibrant Sicilian lemons.

As photos of the jam jars trickled onto the Instagram feeds of the rich and famous, excitement began to build as fans eagerly anticipated the products American Riviera Orchard would sell. 

Since then, tumbleweed has struck the orchard, as the brand has gone almost completely silent while Meghan suffers several setbacks in her bid to trademark its name.

Meghan Markle is pictured with Prince Harry during their recent trip to Colombia. She is seen sporting a handbag from Cesta Collective, a brand she has invested in 

The Duchess of Sussex, 43, pictured at a launch event for her friend Kadi Lee’s haircare line with Highbrow Hippie on Friday

The Duchess made a playful cameo in a promotional video for Clevr Blends, a coffee and supplement company in which she has invested, in 2022

Earlier this year on her tour of Colombia with Prince Harry, the Duchess was snapped carrying a purse from Cesta Collective which sells purses handwoven by women in Rwanda and are later finished in Italy. She showed off the $750 (£568) accessory during her trip to Colombia with husband Prince Harry, 39.

She has also attended several high profile events styled by hairdresser friend Kadi Lee, who was the creator of Meghan’s show-stopping boho waves as she visited a charity gala last month to raise money for the LA Children’s hospital.

After her investment in Highbrow Hippie’s haircare line was announced, Meghan told InStyle: ‘Kadi has a mastery of hair health, and her Highbrow Hippie collection is a perfect reflection of that. I am so proud to invest in her as a friend and as a female founder.’

A number of brands Meghan has been spotted wearing before have noted how sales increased substantially following her endorsement. A notable example was in 2017, when a bag from Scottish brand Strathberry sold out online in 11 minutes after Meghan wore it during an engagement during then-fiancé Harry.

Finding out about the sales boost the brand received as a result of her wearing one of its items ‘changed everything in terms of how [Meghan] then looked at putting an outfit together’.

She explained to the NYT: ‘That’s one of the most powerful things that I’m able to do, and that’s simply wearing, like, an earring.’

Her impact on Strathberry’s sales was so significant that the brand was reportedly able to expand its workforce, meaning her endorsement can be of significant financial value.

Another brand that experienced the Meghan effect is London-based lab-grown diamond company Kimaï. In 2019, the then-royal was photographed wearing its £630 Felicity earrings, which she bought herself.

Meghan has worn a number of bags from Scottish brand Strathberry, which has caused a spike in sales for the company

According to Kimaï co-founders Jessica Warch and Sidney Neuhau, this sparked sales of $1.2 million (£945k). 

The duo explained their profits over the past few years and how Meghan played a significant part in spiking sales.

Jessica said: ‘We’ve launched without investment, and then two months after our launch we got Meghan Markle to wear our pieces, which enabled us to grow the revenue significantly, and from there we raised $1.2 million.’

The brand, which only uses stones made in a lab, as well as only using recycled gold, went on to secure a record-breaking investment from Dragon’s Den star Steven Bartlett, who injected £250,000 in exchange for a three per cent equity stake – his largest sum to date.

According to Jessica and Sidney, when pitching their company on the show, they noted that Meghan had worn the earrings.

Meghan was first spotted carrying a bag from Cesta Collective in 2023, while out for dinner with Prince Harry in Santa Barbara

They say they used cold emails to get her to sport the accessories, adding that they are ‘big believers’ in the tactic, telling the Sun: ‘It’s the same way we got all of our investors because we didn’t know anyone in the space.’

The outlet reported in January that the company is set to make a profit of £500,000 in 2024, after spending its first four years making a loss.

These brands simply appear to have benefitted from Meghan wearing their accessories, and while the former senior royal says she has around five to 10 brands in her investment portfolio, the only confirmed ones are Cesta Collective and Clevr Blends, a vegan powdered latte brand, which can be purchased in the UK for £23 for a bag containing 14 drinks.

The Duchess of Sussex – who ran lifestyle brand, The Tig, before meeting Prince Harry – first discovered Cesta when she was online shopping. 

She told the NYT: ‘I spend a lot of time just Googling, looking for brands. When people are online looking for things or reading things, I’m trying to find great new designers, especially in different territories.’ 

According to the brand’s Instagram profile: ‘We are a mission-based, responsibly-made handbag brand – celebrating the work of talented female artisan. 

Cesta has an annual revenue of $1million (£756,990) and its purses take about four to seven days to complete. 

