An Updated Guide to Meghan Markle’s New Lifestyle Brand, American Riviera Orchard
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Duchess Meghan may not be going back to blogging, but she will be selling some vegan jellies and face serums—and we could not be more on board.
On March 15, the Duchess of Sussex quietly opened an Instagram account for her new Montecito, California–based lifestyle brand, American Riviera Orchard. And while she has disclosed almost nothing about the venture, the trademark applications do provide more details.
According to the initial application, filed on February 2, American Riviera Orchard will sell home decor and kitchen items including decanters, napkin rings, cutlery, table linens, placemats and napkins, and even cookbooks.
The site will also offer plenty of healthy edible options: “jellies, jams, marmalades, fruit preserves, edible oils and fats, and preserves, vegetable-based spreads, legume-based spreads, nut-based spreads, garlic-based spreads, sesame-based spreads, dairy-based spreads, nut butters, fruit butters.”
Other trademark applications filed on March 9 reveal American Riviera will also sell cosmetic products, fragrances, stationery, wallpaper, yoga equipment, and gardening gear. The list includes: “non-medicated skin care preparations, bath and shower gels and salts not for medical purposes, non-medicated hair preparations, bath soap,” and “body lotions, cosmetics, body oil, scented oils,” room fragrances, incense, and even jewelry, among many other things.
A friend of the duchess told Harper’s Bazaar royal editor-at-large Omid Scobie last year, ahead of the release of his book Endgame, that Meghan’s brand would be “something more accessible” than Gwyneth Paltrow’s luxury wellness platform Goop. “Something rooted in her love of details, curating, hosting, life’s simple pleasures, and family.”
Meghan has, after all, always been a tastemaker. On her old blog the Tig, she regularly wrote about good food, fashion, beauty, and travel.
Added the friend, “Meghan is busy working on creating something safe and timeless. And something that won’t be accused of riding on the back of anything royal.”
Meghan shared the first Story on the brand’s Instagram on March 14. The clip showed her arranging a bouquet of white roses and cooking up something in what seemed to be her Montecito home kitchen, wearing a casual white tank. The video was set to Nancy Wilson’s “I Wish You Love.”
Currently, though, the brand’s Instagram simply features nine images in a grid, arranged to form a large image of its golden logo. The name American Riviera Orchard seems to be a nod to Santa Barbara, California—where Meghan lives with husband Prince Harry and their two children, Prince Archie, four, and Princess Lilibet, two—as the coastal city is often referred to as the “American Riviera” due to its warm climate, lush green landscapes, and food-and-wine scene.
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