BREAKING NEWS Meghan Markle shares a new photo as she launches new products from her As Ever brand today (and promises fans, 'sweet things and delicious surprises')

Daily Mail​

6 hours ago

Meghan Markle will today release a hotly-anticipated restock of items from her lifestyle brand two months after the first batch of products sold out within an hour.
The Duchess of Sussex teased the launch with an Instagram post on her As Ever account at midnight Pacific Time (8am UK time) this morning, with a new photograph of her smiling on a garden swing with the simple caption: 'No more sleeps'.
Meghan had promised some 'delicious surprises' after describing the April launch of her As Ever products including jam and herbal tea as 'absolutely extraordinary'.
In an Instagram post on June 16, the California-based Duchess wrote: 'Oh yes, honey… sweet things await. Mark your calendars for June 20 at 8am PT – we're bringing back your favorites, plus some delicious surprises you won't want to miss!'
Pacific Time is eight hours ahead of BST, meaning the launch will be at 4pm UK time.
In a newsletter issued on June 16, the former Suits actress also wrote: 'First off, a sincere thank you for making the debut of As Ever absolutely extraordinary.
'We had a feeling there would be excitement, but to see everything sell out in less than an hour was an amazing surprise. We are pleased to share that on June 20th, we're going live with the products you love – plus, some new delicious surprises.'
The latest email was noticeably different to Meghan's first As Ever message, which was a long piece full of inspirational quotes and personal anecdotes.
Sarah Schmidt, celebrity publicist and president of PR firm Interdependence, told MailOnline on Wednesday: 'Meghan's first As Ever newsletter was poetic and intimate.
'It positioned the brand as an extension of her personal rituals and values, written in the voice of someone building a lifestyle, not just selling a product.
'The latest email, by contrast, is pure transaction: short, strategic and sales-focused. And that pivot is telling.'
She explained that the audience is now witnessing a 'shift' in Meghan from a 'founder-as-storyteller' to 'founder-as-operator.'
Ms Schmidt added: 'It suggests a brand moving from emotional origin story into operational scale. However, when key team members exit and the tone tightens, audiences can feel that.
'If the first email said, 'Come into my garden,' the second says, 'Get ready to shop.' Neither is wrong, but the dissonance creates questions. Not just about Meghan's role but about the heart and soul of the brand.'
Earlier this month Meghan said she had decided to 'just pause' restocking her brand, saying she wanted to wait until it is 'completely stable and we have everything we need'.
She also spoke of the difficulties of building her firm and 'how many tears' she has shed behind the scenes on a bonus episode of her Confessions of a Female Founder podcast featuring Beyonce's mother Tina Knowles.
Meghan had suggested the 'scarcity mentality at the beginning might be a hook for people', comparing it to 'a sneaker drop'.
But she feared it might be 'annoying' for customers, adding: 'I don't want you to eat that jam once every six months. I want that to be on your shelf all the time.'
Meghan said: 'So for me at the moment, with As Ever, it was great. We planned for a year we get and then everything sells out in 45 minutes.
'Yes, amazing, great news. Then what do you do? And then you say 'Ok, we planned as best as we could. Are we going to replenish and sell out again in an hour? Or is that annoying as a customer?
'I'm looking at it saying 'Just pause. That happened. Let's wait until we are completely stable and we have everything we need'.'
She added how people 'see all the flashy stuff and they see the product. But that end game… those behind the scenes moments, how many tears I've shed'.
Meanwhile, this week the Duchess denied that her personal Instagram account, where she shares behind the scenes footage of family life, is a tool to promote her business.
Meghan said returning to social media at the start of the year was 'a great way to get my voice back', and she uses it for 'authentic' sharing such as her twerking video. She added: 'It's my space and my channel for joy.'
The former Suits actress went back on Instagram in January, first with footage of her running around a beach and writing 2025 in the sand, and then a montage from her Netflix show With Love, Meghan.
The Duchess has since made numerous posts about As Ever, mentioning her As Ever Instagram account, but has also released photos and videos of the Sussexes' life with their children Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.
On Lili's fourth birthday last week, Meghan shared footage of herself twerking in a labour room while heavily pregnant with her daughter.
On the Aspire with Emma Grede podcast, entrepreneur Grede asked Meghan about her return to social media, saying: 'Are you thinking about it in the way that so many of us do as also a business tool?'
Meghan replied: 'Not for my personal account, no.' Grede challenged her, asking: 'Really?' Meghan said: 'For my personal account? …No.' Grede told her: 'Well that's the one we're all following.'
Meghan replied and laughed: 'Well good…as long as you're following As Ever too. No, I think for me it was great way to get my voice back… It's my space and my channel for joy – that is the intention of my handle.'
Meghan's personal account @Meghan has 3.8 million followers. Her @aseverofficial account has 847,000 followers, and is linked into her @Meghan bio, as is her ShopMy collection.