Who got Meghan Markle’s first jar of raspberry jam? Nacho Figueras received the second of only two jars in exclusive batch – with A-list pals in the running for number one

American Riviera Orchard may yet to have officially launched – but Meghan Markle appears to already be in full promotional mode.

Over the weekend, the Duchess of Sussex, 42, sent friend Nacho Figueras a PR package containing some dog biscuits and a jar of raspberry jam from her upcoming brand.

In April, the mother-of-two sent a number of strawberry jam jars – which were part of an initial batch of 50 – to celebrity pals, including Kris Jenner, Mindy Kaling and Chrissy Teigan. 

However, Nacho’s jam jar was marked ‘2 of 2’, which suggests only one other person was sent a batch of this exclusive drop. 

Here FEMAIL delves into Meghan’s supportive A-List circle and investigates who could have been the lucky recipient of jar number one. 

Serena Williams

One of the most likely candidates to receive an exclusive American Riviera Orchard jam is Serena Williams.  

Meghan’s bond with tennis champ Serena Williams dates back to 2010 and is one of the longest friendships the Duchess has had with a major celebrity.

They first met at the Super Bowl that year, and then again at a charity event in 2014 in New York.

In August 2023, Williams appeared on Meghan’s Spotify podcast Archetypes and the Duchess recalled their first meeting.

She said: ‘I show up and I see you walking toward someone.

‘I remember thinking, ‘Oh my gosh, who is Serena Williams going to talk to?’ I looked behind me and when I turned around, you were there right in front of me… We became such fast friends.’

Following this, Meghan started watching Williams in tennis tournaments, including the US Open in 2014 and the Australian Open in 2015.

Williams recalled to Vanity Fair in 2017 that after Meghan started dating Harry, she told her: ‘You’ve got to be who you are, Meghan. You can’t hide.’

The tennis star and her husband Alexis Ohanian attended Harry and Meghan’s wedding in May 2018 – and then Meghan watched Williams at Wimbledon in June that year, alongside Kate in the Royal Box. They did so again in July 2019.

Williams then defended Meghan after the Oprah interview in 2021, writing on social media: ‘Meghan Markle, my selfless friend, lives her life – and leads by example – with empathy and compassion.

‘She teaches me every day what is means to be truly noble. Her words illustrate the pain and cruelty she’s experienced.’

That said, Serena Williams has yet to follow Meghan’s new brand on Instagram, where the Duchess already boasts 615,000 followers. 

Misha Nonoo

Another celebrity friend who may have received the exclusive raspberry jam drop is Misha Nonoo.  

The fashion designer is the former wife of Harry’s friend Alexander Gilkes. She is one of a few people rumoured to have set up the couple. 

Meghan and Misha’s relationship reportedly goes back years, according to the bombshell biography Finding Freedom – co-authored by journalists Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand – which documented their friendship.

It alleges how Markus Anderson, Soho Houses global membership director, provided the royal with introductions to many business and cultural elites – both in Canada and further afield.

The authors wrote, ‘At a Soho House lunch in Miami, he was the one who sat the actress next to Misha, a budding fashion designer with a vivacious personality and impeccable pedigree.

‘The occasion for the December 2014 Miami trip was Art Basel, a decadent art fair that brings the internationally rich and famous for a week of parties and events of all sorts and sizes.

‘Markus invited Meghan, an art lover, to stay at the epicenter of the action, Soho Beach House, to set some sun, see some art, and have some fun.

‘A perfect place to make new friends and connections, the Soho house event saw Misha and Meghan hit it off immediately.’

The biography goes on to suggest Misha and Markus were behind Meghan and Prince Harry’s first meeting.

It’s thought the Duchess’ close pals set the pair, who are now living in the US, up on a blind date in London.

The Duchess has continued to support her friend by wearing Misha Nonoo styles over the years and donned the famous ‘Boyfriend shirt’ for her first appearance alongside Prince Harry, and also wore another of Misha’s designs for her final day of meetings in the UK before stepping back from royal duties.

What’s more, the supportive friend has also followed Meghan’s new business venture on Instagram.

Princess Eugenie 

Alternatively, Princess Eugenie could have been on Meghan’s mailing list this time round.

The royal mother-of-two has been a source of support for Harry and Meghan and has publicly followed the Duchess’ new Instagram account. 

Prince Harry has been very close with his cousin Princess Eugenie since they were children, and that bond has strengthened since he married Meghan and Eugenie wed Jack Brooksbank – both in 2018.

Eugenie was one of the first people Harry introduced Meghan to before they revealed their relationship back in 2016 – and he said in his memoir Spare that the women instantly became friends and were soon hugging ‘like sisters’. 

Harry and Meghan also went on a night out to a Halloween party in Toronto with Eugenie and Mr Brooksbank in 2016 – before the Sussexes had gone public with their relationship. 

The Princess has since visited the couple in California. Footage of her trip to see them featured in the Sussexes’ Netflix documentary – and they were also seen attending the Super Bowl together in 2022.

A source told Us Weekly in December last year that Eugenie and the Sussexes are in ‘regular communication and FaceTime at least once every couple of months with the children’.

Oprah Winfrey

She famously sent Oprah Winfrey a PR gift full of coffee from a brand she had invested in back in 2020 – so it’s likely Meghan may have taken a similarly approach with American Riviera Orchard.

