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Fox News
6 days ago
- Business
- Fox News
Meghan Markle claims 'guilt' over having too much money as experts accuse her of being inauthentic
Meghan Markle's podcast "Confessions of a Female Founder" wrapped Tuesday, leaving several royal experts wondering if it will be renewed for a new season. No official announcement of a season 2 has been formally made. Fox News Digital reached out to Archewell, which handles the office for the Duchess of Sussex, for comment. Meghan made headlines with comments about money in the final episode. "I think so many women, especially, we're taught to not even talk about money, and there's lots of guilt mentality surrounding having a lot," the Duchess of Sussex said, as quoted by People magazine. "And at the same time, there's a scarcity mindset that it's easy to attach to, of like, 'I'll never have enough.'" The Duchess of Sussex was having a sit-down with Sara Blakely, who became a billionaire after creating Spanx. Doug Eldridge, a branding expert and the founder of Achilles PR, claimed to Fox News Digital that the former American actress' "confessions" from this past season only continue to brand the former American actress as "inauthentic." "The personal revelations were inevitable but terribly inauthentic," Eldridge told Fox News Digital. "It's like humidity – you can't see it, but you feel it and it's undeniable. For Meghan, this was a tactic to try and become more relatable to her audience, but you can't fake authenticity; you either have it or you don't. This has been an ongoing struggle for her." "In terms of the royal family, her indirect references continue to hurt her with the target audience," Eldridge claimed. "The perpetual use of the 'victim card' has backfired," he claimed. "Over a long enough timeline, the cracks in the story – coupled with the past allegations of her mistreatment of staff – have turned into gaping fissures." "Not only does this fail to move the ball forward for Meghan, but it's akin to a series of self-inflicted holding penalties; she started at midfield, but now she's back on her one-yard line," Eldridge added. Markle's comments about money got a big reaction from listeners. The royal couple is far from struggling in California. Forbes previously reported that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex signed a five-year, $100 million contract with Netflix in 2020. That year, they splurged on a $14.7 million home in the wealthy, coastal city of Montecito, the outlet reported. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex stepped back as senior royals in 2020. In 2021, Meghan's husband, Prince Harry, told Oprah Winfrey in a televised tell-all that the royal family "literally cut me off financially" after their royal exit. The 40-year-old noted that he had money left to him by his late mother, Princess Diana. "Without that, we wouldn't have been able to do this," said the prince, referring to the couple's California move. While they signed deals with Netflix and Spotify after their exit, Harry told the talk show mogul "that was never part of the plan." In the final episode of her podcast, the mother of two also described the difficulties she faced in running a business. She originally launched her lifestyle company as American Riviera Orchard in March 2024, but rebranded it to As Ever in February 2025 due to reported trademark woes. She partnered with Netflix, which premiered her lifestyle series, "With Love, Meghan" in March of this year. "I was gonna do it all by myself, took a complete U-turn because I really believe in what Netflix and their CPG department are doing, but it is a different experience than if you're doing it on your own," said the 43-year-old. "When you only have yourself to answer to, I think it's twofold: It can be incredibly liberating, it can be incredibly lonely." During that same episode, the "Suits" alum spoke about her pregnancy as a working royal. She gave birth to her son, Prince Archie, in 2019, while they were still working royals. "I always wear my five-inch, pointy-toed stilettos," said Meghan about her past maternity style. She noted that a friend remarked to her, "You have the most enormous bump, and your tiny little ankles are bracing themselves in these high heels.'" "But all my weight was in the front," said Meghan. "So you're just going, 'How on Earth am I not just tipping, you know, face planting?' I was clinging very closely to my husband, like, 'Please don't let me fall.'" In a previous episode, Meghan also admitted that royal motherhood didn't go according to plan. "I will say, for myself, especially when they are baby babies, and before I was a mom, I've always wanted to be a mom," she said. "I was like, 'Oh gosh, I'm going to give a speech with a baby on my hip.' I had a whole vision. Granted, I had a lot of external things happening by the time I had both pregnancies and both babies. But it was not the way I envisioned it." Following Meghan's statements, Eldridge is adamant that her relatable role isn't convincing. "The ongoing struggle for Meghan has been authenticity," he said. "If you want ad dollars, you need eyeballs. If you want eyeballs, you need connection. If you want connection, you need relatability. If you want relatability, you need authenticity. You have to follow the blueprint as it's laid out. You can't skip steps, take shortcuts or devalue certain variables. If you do, your structure will never have a solid foundation, and without that, you have nothing." "My brand advice has been evergreen: drop the act, quit the victim marketing and just be yourself," said Eldridge. "The show and podcast were your chance to do just that, yet most viewers seem to think you've rolled another gutter ball." British royal