PR disasters (IYKYK) thread 5

[AtIusvue]

For Meghan and Harry, As ever and Archewell posts.

"given recent successes"

Given recent what now?

Looking back at what Meghan has said about Netflix and it’s involvement in As Ever is interesting.

In January 2025 “sources” announced that the launch of Meghan’s lifestyle brand (at the time still “American Riviera Orchard”) would coincide with Netflix's launch of bricks and mortar stores in shopping malls in Dallas and Philadelphia. They specifically said: "Netflix is expanding and growing all the time and Netflix House is a natural progression. Meghan's products will be in there alongside shirts and merchandise from some of the biggest shows on the planet."

When Meghan announced the demise of American Riviera Orchard and the pivot to As Ever in February, she released a video on Instagram announcing the joint launch of “With Love, Meghan” and “As Ever”. She said:“Cat’s out of the bag. I’m shocked we’ve kept this a secret for so long,..Then Netflix came on, not just as my partner in the show [With Love, Meghan] but as my partner in business. It was huge.”

In her Bloomberg interview last year Netflix was front and centre as her only “partner and investor” but she was no longer talking about Netflix stores: in her* *path to profitability she explained that scaling would be be key “certainly shifting out of [direct to consumer], not necessarily into brick and mortar of our own, but in finding the right retail partners”

So Netflix’s investment in As Ever will need to have been resolved here. There are a few possibilities: they have earned out their desired profit already and exited (but if so, if they did so in less than a year, it’s clearly a goldmine so why would they want out?), they have been bought out by Meghan (but who funded that?) or they have decided their investment is unrecoupable so have given it up. They’ve made that decision remarkably speedily if so. And Meghan still needs to find a retail partner…

"not much style and no substance"

This time next year Harry we’ll be billionaires!

So the Royal Family held her back, Netflix held her back. Suspect the next road block to her global awesomeness is going to be identified as Harry.

Telegraph:

‘A source told The Telegraph it was felt As Ever no longer needed Netflix’s money and wanted to be able to “move quicker” without having to liaise with the company over every decision.
“This is not their [Netflix’s] world,” the source said. “Their focus is on their core product, which is streaming films and TV programmes. As Ever’s core focus is selling flower sprinkles and spreads. It was Meghan’s call.”
The source added: “Netflix was not set up to do what we are doing. It’s a great streaming service but it’s not a shop. The products are selling out really quickly and this has been an issue. We want to stock more, we want to move forward.”

She doesn’t need NFs money 😂

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/royal-family/2026/03/06/meghan-duchess-sussex-ditches-netflix-jam/

She’s going global…in two years

‘But sources insisted the programme was only ever intended as a platform to showcase and launch the brand. “That’s done,” they said.
“We want to go global, we will move into international markets within the next two years. This is an extremely well-known brand that you can only buy in the US.”

• She still owes NF money.

• As ever has a skeleton staff.

• NF obviously saw a long time ago where it was going

‘While Netflix ploughed an initial investment into the nascent brand, which will be paid back, the staffing is now fully controlled by As Ever.
A source suggested that Netflix had had little input over the last six months.’

So the source says they want to move quicker without NF controlling decisions…..but also NF haven’t been involved for the last 6 months?

which is it Meg?

Archive Telegraph link https://archive.is/dJr9B

While Netflix ploughed an initial investment into the nascent brand, which will be paid back, the staffing is now fully controlled by As Ever.

I hope they're not waiting for the money.

'Netflix was not set up to do what we are doing. It’s a great streaming service but it’s not a shop'

Isn't it opening its own shops?

As Ever’s core focus is selling flower sprinkles and spreads.

Are they taking the proverbial?? Whoever heard of a global brand that sells nothing more than flower sprinkles and spreads? At inflated prices. 😂

Yes, NF is reportedly only making a meagre ~$8M per month from netflix.shop aka “not a shop”. No wonder Meghan couldn’t wait to distance herself from such a failing brand 🤔

https://pagesix.com/2026/03/06/royal-family/meghan-markles-netflix-debacle-is-the-kiss-of-death-for-future-deals-expert/

Basically, a hit like this isn’t recoverable for the brand.

‘Meghan Markle’s latest Netflix setback is the “kiss of death” for her future brand deals, according to an expert.
Eric Schiffer — the chairman of Reputation Management Consultants — exclusively spoke with Page Six after we revealed that the streaming service has cut ties with Markle’s As Ever lifestyle brand.
“This is celebrity brand suicide in a cashmere apron,” Schiffer said, dubbing Markle’s “With Love, Meghan” series — which lasted just 2 seasons before being cancelled — a “Martha Stewart ripoff.”

“Losing Netflix on As Ever is a brutal backlash because the halo just got ripped off, and what’s left looks like another failed Montecito money grab,” he continued.

“The pattern starts looking like lethally unwise brand management,” he said, adding, “For Meghan, losing Netflix is the kiss of death to the pitch that prestige partners still see unlimited upside.”

When asked how this latest hitch will affect Markle’s future partnerships, Schiffer said that Hollywood buyers should question whether Markle, 44, has a “real audience.”
“In network land, repeated breakups leave a repulsive scent,” he said. “She now carries the scent of high-maintenance disappointment, and that is rat poison when executives are already gun-shy.”
While Schiffer said that her deal history “doesn’t close doors,” he claimed it can hurt her leverage.’

Did Netflix ever open the actual physical shops that were talked about last year? Or did they just decide to not include As Ever products?

Meghan would have been smart to have started with a supermarket collaboration as the mixes etc would have fitted in well there.

Problem is that she had grandiose ideas of replicating Highgrove/Duchy Originals but cheaped out on Lidl-type products.

Talk about mixed metaphors!!

In answer to a PP up thread on what H is up to, he's sending video messages to British athletes at the Para-Olympics. It was part of the Opening Ceremony and I turned over (to Crufts) as he was droning on...

If NF haven’t been that involved for the last 6 months…..then that takes you to Sept last year…..when we found out that they got dropped by NF. So must have happened at the same time.

This is also why the foundation etc disappeared. There’s been no NF money since last year.

"content that resonates globally " - she is deluded.

This - thank you from @AtIusvue

"“It’s a good time for Meghan to have complete control, given recent successes.
“Netflix have been a good partner, but she’s wanted to go global with the brand for some time, but has been held back by the more cautious Netflix team.”’

It reminds me of that early C20th newspaper headline (which is very possibly apocryphal ) "Fog in Channel - Continent Cut Off "

😂

The other saying that comes to mind is "How to you get a small fortune ? Answer - Start off with a big one".

It’s just narcissistic grandiosity on a huge scale isn’t it? Does Harry actually believe her crap I wonder…

With the demise of the NF support for As Ever, what do you think their next move will be?
I suspect The King is supporting them financially in some way probably via the kids. I just have this horrible feeling they will be popping up more in the uk especially H. Any update on the security review, haven’t heard anything on that.

Netflix have been a good partner, but she’s wanted to go global with the brand for some time, but has been held back by the more cautious Netflix team.”’

Given As Ever is a very young brand - only launched on February 2025, just over a year ago, and has had a limited number of “drops” in that time, how long can she really have been thinking of a massive expansion? Talk about wanting to run before you have even started to walk.

The whole ‘bundle’ gift pack effort has the look of a fire sale, I think As ever is already in its twilight years.

I noticed that Travalyst is mentioned in the Government Jet Zero report. The government wants everyone looking for flights to be aware of their emissions.