Owner shocked!

Is Meghan destroying a nice little family business?

Duchess Meghan wants to launch her lifestyle brand "As Ever" in the spring - but the name also belongs to a small label in New York.

(Bild: Viennareport)

Patchy or ice-cold? After Duchess Meghan didn't get far with her dog food jam brand "American Riviera Orchard", she is now snapping up the brand name of a small New York family business. The owner reacted with shock on Instagram.

In a video, Duchess Meghan announced that she was relaunching her Netflix series "With Love, Meghan" and, together with the streamer as a business partner, had renamed her lifestyle brand "As Ever" and wanted to present herself as an international business that is not limited to Santa Monica. She would have secretly copyrighted the name as early as 2022. Really?

Completely perplexed
A small New York fashion house, "As Ever NYC", has now reacted with shock to the Californian duchess's announcement. The owner of the family business was completely perplexed. "Wow and hello," he wrote in an initial reaction to the name theft on Instagram. The last 36 hours have been insane and thanks to everyone who has shown their support.

Officially founded in 2017
He went on to clarify: "This company started in 2015 when I reworked old military clothing as a sideline to create the signature Tanker Pant for my wife, Astrid Dahl. This was followed shortly after by a pink jumpsuit that quickly became a cult classic."

He continues: "As Ever was officially founded in 2017 and I started production." It is now 2025 and they are grateful to still be able to make clothes in New York and New Jersey. Postscript and promise: "As Ever will continue to exist".

The brand's fans are firmly behind her and call on her in the comments not to give up: "Don't let Meghan and her supporters bully you. Get a lawyer and don't give up the name under any circumstances!" 

"As Ever" as a brand name on Instagram didn't work once. If you search for the page, you have to enter "As Ever Official". There you will find a photo of Meghan pouring honey onto a croissant while her dog looks on. The caption reads: "You are cordially invited: as ever, come spring 2025."

Mallorca protests against coat of arms
There is also still little to see on the official website, apart from a panoramic picture of Meghan walking across a meadow with her daughter Lilibet and a coat of arms with a palm tree with two birds. 

Something that could also cause problems. Mallorca is not at all happy with one of its city coats of arms being misused by the American. She is accused of having adopted the coat of arms of the Mallorcan town of Porreres almost identically.

Porreres' mayor Francisca Mora Veny expressed her concern to The Sun: "We don't want our coat of arms to be falsified - it belongs exclusively to our town." The only difference? Instead of swallows or doves - which historians disagree on - Meghan's version is adorned with two hummingbirds. "We will be asking Meghan to remove the logo from her website." 

Duchess Meghan's corporate website for "As Ever" currently consists of just one image.

(Bild: Screenshot asever.com)

"Chaotic and unprofessional"
PR expert Natalie Trice told the Daily Mail that everything looks "chaotic" and "anything but professional". Trice thinks it raises questions when a brand first starts under a name, but is then quickly renamed before it can really gain a foothold. This points to a lack of strategic planning and research - or it may be a deliberate tactic to generate attention.

"It seems to me that there is a lack of clarity about the brand identity. Or is this more about creating a stir before the actual launch? After all, it seems to be becoming a habit," Trice told the Daily Mail.

Duchess Meghan recently at the Invictus Games in Canada

(Bild: Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press via AP)

However, she also emphasizes that successful brand building does not only depend on the name - it is much more important to build trust with consumers and create a stable basis.

Duchess since 2018
Former "Suits" actress Meghan Markle, who has been married to Prince Harry since 2018 and has two children with him, wants to build on her former lifestyle blog "The Tig" with her lifestyle brand and her "With Love, Meghan" series. She had to give it up before her royal wedding as it was incompatible with her role as a representative member of the British royal family.

In 2020, Harry and Meghan left both their royal pre-eminence and the UK to live as independent contractors in the US. Officially, it was said that the decision was made for the benefit of their own family. The couple wanted both their first-born, Prince Archie (5), and little Lilibet (3) to grow up away from the public eye. Visits to the UK only take place if police protection is guaranteed, but Prince Harry no longer has an automatic right to this.