expert Hilary Fordwich claimed to Fox News Digital that the podcast just didn't have "Markle Sparkle" to prompt a second season. It's noted that unlike her previous podcast "Archetypes" on Spotify, which had an all-star guest list, "Confessions," is focused on conversations with female entrepreneurs. But it's the star power that will attract a wider audience, Fordwich insisted. "Given the dearth of high-profile guests… a future series looks unlikely," Fordwich claimed. "Not only has she failed to attract marquee names, but her show has also received harsh criticism due to being so shallow, yet again self-focused and lacking substantive business acumen. She has failed to deliver beneficial advice to the audience." "Her conversations are centered on her own narrative," Fordwich claimed. "She fails to probe her guests who could share valid experiences and/or practical tips… There has [also] been an overall lack of media buzz… Her inauthenticity has rendered her unpopular on both sides of the Atlantic… She's had a rather privileged background… and yet her [comments] rang hollow, undermining her very own efforts to connect with even her own fans." "Her podcasting career is uncertain with her plummeting popularity… without significant changes," Fordwich added. WATCH: MEGHAN MARKLE WILL NEVER WIN OVER UK PUBLIC AGAIN, AUTHOR CLAIMS Eldridge said it's "difficult to say" what Meghan's future as a business woman is or what her podcast will look like if she doesn't revamp her image. "If Meghan is still trying to find herself and her voice, then it's going to be nearly impossible to disambiguate who her audience is," warned Eldridge. "You need gasoline and oil – authenticity and audience. Right now, Meghan has neither." Royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams told Fox News Digital that there's no doubt Meghan has more in store for audiences. He pointed out that new episodes of "With Love, Meghan" will premiere this fall. Still, "Confessions" needs more – much more. "Her previous podcast 'Archetypes'… did better than 'Confessions,'" he said. "It needed Beyoncé and Taylor Swift or their equivalent… Maybe this shows that Meghan really isn't interesting enough." The Duke and Duchess of Sussex parted ways with Spotify in 2023. Meghan partnered with Lemonada Media in 2024, leading to the launch of "Confessions." Royal expert Ian Pelham Turner sees things differently. "Meghan is a born survivor," he told Fox News Digital. "With Harry and the children by her side, she will find natural ways of engaging with her audience. She is the type of royal that ethnic communities in Britain long for to represent them… Her natural qualities will come out on top." Eldridge stressed that if Meghan wants to succeed as a solo act, she needs to first understand who her audience is. "The production cost of a podcast is demonstrably lower than a lifestyle show like she has with Netflix," he explained. "That said, if the listener numbers aren't there for the podcast, she won't have the advertisers and that is ultimately the oil that keeps the engine running. The listeners and guests are the proverbial gasoline that keeps the vehicle moving forward, but without the lubrication of ad dollars, the pistons lock up, and you're on the side of the road." "It remains to be seen whether Meghan will move into the HOV lane with season 2, or be left on the shoulder with her blinkers on," he added.
Time of India
7 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
'Incredibly lonely': Meghan Markle's emotional reveal hints at 'rumored separation' with Prince Harry
There is potentially yet another stumble in the way of the British royal family. Royal admirers better embrace themselves, because yet another royal rumble is about to happen – if it hasn't happened already. Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are heading for 'permanent separation'. Yes, you read that right. Read on to know more. What's happening? Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are reportedly struggling to rehabilitate their public image after suffering a drop in recent popularity polls. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, who celebrated their seventh wedding anniversary earlier this month, have faced negative publicity, particularly in Britain, with the latest YouGov poll showing Meghan's popularity in the UK has plummeted to its lowest point since tracking began in 2017. Meanwhile, Prince Harry, too, is said to have grown "increasingly weary" of the unfavourable coverage and the couple's declining popularity. In this scenario, the Sussex Royals are keen on creating their own 'royal' household structure. While doing so, the couple is heading for a permanent separation – not in their personal lives, but in their professional endeavors. What is a professional separation ? 'Professional separation', refers to the ending of an employment relationship between an employee and their employer, essentially meaning when someone leaves their job, whether by resigning, being terminated, retiring, or due to other reasons; it signifies the formal conclusion of their professional connection with the company. The separated approach: The Duke and Duchess of Sussex appear to be adopting the same trusted methods as the monarchy to build their business and philanthropic interests. The ex-royals, who stepped down as senior royals in early 2020, have dramatically revamped their staff structure to mirror the hierarchical system that has underpinned the monarchy for decades. Meghan and Harry are reportedly set to have their own chief of staffs as part of this new arrangement, which represents a significant shift from their previous reliance on informal joint advisers. Who will be responsible for this approach? Reportedly, Meredith Kendall