The Duchess of Sussex’s As Ever is direct-to-consumer, but at this point, she might have to consider pairing with corporate suppliers and established distribution outlets, because it’s getting CRAZY! On Friday, the summer solstice, Meghan’s As Ever did its second product drop – a resupply of her teas, crepe mix, shortbread mix and flower sprinkles – and she also introduced a new jam/spread flavor (apricot!) and a new limited-edition honey. I heard that the honey sold out in mere minutes. As for the rest of it, even with a greatly increased inventory, every As Ever product sold out in less than four hours.
On the first day of summer, Meghan Markle stood in front of blooming flowers, fresh faced with her hair pulled back, wearing a white knit tank and, quite frankly, a little bit in shock.
“We spent so much time making sure we had so much more inventory,” the Duchess of Sussex said in a June 20 Instagram Story after her second As Ever collection sold out that same day. “That’s why we took the time, and you guys are doing it again,” she added, referencing the two-plus months between the first As Ever drop selling out on April 2 and the second doing the same on Friday. “We’re nearly sold out on everything, and I can’t believe it.”
The collection would soon sell out, even the flower sprinkles, which Meghan noted in the clip had “more inventory than all of it” because she “knew [it] was going to be the big one again.”
It’s difficult to blame Meghan for her excitement. For the first time, As Ever is sharing metrics on how the business is doing and told InStyle exclusively that “The response to this collection has been truly overwhelming and beyond what we anticipated, even with increased production capacity.”
InStyle understands that the brand increased its inventory nearly 10 times that of the first collection, released back in April (and which sold out its eight product offerings in just 45 minutes). This time around, for the June 20 drop—which also featured eight products—there was a two-time increase in site traffic compared to the first collection, and all of the products released on Friday sold out within four hours.
Of the eight products offered on June 20, six were returning products, with the two new products—the apricot spread and the limited-edition orange blossom honey—selling out first.
“While we did significantly scale up quantities, the demand has consistently outpaced our projections,” a spokesperson said. “This is both exciting and challenging—we’re continuing to work with our partners to find the right balance between maintaining our quality standards and meeting the desire for As Ever product.”
In April, I lingered for a moment and bought three products (one jar of jam and two teas). I regretted not buying more jam when I had the chance, so this time, I went in with a plan – grab two jars and get the hell out of there. So my two jars of apricot jam are on the way and I’m happy. But yes, I really do hope that she reissues/resupplies the raspberry. Anyway, another sold out line, and this time there was an even bigger inventory and it still sold out like a motherf–ker. Well done to Meghan. Now make more jam, damn it!
Meanwhile, Meghan is introducing something new and it’s coming very soon: As Ever Napa Valley Rosé. That will be available on July 1st. This is what I’ve been waiting for, not for myself (I’m on the wagon), but for Meghan – I’ve wanted her to get in the alcohol business, because it’s incredibly lucrative if you get the right brand/product. Meghan is going to sell the f–k out of this rosé. Her wine sales are going to make her flower sprinkle sales look QUAINT. I’ll skip buying the As Ever wine, but I’m sure it will sell out very quickly too, despite one critic calling the wine expansion “baffling.” What’s baffling about moving into alcohol when you already have a successful food/jam company? That’s the most organic business move ever.
Photos courtesy of As Ever’s IG.
