The Duchess of Sussex is said to have been given a massive professional opportunity through her multi-year deal with Netflix - and it goes beyond launching a new show. Last year Meghan tentatively launched a new venture on Instagram - America Riviera Orchard - which saw her hand out limited-edition strawberry jams to some of her famous pals, including actress Mindy Kaling, 45, and reality star Kris Jenner, 69.
However, not much has been heard of this new offering since - beyond the trademark applications filed around the time of the brand's initial launch - and the stumbling blocks they have met since. Meghan has reportedly run into some issues when it comes to securing the company's trademark - with another company, Royal Riviera, protesting the trademark on the grounds of confusion with their brand. Another issue surrounds the name 'America Riviera' - a common nickname for Santa Barbara where Meghan and Harry's Montecito home is located, but the patent office is said to have noted this is "too vague" a term and needs clarification.
However, despite these reported difficulties, Meghan has been handed a new opportunity by Netflix to get her lifestyle products on sale for the public to enjoy, with one insider calling it a "make or break" moment for the fledgling company. America Riviera Orchard's initial range of products will appear in new stores being opened by the streaming giant, as a kind of merchandise for her new lifestyle show which will drop next month. As reported in the Daily Mail, Meghan's new products will include olive oil, honey, and bread - and will be stocked in the brand new Netflix House stores opening in the US located in Philadelphia's King of Prussia Mall and the Dallas Galleria.
"This is make or break for Meghan," a source was quoted as saying. "Her new show is rolling out the same time as the Netflix stores open. "The Netflix stores will offer products and merchandise from all their biggest shows like Squid Game and Stranger Things. This is a big move for Netflix. The first stores are in repurposed department stores inside two of America's largest malls. "They will contain an onsite cafe so Meghan's products like her strawberry jam will be featured on the menu too. This will determine the future for Meghan as a businesswoman. Let's face it, she hasn't been that successful so far.".
The source also said that 'Netflix House' is just a natural progression for their expansion, with Meghan's products stacked alongside merchandise from popular TV shows. "It's a bigger deal for her than it is for Netflix. If her show doesn't take off, then her merchandise will be quietly taken off the shelves and replaced with products associated with a more popular show," they added. The source further claimed that Meghan's contract with the streaming giant isn't likely to be renewed unless her new lifestyle show based around hosting is a smash hit. The Duchess is poised to drop her hotly anticipated lifestyle show - With Love, Meghan - in early March, and it will see her return to familiar territory.
For many years before she met her now-husband, Prince Harry, Meghan ran a popular lifestyle blog called The Tig whilst she was acting on the hit TV show Suits. For many of her long-term fans, the new show seems something of a return to form for Meghan, and it will see the Duchess provide entertaining, cooking, and gardening tips to her viewers - enlisting the help of her celeb pals along the way. The show was initially due to drop in January, but after terrifying wildfires devastated the LA area - Meghan's hometown - she decided to postpone its release, with the support of Netflix.