Maines, a seasoned communications strategist whose role has drawn comparisons with Sir Clive Alderton, the Private Secretary to King Charles and Queen Camilla, is going to be at the helm of this new operation. She will lead a team of 11 staff operating out of Montecito, California, and the UK. This restructuring will operate separately from Archewell, the Sussexes' philanthropic foundation, and each senior appointee in the new household is set to reportedly earn a six-figure salary. The key figures: What we know so far is, Miranda Barbot, a veteran political and media adviser who helped re-elect US President Barack Obama in 2012, will be leading Team Harry. She has been with the Sussexes since 2022 and successfully managed their three-day trip to Nigeria last year, which was reportedly "controlled skilfully". On the other hand, Sarah Fosmo, formerly an aide to Microsoft billionaire Bill Gates, will focus on supporting Meghan. The 45-year-old's appointment was announced this month, and she will oversee what has been described as a "dynamic period of growth" for the duchess. The future of the Sussex Royals: Prince Harry is set to launch his own as-yet-undisclosed commercial venture in the coming months. While he will continue to focus on the Invictus Games Foundation, sources indicate he has "commercial ideas of his own" that will be revealed later this year. As per a source, reported by GB News, "Harry is unkindly described as the 'spare' to Meghan's endeavours. The source added, "In reality, he has been giving her the space to flourish. Now it is his time to throw himself into exciting new work. Invictus will always come first, but he has also been working on commercial ideas of his own." Is Meghan feeling 'lonely' due to the separation? While the new approach and arrangements are being done, keeping their professional and financial success and the rehabilitation and restoration of their public image, Meghan Markle has admitted to being 'incredibly lonely' following reports of her 'professional separation' from Prince Harry. Meghan recently spoke about how running a business can be 'incredibly lonely'. On her podcast 'Confessions of a Female Founder', the Duchess of Sussex said, 'When you only have yourself to answer to, I think it's two-fold.' While she called the experience 'incredibly liberating,' she also admitted that it made her feel 'incredibly lonely' as well. Harry and Meghan Not On The Same Page? Parenting Styles At Odds In Montecito | WATCH
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Meghan Markle Has One Piece of Baby Name Advice for Expecting Parents
Meghan Markle has one tip for expecting parents who are deciding on a name for their baby: keep it private. 'I will say this to every woman in the world, every person in the world who's going to have a child,' Markle advised on this morning's episode of her podcast, Confessions of a Female Founder. 'If you have an idea about what you are going to name that baby, you keep it so close to your heart until that baby is born and it's named.' The mom-of-two said the process was 'not dissimilar' to naming a business, remarking on how her guest, Spanx founder Sara Blakely, came up with her company's unique name. 'I love that at the beginning of Spanx, you held [the name] close, because it becomes like SurveyMonkey,' Markle, 43, told Blakely, 54. She explained that choosing a name for a business (or a child) can trigger a fear of 'not getting everyone's approval.' Her advice on naming either: 'Don't ask anyone's opinion!' For the Sussexes, the two processes might feel especially similar, considering their foundation, Archewell, shares a first syllable with the name of their six-year-old son, Archie. Shortly before launching Archewell in 2020, the couple explained in a statement that they connected to 'the idea of 'arche'—the Greek word meaning 'source of action,' which they interpreted as a call 'to do something of meaning, to do something that matters.' That idea became the inspiration for naming both their son and their foundation. Harry and Meghan made waves when they revealed their son's first and middle name, Archie Harrison, shortly after his 2019 birth. While Harry's relatives in the direct line of royal succession, including his parents, grandparents, and brother, have typically chosen baby names from a small pool of existing family monikers, both of Archie Harrison's names were new additions to the family tree. The name defied many British oddsmakers, who had predicted the Sussexes would opt for something more traditional, like Arthur, James, or Philip. Though the couple has never shared the exact origins of their son's middle name, the connection is more obvious: the name 'Harrison' means 'son of Harry.' Ironically, the Sussexes didn't practice Meghan's baby naming advice when choosing a name for their daughter, Lilibet Diana. Instead, before their daughter's birth, they privately revealed her name to the late Queen Elizabeth II, as 'Lilibet' was her nickname among family. Shortly after Lilibet's birth in 2021, a spokesperson for the Sussexes told People that the queen was the first family member with whom Harry shared the name idea, and that 'had she not been supportive, they would not have used the name.' Queen Elizabeth II passed away the following year. Meghan also ran into trouble over her once-named brand 'American Riviera Orchard' after her application for a trademark was denied. Turns out the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office does not let people trademark geographic locations. She encountered more problems after relaunching her lifestyle brand with the name 'As Ever', which forced the clothing brand of the same name to put out a statement saying it was 'not affiliated' with the duchess' company.