Meghan’s close friend Oprah promoted a basket of the coffee latte treats to her 19 million followers on Instagram, captioning the post: ‘On the first day of Christmas my neighbor ‘M’ sent to me…A basket of deliciousness! (Yes that M).’ 

It later emerged that the Duchess had invested in Clevr Blends, which was her first venture since officially stepping back from royal duties to become ‘financially independent’. 

Meghan confirmed she had invested an undisclosed sum in Clevr, which has a range of lattes that come in powder form and was only founded in January 2019. 

Meghan is known to have a friendship with veteran American broadcaster Oprah Winfrey, who conducted the bombshell interview with the couple in 2021 that caused a huge fallout over a series of allegations including racism and bullying.

Later reflecting on the interview on CBS in September 2022, Oprah – who is a close neighbour of the couple in Montecito – claimed that she ‘didn’t set out to do a bombshell interview’.

She added: ‘I was as surprised by the bombshell as everybody else. I was doing an interview to offer them a platform, to tell their story about why they left.’

In March this year, Oprah said the couple had not consulted her on whether to attend the King’s Coronation – which led to some claims on Twitter that she was distancing herself from them.

But there is no suggestion that they have had any falling out, and she has always been very respectful of the Sussexes in interviews.

Asked by Gayle King last year whether Harry and Prince William could reconcile after Queen Elizabeth II’s death, Winfrey replied: ‘I do not get into people’s family matters.’

And back in 2020 when Harry and Meghan stepped down as senior royals, Oprah told TMZ: ‘I support them 1,000 percent.’

Oprah has yet to follow American Riviera Orchard on Instagram or publicly reveal if she has received samples of the products. 

Delfina Blaquier

What’s more, it’s also possible that Meghan sent the first jar of jam to Nacho Figueras’ wife Delfina Blaquier.

Delfina has previously referred to the Duchess of Sussex as a ‘sister’ when gushing over the ‘fellow polo-wife’ in an Instagram post in 2022.

She also praised the royal mother-of-two as being ‘stronger than she knows’ in an interview with Hello! magazine in the same year.

Earlier this year, Delfina was the lucky recipient of one of Meghan’s strawberry jams and showed her 561,000 Instagram followers how it looked on toast. 

In April, the Duchess of Sussex was seen warmly hugging Prince Harry’s polo-playing pal Nacho as her husband filmed scenes for his new Netflix series in Palm Beach. 

The mother-of-two, 42, also went on to embrace Nacho’s wife Delfina.

The two women – who have forged a strong friendship after attending polo matches together to watch their spouses play – were seen walking away from their husbands with their arms wrapped around each other as filming got underway. 

In an earlier interview with the publication, Delfina also revealed that the pair referred to themselves as the ‘P Wives’ which stands for ‘Polo Wives’. 

Delfina has been married to the millionaire polo player, whose full name is Ignacio Figueras, since 2005 – and the couple attended the royal wedding together in 2018. 

Janina Gavankar

Meghan and Janina Gavankar who lives in Los Angeles, have been friends for nearly 20 years after meeting when they were both starting out as actresses in the early 2000s.

Since Meghan joined the royal family and became more famous than ever, Janina has continuously spoken up for her friend in television interviews.

When Meghan was pregnant with Prince Archie, Janina told CBS News of Meghan’s parenting style: ‘I think she’ll be very low maintenance.

‘I think that she will be very hands-on, the way she would have been if she hadn’t married into the royal family.’ 

She added: ‘To have the royal family bring a child of colour into the world, it’s pretty awesome,’ she said. ‘There are still a lot of us who didn’t even grow up with dolls that look like us.’

As for Meghan’s abilities as a mother, Janina said she has no doubt that the former Suits star will be anything but the most stellar and loving parent to her newborn son.

‘Meghan and I have talked about her being a mother for over a decade. She’s always wanted to be a mom,’ she revealed.

After the couple’s bombshell interview with Oprah in 2021 in which they claimed members of the royal family had raised ‘concerns’ about the colour of Archie’s skin while Meghan was pregnant, Janina spoke up again to support their version of events.

Responding to the Palace’s statement about the claims which suggested ‘recollections may vary’, she told ITV’s This Morning: ‘Though their recollections may vary, ours don’t.’

She added: ‘After reading this short statement that came out from Buckingham Palace today, I felt two things.

‘One side, I thought: I am so thankful that they are finally acknowledging the experience.

‘But on the other side, I am well aware that the family and the staff were well aware of the extent of it, and though their recollections may vary, ours don’t, because we lived through it with them. There are many emails and texts to support that.’

However, Janina does not have a public social media and has not spoken about Meghan’s latest business venture.

The timing of Nacho’s posts promoting Meghan’s jam caused outrage amongst royal fans, with the Argentinian’s most recent social media post being inundated with comments declaring him ‘shameful’ and ‘tasteless’.

It’s thought Nacho, who appeared to be in New York at the time, posted the pictures showcasing the gifts at around 11pm in the city, and about 4am in the UK, meaning British viewers saw the posts just hours before the King’s birthday parade.

Kate, 42, who has been receiving chemotherapy for an undisclosed form of cancer since February, made a spectacular return to the spotlight during the annual event – marking her first public appearance this year.