Team Meghan
Lawyers. Web experts. A ruthless Hollywood PR machine. And her own company listed in a notorious low-tax U.S. state – meet the...
SHE may be separated from her husband by 5,000 miles including an ocean and be at the centre of a media maelstrom, but the Duchess of Sussex has been busy.
This week , she left the family’s £10.7 million bolthole on V ancouver Island and hopped on a seaplane to visit the offices of Downtown eastside Women’s Centre in Vancouver city.
It was a remarkably last-minute affair . On Monday, the manager of the vulnerable women’s shelter had received a ‘rather mysterious’ email from a private account belonging to Meghan ’s personal assistant, explaining that the duchess wanted to visit organisations that served women in the city.
Meghan turned up the next day and photographs from the meeting , showing her surrounded by beaming women, appeared around the world. (It emerged yesterday that security concerns meant that Meghan did not actually set foot inside the centre, instead meeting staff at their offices.)
On Wednesday, Meghan dropped in on another women’s group, where she was snapped discussing ‘climate justice for girls’.
If the visits smack of a savvy , if rather obvious, PR exercise — at a time when the Sussexes’ position within the Royal F amily is still unclear and Canadians are debating their rumoured move to T oronto — that shouldn’t be surprising.
Drawing on Meghan ’s experience of the entertainment industry, the couple have already assembled an extensive and markedly corporate north American operation to orchestrate their future.
THE ‘BARE-KNUCKLE’ PR GURUS
SUNSHINE Sachs is a sharp - elbowed U.S. public relations company hired by the Sussexes last year . Clients include Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lopez.
Its founder , K en Sunshine, notoriously issued strenuous denials on Harvey W einstein’s behalf when the disgraced film mogul was first accused of sexually abusing women.
His company has also been accused of using ‘ bare-knuckle tactics’ in representing its A -list Hollywood clients, including glossing up their entries on online encyclopedia Wikipedia.
Although its principal specialism is ‘crisis management ’, the firm recently worked with Meghan on her controversial guest-editorship of British Vogue.
While one of Sunshine’s senior staff, K eleigh Thomas Morgan, represented Meghan in her acting days and remains a close friend, a spokesman for the company has insisted it is only involved in Meghan’s charity affairs.
But this position appears to have changed in recent months as the Duchess is reportedly now primarily relying on Sunshine Sachs, leaving P alace spokesmen ‘out of the loop’.
Indeed, one theory is that it was Sunshine Sachs that leaked plans of the couple’s intention to step away from the Royal Family.
Providing further U.S. expertise, the Sussexes also have Sara Latham, a former senior advisor to Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign, as their head of communications.
COMPANY IN SECRETIVE U.S. STATE
PRINCE Harry may have limited experience of working for a living , but his wife has previously proved adept at maximising her revenue.
The Duchess has long had her own company — a widely used tax-friendly vehicle in the U.S. for freelancers — called Frim Fram to run her lifestyle blog , The Tig , which she billed as a ‘ hub for the discerning palate — those with a hunger for food, travel, fashion and beauty’.
She shut down The Tig in 2017 before she became engaged to Prince Harry, only to renew the trademark last September. Palace officials say she did it to stop others misusing it, but she could now relaunch it.
On December 30 last year , Frim Fram ceased to be registered in California and was effectively reconstituted in Delaware.
The move is highly significant not only in indicating that Meghan will soon be focusing on earning money, but also because Delaware is the ‘Switzerland’ of the U.S., a low-tax state that guarantees levels of corporate secrecy unheard of in the rest of the country.
Registering a company in Delaware doesn ’ t require the disclosure of the owners’ identi - ties, and all financial information is kept confidential. There’s been speculation that Meghan could also relaunch her lifestyle blog.
It goes without saying that any money she once made endorsing fashion or beauty products as a TV soap actress would be dwarfed by what she could earn now.
Interestingly, Shannyn Y ates, listed as the person who incorpo - rated Frim Fram in Delaware, was involved in raising $60 million to set up a new voiceover company , Discovery of Voice.
Prince Harry was recently caught touting his wife’s voiceover abilities to Disney chief Bob Iger and she later did some work for the company in exchange for a donation to the charity organisation elephants Without Borders.
A CANNABIS WEBSITE DESIGNER
WHATEVER projects they embark on, the Sussexes have a website design agency to call upon. Article, a Toronto-based business, designed the site for Meghan ’s blog, The Tig , and are behind the Sussexes’ new website, sussexroyal. com.
The small outfit has also done work for nickelodeon TV and even a cannabis brand called Tokyo Smoke (cannabis is now legal in Canada).
Ryan Sax, its founder , has said: ‘It’s been a pleasure to work on this website with The Duke and Duchess of Sussex ... I’m happy we could create something special for them.’
THE OBAMAS’ TEMPLATE
ALTHOUGH the Obamas deny reports that they’ve quietly been advising their friends Harry and Meghan on stepping away from the Royal F amily, they provide an invaluable example of how the Sussexes could ‘monetise their brand’ without antagonising their fans.
The Obamas have managed to become multi-millionaires since leaving the White House after they started their own production company and signed a deal with the streaming giant netflix to broadcast their ‘passion projects’ — an idea that might appeal to the Sussexes.
exactly how much the Obamas made from the deal is unclear, but a similar move may prove a useful source of influence, if not income, for the Duke and Duchess.
In the meantime, the Sussexes could look to the Obamas for other
guidance. Meghan’s good friend Michelle advised her when she guest- edited Vogue, while Barack obama agreed to be interviewed by his pal Prince Harry when the latter guest- edited BBC radio 4’s Today programme.
The obamas could also explain how they can work the enormously lucrative U.S. speaking circuit. Though after becoming a United Nations advocate for gender equality issues, Meghan joined a speakers’ agency and was said to have been able to charge $20,000 per appearance — not bad for an actress far removed from the A-list.
Jeff Jacobson, co-founder of the Talent Bureau speaking agency, said Prince Harry could make up to $500,000 per appearance.
THE BEST FRIEND AND ‘FIXER’
JUST in case the Sussexes don’t have enough well- connected celebrity friends across the Pond, the Duchess can always rely on her best friend, Jessica Mulroney. The Canadian stylist and wedding planner — who is married to Ben Mulroney, son of former Canadian prime minister Brian Mulroney — is a supremely effective selfpublicist. She will fill in any gaps in Meghan’s Canada contacts book. Mrs Mulroney is also a friend of the Canadian dubbed the Sussexes’ ‘fixer’ — David foster, a musician and producer with strong showbusiness and political connections. Married to katharine McPhee, whom Meghan has known since school, he arranged for the Sussexes to stay at the Vancouver island mansion.