Meghan Markle and Prince Harry have launched a number of business ventures since stepping back from royal duties in March 2020.
But while the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have had some successes since going it alone without the royal family, they have also had their fair share of failures.
From breaking a multi-million dollar deal with Spotify in 2023 to remaking Meghan’s American Riviera Orchard brand in 2025, the rebellious royal couple has experienced several setbacks and roadblocks.
Now, following news that Netflix has ended its relationship with Meghan Markle’s polarizing lifestyle brand As Ever, the Sussexes must find their way back on track following yet another failed venture.
Here are Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s biggest business failures since leaving the royal family.
“The Bench” – 2021
One of Meghan Markle’s first businesses to fail after she and Prince Harry stepped down as senior royals was the children’s book The Bench, published in June 2021.
The book, which explores “the special relationship between father and son through the eyes of a mother,” began as a poem Meghan wrote for Harry on Father’s Day after the birth of their son Archie in May 2019.
However, “The Bench” failed to break into the UK Official Top 50 Chart in its debut week.
The book got off to a slow start, eventually reaching number 100 on Amazon’s US bestseller chart, but reportedly stalled in the long run as Meghan reportedly received an advance of nearly $700,000 for the story.
Spotify – 2023
Three years after agreeing to a $20 million deal with Spotify through their production company Archewell Audio in December 2020, Prince Harry, Duchess Meghan and streaming giant Spotify have “mutually agreed to part ways” in June 2023.
The surprising move comes after it was revealed that the Sussexes’ podcast Archetypes would not be returning for a second season.
Sources told the Post at the time that Harry and Meghan released only 13 episodes of “Archetype,” but did not produce enough content to receive the full $20 million.
Spotify executive Bill Simmons accused the duke and duchess of being “lazy” and “fucking scammers” after the lucrative deal collapsed.
Meanwhile, Spotify’s CEO later hinted that “Archetypes” failed to make listeners “happy” during its 13-episode run.
When asked in October 2023 why Spotify cut ties with Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan, Daniel Ek told the BBC: “We thought we needed to innovate here.”
He added, “We thought we could provide a great experience that would make consumers very happy and enable new avenues for new creators.”
Ek acknowledged that “some things went well,” but he also acknowledged that “some things didn’t work out.”
“We are learning from them and moving forward,” he said.
Meghan signed a new podcast deal with Lemonada Media in February 2024, eight months after parting ways with Spotify.
American Riviera Orchards, “Lanny” Jam as ever – 2025
Meghan was forced to amend the name of her original lifestyle brand, American Riviera Orchard, to “As Ever” in February 2025 following several trademark setbacks.
Although she secured the As Ever name in 2022, the “Suits” alum didn’t announce the change until two weeks before her Netflix show, “With Love, Meghan Markle,” launched in March of that year.
However, Meghan reportedly did not sign the trademark application before submitting it to the US Patent and Trademark Office, and difficulties continued even after the name change was announced.
Additional documents obtained by the Post at the time also show that the trademark office returned certain documents because Meghan did not clarify what she meant by “various items” such as “spoons, serving jam, and fruit preserves.”
The Trademark Office also rejected a proposal by Duchess Meghan to sell clothing such as aprons under a new name, saying a Chinese clothing company was already using the name ASEVER.
In February 2025, a Spanish politician claimed that Meghan Markle’s “As Ever” logo closely resembled the coat of arms of the small village of Porres on the island of Mallorca.
However, Meghan’s As Ever products, which include a curated collection of homewares, kitchenware and gourmet foods, were criticized even after she resolved various trademark issues.
A source told Page Six that Meghan made more than $36 million from her jam, but jam expert Donna Collins says she scrapped Meghan’s “gooey” apricot spread after it was released in June 2025.
“It’s really unfortunate that Meghan is selling fruit spreads that she makes when her jam fails,” Collins claimed at the time.
“In the jam industry, a spread is anything that goes wrong,” she continued. “You may have the best ingredients, but if your jam is watery, you’ll put a label on it and call it a spread. There’s no excuse for this. It has to be perfect.”
“With Love, Meghan” Season 2 – 2025
The second season of the Netflix show about Meghan’s lifestyle, “With Love, Meghan,” did not make the top 10 list when it was released on August 26, 2025.
Season 1 of the series did well when it first aired in March 2025, but season 2 reportedly lost 500,000 viewers.
However, ‘With Love, Meghan Markle’ season 2 was not only a flop, it was also panned by critics.
Lucy Mangan of the Guardian described the show as “boring”, “painfully contrived” and “so whimsical” that it “almost becomes charming”.
After watching season 2, The Times described Meghan as “a woman who needs money.”
“With Love, Meghan Markle” was part of the Sussexes’ $100 million Netflix deal with the streamer in 2020.
However, a source told Page Six in January 2026 that the lifestyle show “will not be revived as a series.”
They further added, “There has been talk about a holiday special, but nothing has progressed yet.”
Archewell Philanthropy – 2025
Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan will “effectively close down” their charity Archewell Philanthropies in December 2025 after several key staff suddenly left the nonprofit organization.
The charity’s director, James Holt, resigned in December, following the resignations of other senior staff, including Genevieve Ross, Christine Schirmer, Ashley Hansen and communications director Meredith Maynes.
A source familiar with the Sussexes told Page Six at the time: “Those who are still there are simply enablers and are obsessed with the couple they once were, not the couple they are now.” “Since a year ago, we have reduced our workforce by at least 80 to 85 percent.”
Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan held cost-cutting talks in early December, with one source suggesting the Sussexes were discussing the possibility of selling the charity amid financial difficulties.
“The big question was whether Archewell would close or another charity would take over,” a source told us. “Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan were looking for a financial sponsor, someone to cover their expenses and keep things cheap.”
They added: “In fact, it’s all smoke and mirrors.”
The charity, originally named the Archewell Foundation but changed to Archewell Philanthropies in December, reportedly spent $5.1 million on expenses in 2024, despite only raising $2.1 million in donations.
Limbo Netflix Project – 2026
In March 2026, just days before it was announced that Netflix had ended its relationship with Meghan Markle’s As Ever brand, nearly all of the Sussexes’ Netflix projects were said to be stalled.
Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan announced in August 2023 that their Archewell Productions was planning to adapt Carly Fortune’s book “Meet Me at the Lake” into a film, and that Netflix had paid about $3 million for the rights to the novel.
However, three years later the project was still in development and lacked a director and cast.
“It’s not good for Netflix to take three years to develop a movie like this,” said a Hollywood source.
Another project, The Wedding Date, an adaptation of Jasmine Guillory’s romantic novel, is also said to be stuck in development hell at Netflix.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s documentary Cookie Queen, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2026, was not purchased by a distributor or streamer, despite the couple’s offer to Netflix.
As usual with Netflix – 2026
On March 6, 2026, just days after it was reported that “With Love, Meghan Markle” would not be returning for a third season, Netflix officially ended its partnership with Meghan’s lifestyle brand As Ever.
“Her show didn’t go on, so it didn’t make sense to continue the partnership,” a source told Page Six at the time.
However, a spokesperson for the streaming giant insisted it was “always intended” for Meghan to take As Ever to the “next chapter” without Netflix.
“As always intended, Meghan will continue to grow her brand and move into the next chapter of her independence. We look forward to celebrating how she continues to bring joy to homes around the world,” the pair said.
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for As Ever told Page Six that the lifestyle brand is “grateful for our partnership with Netflix throughout our first year of launch.”
The spokesperson added: “We have experienced meaningful and rapid growth and As Ever is ready to become independent. We have an exciting year ahead and can’t wait to share more information.”
