Meghan Markle's new lifestyle brand is still largely a mystery, creating pressure for the "delivery" to match the "hype," a PR consultant told Newsweek.
American Riviera Orchard hit the public consciousness in March when an Instagram account by the same name appeared unexpectedly purporting to be "by Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex."
Celebrities including Kris Jenner, Chrissy Teigen, Mindy Kaling and Tracee Ellis Ross then began posting pictures of themselves with jars of jam branded with the company's logo.
Three months on, the public still know little about what the company does, leaving the duchess with a choice to make about whether to prioritize speed or quality.
Mark Borkowski, PR consultant and author of Improperganda, told Newsweek though that it was "not just about the timing" and Meghan may be "trying to get products right."
"The bottom line is, it's about delivery," he said. "If there's all this hype and it's just a couple of bottles of spring water and a mediocre jam at a high price, then imagine what's going to come down on them from a great height.
"They're banking on curiosity. We're asking questions, we're waiting, so the longer they don't tell us what it is, the greater the expectation on what its going to be."
Using the name American Riviera Orchard (ARO), many of the shop's books, which include adult coloring books, have sold out. One is called "RoyalWealth Reign," and another is titled "Working Class Royalty."
The website read: "In America, we do not recognize a royal title by someone's name. In America, we believe ALL are created EQUAL."
Meghan may therefore want to think carefully about how long she can afford to wait before the full launch, particularly after the couple's experiences with Spotify, in which their only series arrived substantially later than originally billed.
American Riviera Orchard's Soft Launch
Copyright applications, the company's website and Instagram page were filed in March, triggering a frenzy of news stories about the brand.
It is easy to understand the appeal of getting some information out early, because information could enter the public domain via the copyright application.
Celebrity contacts were also made use of to get the message out there that jam was being made.
However, very little is actually known about what exactly American Riviera Orchard will be and what it will produce.
It could be as simple as a company that makes jam, or it could make jam alongside other similar products or it is hypothetically possible that the jam was simply a marketing tool and the actual company will do something else entirely.
Delays to the Spotify Deal
The Sussexes may also want to keep in mind any lessons from their Spotify deal, which was signed in December 2020. A press release said a weekly show, Archetypes, would drop in 2021.
There were issues between the Sussexes and Spotify over Joe Rogan's stance on the Covid-19 vaccine before they made one show for the streaming giant, which did not debut until August 2022. Though it did include a high-profile interview with Serena Williams, a friend of Meghan's.
The two sides parted ways in 2023, with Spotify executive Bill Simmons firing a parting shot, calling Harry and Meghan "f****** grifters."
The long time it took the couple to get Archetypes out also heaped extra pressure on the show once it aired.
In other words, the increased expectations referenced by Borkowski may be a double-edged sword that can also place even more pressure on the delivery.
