Meghan Markle has done a thing. ‘Thing’ being the operative word here, given how few details there are so far about the surprise new Instagram page, American Riviera Orchard, which she launched quietly last night.
Still, the account has already racked up 339,000 followers and sent the royal rumour mill into overdrive. In a week in which the Catherine Princess of Wales broke the internet after admitting to a Photoshop fail, while recuperating from abdominal surgery, the questions are naturally coming in thick and fast: is this The Tig (Meghan’s old lifestyle brand) 2.0? Does the timing have anything to do with her sister-in-law’s picture editing blunder? And is Meghan Markle the lifestyle guru finally back?
It certainly looks like it. The page, named @americanrivieraorchard, went live on Thursday night, marking the Duchess’ return to Instagram after a four-year hiatus. She and Harry previously posted under a shared handle @sussexroyal, but that chapter ended when they stepped down as senior royals in 2020 and wiped their social footprint.
It was only going to be a matter of time though, many fans believed. Meghan’s new account launched like many a social channel with nine squares bearing the brand’s logo, a stamp of the brand’s initials with the full name printed in a serif font on what looks like a piece of linen. It’s all very wholesome looking.
The logo also confirms that the new business is based in Montecito, California, a star-studded suburb that counts Gwyneth Paltrow and previously Ariana Grande among its residents – and the place the couple have called home since 2020.
The bio simply says ‘By Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex’ and notes that the brand was established this year. Vogue has since announced that it has confirmation from Meghan’s team that it is indeed the duchess’ page – which hasn’t stopped an onslaught of copycat handles already emerging in a bid to rack up likes.
As for the name, people on X, formerly known as Twitter, aren’t convinced. With many echoing a user who wrote: “ABC News: Meghan Markle launches American Riviera Orchard. What kind of word salad name is that?”
So far, the page includes a website link inviting followers to sign up to a waitlist, and Meghan has posted a 50-second video on the account’s Story, showing her casually walking around her home in a black gown, arranging flowers and doing some baking to the soundtrack of Nancy Wilson’s “I Wish You Love”. Again, all very wholesome.
Is this a relaunch of her old lifestyle blog The Tig, which closed in 2017? The idea of a blog might seem pretty retro now, but perhaps The Duchess of Sussex has plans to follow the direction of many lifestyle creators today and start a Substack on the self-publishing platform, where creators can monetise subscription newsletters.
Others are less convinced by the Substack idea. Given the US Patent and Trademark that has been filed for the site, it seems more likely that Meghan might use it to sell homewares. The name “American Riviera Orchard” is reportedly trademarked for “jellies, jams; marmalades” as well as cookbooks and tablecloths.
Theories have, naturally, been coming in thick and fast, with the Daily Mail suggesting the whole thing is part of a wider lifestyle empire for Meghan, expected to “coincide with the launch of a new cookery show featuring Meghan on Netflix”, which will see her make and sell her own products.
Does the world need another celebrity lifestyle brand? Quite possibly not, but we’ll have to wait and see.
