By Sarah Montano, Professor of Retail Marketing
Birmingham Business School, University of Birmingham
On the 4th March 2025, a new TV series called “With Love, Meghan” debuts on Netflix. Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, invites people to share her cooking, gardening and hosting tips, all filmed at a beautiful California estate. Celebrities hosting a cooking and lifestyle show is a standard TV genre that has made household names of celebrities such as Delia, Nigella, Jamie and Nadiya. However, Meghan is perhaps more unusual as she is married to the fifth in line to the British throne.
Alongside the show airing, Meghan has also launched As Ever, a lifestyle brand which is expected to be a sales platform. Celebrities and their brands are also a very well-established mode of retail development. Even King Charles established Duchy’s Originals in 1990, so there is some precedent for a royal retailer! However, with the imminent launch of With Love, Meghan and As Ever, there are both criticisms and high expectations on the Duchess of Sussex and thus we explore what is the nature of celebrity retail branding and how likely is Meghan to succeed?
Celebrity Brands and TV Shopping
It is not unusual in the retail sector for celebrities to have their own brands that are immediately recognisable although a celebrity name is absolutely no guarantee of success and income. Paul Newman is perhaps one of the very earliest pioneers of a retail brand with his salad dressing, launched in 1980. More recently we have seen Gwyneth Paltrow launch Goop and Victoria Beckham has a fashion collection, perfumes and make up. Cameron Diaz even has her own wine label. Selena Gomez and Rhianna have both become billionaires due to their make-up ranges.
Not only do consumers seek to buy from celebrities themselves, Netflix uses its TV shows to drive retail sales. On the Netflix store you can buy iconic and themed products such as “Love is Blind” gold goblets; a “Lady Whistledown” mug or a “Squid Game” hoody.
Celebrity Endorsement
Consumers have high expectations of celebrity brands and seek them out for various reasons. Firstly, when buying from a celebrity it is hoped that that the bit of stardust and glitter will be transferred on to us as regular consumers. So, when applying a Fenty lipstick for a moment you feel like a celebrity and not a busy mum. Secondly, credibility is important. When we look up to people, such as celebrities, we trust and believe what they say. Purchasing their products can allow us to be as stylish as an Oscar winning actress. Finally, authenticity for brands is important. Celebrity brands must be congruent with who the celebrity is and therefore it is believable that the celebrity uses or has created their own product as we have seen with Rihanna’s Fenty, which has driven change in the beauty industry.
Celebrity Success and Failure
The retail sector is facing a turbulent time with notable retailers having either gone out of business or facing difficulties such as Wilko, The Body Shop and WH Smith. A celebrity leading a brand and building a retail brand and a platform is not easy. Whilst Rhianna and Selena Gomez are billionaires, there are many celebrity retail failures. Goop has struggled and in September 2024 laid off nearly 20% of its staff. Blake Lively launched a jam business called Preserve which lasted barely a year before closing. Similarly, Kristen Bell’s skincare line closed after two years.
Therefore, what are the chances of Meghan’s TV show and associated retail line being a critical success and what advice do we give to Meghan?
ARO, With Love, As Ever
Since the Duke and Duchess left the UK in 2020 there have been multiple attempts to share their story and enter the retail market. Their first TV show for Netflix was one of the most watched with 2.4 million viewers on its first day, there was a best-selling book in the form of Spare, however, there have also been notable failures with a podcast series for Spotify called “Achetypes” ending and poor viewing figures for a documentary on Polo.
Meghan then launched ARO or American Riviera Orchard, in 2024, which was to sell an array of products such as cookbooks, table linen and food products such as preserves, jams and edible oils. The initial launch hinted at sunny Californian products, personally selected by Meghan—perhaps the perfect way to brighten a cold day! However, Meghan later announced on Instagram that ARO would be rebranded as “As Ever,” inspired by her love of food, gardening, and entertaining. As Ever is set to become a retail platform offering a range of products.
How to Succeed
To succeed in retail today, any brand needs a clear identity and seamless retail experience. With competition from established brands and other celebrities there is little room for failure and success may take some time. As experts we offer the following advice to As Ever.
Firstly, they need a clear brand identity, and the brand must stand for something evident. Brands such as Fenty (products for all skin tones) or Victoria Beckham (make up products that perform and Victoria demonstrates and uses) have clear brand identities that enable them to stand out in a crowded market.
Secondly, authenticity and believability. To succeed, we as customers will need to believe that either Meghan uses the product, spreading jam on her toast in the morning, or that the products reflect her own personal values. Which brings us to the third piece of advice, a social conscience. Many celebrity brands today (although not all) have a strong social conscience and are driving change. Rare Beauty (Selena Gomez) focuses on mental health and challenging stigma, Paul Newman’s brand donates all profits to charities and Rhianna’s mission is to get every tone on the map and challenge the lack of diversity in the beauty industry.
Fourthly, take advice from retail experts. Rhianna partnered with one of the world’s most significant retailers LVMH to launch Fenty and Kim Kardashian listened when the advice was to change her brand’s name. The reason why experts are needed takes us to our final piece of advice, omni channel seamless operations. Today, customers are seeking seamless fulfilment in-store or online and so As Ever will need an excellent supply chain and delivery operations. When you can buy from Amazon in one click, choose a Paul Newman salad dressing in Tesco or buy Fenty in Boots, As Ever will need to ensure that they meet the very basic principles of retail – right product – right place – right time.
History shows us that retail is a challenge and being a star is no guarantee of success. In conclusion, the Sussex’s will be hoping the TV show is a success and As Ever is forever, not whatever.
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The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Birmingham.