The Duchess of Sussex recently announced she was renaming her lifestyle brand to As Ever – but in the days that have followed but she has faced some major hurdles
The owner of an independent business with the same name as Meghan Markle’s As Ever brand has shared a major update.
Meghan surprised fans when she announced she was renaming her American Riviera Orchard lifestyle brand to As Ever last week. And while fans are incredibly excited to finally see her products, the late change has sparked backlash.
The newly launched brand is banned from marketing clothing due to its resemblance to a budget-friendly Chinese fashion retailer, while the mayor of a town in Mallorca has claimed Meghan ‘copied’ its coat of arms when revealing her new logo, which shows a palm tree flanked by two hummingbirds. It is understood that Meghan’s new emblem is inspired by her home in California, and is a subtle tribute to her husband Prince Harry.
As the backlash ensued, it was also noted that ‘As Ever’ is the name of a New York vintage-inspired brand established more than a decade ago by Mark Kolski. “I started getting messages from friends and family and people that know my brand,” Mr Kolski, 58, told the New York Times. “And they were saying, ‘Have you seen this?’ There was just a lot of confusion, and I didn’t really know what to do.”
Marc told the publication that, while he has explored his options, he is not planning any legal recourse. “My brother’s an attorney, and so I called him,” he said. “He’s not an intellectual property lawyer, but he did say, you know, you have some rights based on your established business.”
But, he added: “I’m not trying to mount some legal offensive here. Right now, I’m just going back to work, and I’m trying to keep the awareness on my brand. If any conflict eventually arises that affects my business, I’ll evaluate that then.”
Marc further stressed that, despite reports to the contrary, he holds no ill-feeling towards Meghan. “What it feels like is out there people are making comments, and the media they want to create a rift between us, but there isn’t,” he said. “I haven’t talked to them. They haven’t talked to me. There’s no battle going on.”
The publication also spoke to Jeanne Fromer, a law professor at New York University who specialises in intellectual property. She confirmed that while Mr. Kolski does not have a registered trademark, he probably has trademark protection simply because he has been doing business under the name.
“They have a claim that, with the right set of facts, they might be able to make,” she said. “It might be an uphill battle to make it, but it’s not a laughable claim.”
It comes after it was revealed that Meghan has made a last-minute application to sell dried biscuit and crêpe mixes under her new brand. The new trademark filing, made twice under two different As Ever fonts, is for: “Mixes for bakery goods; Cookie mixes; Biscuit mixes; Crêpe mixes.”
The Duchess launched her lifestyle brand under the name American Riviera Orchard (ARO) last year, distributing 50 jars of strawberry jam to her celebrity friends. She was refused a trademark for the brand last year after the US Patent and Trademark Office said geographical locations could not be patented.