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle accused of hypocrisy after appointing their own ‘royal' court of staffers
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have been accused of fueling hypocrisy after they introduced their own new 'royal' court of staffers to take charge of their fractured public image. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, who quit royal life in 2020 and moved across the pond, have restructured their staff roster that now bears a striking resemblance to the royal family's own royal court, the Daily Mail reports. The new revamp will see communications strategist Meredith Kendall Maines front a team of 11 — with the small-but-mighty organization being based in Montecito, Calif., and the UK. The operation is said to run totally independently of Archewell, which Harry, 40, and the 'Suits' alum, 43, founded in October 2020. But the move has since been slammed by top royal commentators and historians, with expert Richard Fitzwilliams arguing that the pair appear to be inching back to their royal days, despite repeatedly criticizing life in the palace. 'The hypocrisy lies in the act that Harry has, especially in his most recent interview, attacked courtiers and the Royal Household, considering them enemies. So it is extremely surprising that he should want a similar structure in Montecito,' Fitswilliams told the Daily Mail. 'In 'Spare,' he excoriated senior courtiers. He, as his mother did, regards them as the enemy.' He went on, 'The difference is, tragically, that she would not accept police protection as she distrusted it so. Ironically, it's what he wants for himself and his family. He also claimed courtiers or their equivalent used security as a lever to prevent them stepping down as senior working royals. 'So the 'Montecito model' better be different and they would be wise to pay attention to its advice.' Fitzwilliams' sentiment was echoed by royal expert Tom Bower, who said the new reshuffle is nothing but the couple's last-ditch 'desperate bid to save their brand.' 'Undoubtedly, the Sussexes would like to rule over a 'royal court' from their Montecito mansion,' Bower told the outlet. 'Nothing would give them greater pleasure than courtiers pulling their forelocks as they bow and scrape to please the Duke and Duchess.' 'Competing with Buckingham Palace and Kensington Palace would delight Meghan. But what the Sussexes have assembled is not a 'royal court,'' he said, adding that it's 'a hugely expensive group of bureaucrats signaling the Sussexes' final, desperate bid to save their brand.' Bower noted that should the Invictus Games founder follow the As Ever founder's move to commercialize his title, 'his currently minimal chance of reconciliation and return to Britain will be totally extinguished.' Elsewhere, Fitzwilliams cast doubt on just how successful the operation will be, given the couple's extensive history of a 'revolving door' of staffers. 'We are promised new projects and initiatives in the months to come and obviously can then judge the success of this revamp,' he told the outlet. 'However there are question marks which have haunted the Sussexes entire operation. The first issue is whether the high staff turnover which has characterized their ventures continues, with some 20 having left.' The new restructure means that now the 'Spare' author and former actress each have their own chief of staff. 'Chief Communications Officer, Meredith Maines, has retained the global firm, Method Communications, to bolster her team overseeing the growing business portfolio and philanthropic efforts of The Duke and Duchess of Sussex,' a spokesperson for the Sussexes told The Post. 'The team in the US will be led by Executive Vice Presidents Clay Blackham, Erin Grant and Senior Vice President Casey Adams and in the UK by Senior Media Counsel Liam Maguire.'
Sky News
27-05-2025
- Business
- Sky News
Meghan speaks about difficulties balancing business and motherhood
The Duchess of Sussex has spoken about the challenges of balancing being an entrepreneur and a mother. Meghan, speaking on the final episode of her podcast Confessions of a Female Founder, made the comments while talking with her guest Sara Blakely - mother of four children, and founder of shapewear brand Spanx. She said to Blakely: "The amount of what you have created, evolved through - the level of what you have done while having this many children, all at that age. It's something that I think people often forget." Reflecting on her own experiences, Meghan said: "People forget that Lili is three, and Archie is five. "So you look at the past five, six years of my life, it's yes, with being pregnant or with a newborn or with a toddler, and then another one." Meghan has previously revealed that she has an "amazing" nanny, who has been with the family for five years. Alongside Prince Harry, the duchess stepped back from her duties as a senior working royal in 2020 - before starting a new life in the US. Since then, she has launched her own brand, As Ever, a "curated collection" of products inspired by her "long-lasting love of cooking, entertaining and hostessing with ease", according to the website. She has, alongside Harry, also worked on Archewell, which includes the couple's non-profit charitable organisation and their for-profit media production business. In conjunction with her new business venture, Meghan launched her Netflix show With Love, Meghan - a lifestyle show where the duchess would invite friends and famous guests, and shared cooking, hosting, and gardening tips. Her podcast followed shortly afterwards. Meghan also discussed a "guilty mentality" facing female chief executives who have a lot of money. She said: "I think so many women, especially, were taught to not even talk about money. And there's lots of guilt mentality surrounding having a lot." "It wasn't until the 70s that women could even have a credit card, a line of credit on a credit card without her husband." The discussion, which was wide-ranging in nature, also foregrounded the importance of self-care. "I remember my acupuncturist in the UK said to me, and it has always stayed with me, he said, if the baby's crying, treat the mother.