Meghan’s first investment came in 2020, when she injected an undisclosed amount into powdered latte brand Clevr

Meghan was snapped sporting an $800 white purse from the Collective to dinner with Harry in 2023.

According to Cesta’s founders Erin Ryder and Courtney Weinblatt Fasciano, after the Duchess donned the piece, they had an uptick in sales.

Meghan then decided to invest into the brand to help it grow. Although she declined to reveal how much she had forked over, the founders of Cesta revealed that it was a minority stake.

Erin and Courtney are planning to grow their business with Meghan’s involvement, with a longer term view of expanding into other categories, and working with women in more countries. 

The Duchess started her investment portfolio during the pandemic, during which time the NYT says there were fewer opportunities to ‘turn a paparazzi moment to her own ends’ because of the lockdowns.

Meghan confirmed in December 2020 that she had invested an undisclosed sum in Clevr Blends, a wellness coffee company which has a range of organic, gluten-free ‘SuperLattes’ in powder form.

And around the time, the former senior royal used her connections to promote the company, which was founded in January 2019 and is run by CEO Hannah Mendoza, by sending a basket of products to her neighbour Oprah Winfrey, who shared the products online. 

Clevr is based in Santa Barbara, California. Meghan came across it by apparently sampling its superfood coffee in 2017, when the founder was selling it at a pop-up store before creating the at-home blend she now sells.

It also happens to be based near Montecito, where Harry and Meghan live.

In a statement to Fortune confirming the investment in 2019, Meghan said: ‘This investment is in support of a passionate female entrepreneur who prioritizes building community alongside her business.

‘I’m proud to invest in Hannah’s commitment to sourcing ethical ingredients and creating a product that I personally love and has a holistic approach to wellness. I believe in her and I believe in her company.’

Mendoza confirmed Meghan’s investment, saying: ‘Entrepreneurs need funding, but they also need advisers who care deeply about what they are building. I’m grateful to have found both in the Duchess of Sussex.

In 2019, Meghan was snapped wearing a pair of £630 earrings from then-new business Kimaï, which says her buying and wearing the accessories helped them raise over $1,000,0000 in investment, including £250,000 from Dragon’s Den star Steven Bartlett

Sidney Neuhaus (left) and Jessica Warch (right), who founded jewelry brand Kimaï, secured a $329,000 (£250,000) investment from Steven Bartlett on BBC’s Dragon’s Den after revealing the support received from Meghan

‘Her passion for what we’re creating is palpable, and I couldn’t imagine a more aligned partnership. We’re excited for the road ahead.’

While she has not revealed all of the brands in her portfolio, Meghan has revealed that the investments all complement her own fledgling lifestyle brand American Riviera Orchard.

The company has experienced a few set backs: DailyMail.com previously revealed that Meghan’s lineup would feature ‘edible oils and fats’, jellies, jams and spreads made of legumes, garlic, and sesame, as well as nut and fruit butters.

However, earlier this month, it was revealed that her business came to a screeching halt due to trademark problems.

But records show that in July – some four months after requesting to register it – there were a number of ‘irregularities’ which needed to be ‘corrected’.

The US Patents and Trademarks Office has notified the Sussexes’ lawyers of various issues, including incorrect classification of yoga blankets, picnic baskets and recipe books.

And the agency said that fees are due to various bodies around the world to register the trademark – totalling £8,617 ($11,382).

The Duchess of Sussex – who ran lifestyle brand, The Tig, before meeting Prince Harry – first discovered Cesta Collective when she was online shopping. She is seen toting one of its bags during her recent trip to Colombia

Meghan wore the £568 ($750) purse from Cesta Collective in the color ‘Panna’ (pictured). She has invested an undisclosed amount in the company

It is believed that Netflix, which has just finished filming a cookery show with the duchess, is taking over the commercial exploitation of the brand, so it would be safe to assume it will pay the fees.

A source close to Meghan confirmed that American Riviera Orchard has received several Notices of Irregularity requesting clarifications on goods and services as well as the reclassification of certain items.

The source added that such requests are typical and entirely expected when filing international applications due to the differences between international and U.S. standards and classifications.

All fees associated with these notices have already been paid, according to the source.

In the meantime, Meghan says she has kept a close eye on companies which align with her, saying that investing in her portfolio has ‘helped [her] line up for this chapter where [she’s] investing in [herself]’.