Meghan Markle finally launched her first batch of products from her As Ever lifestyle brand and they sold out in minutes – and an expert has weighed in on how she can ensure similar success in the future
Meghan Markle proudly launched her first batch of products from her As Ever lifestyle brand – but some were left disappointed. That’s because Meghan’s much-touted jam, costing £10.80, and a collection of herbal teas, flower sprinkles and luxury honey were all snapped up by shoppers soon within 30 minutes of the website taking orders.
Of course, the Duchess of Sussex was delighted that her ‘limited’ quantities of her stock ran out in such a short space of time, telling her Instagram followers: “Our shelves may be empty, but my heart is full!” She also told how this would be just the start for As Ever, with the website promising to restock again soon. So will demand for a second batch of items be the same when they are made available?
Pauline Maclaran, a professor of Marketing & Consumer Research at Royal Holloway, University of London, believes so – and it’s all down to one major tactic employed by Meghan, the scarcity principle. She told the Mirror : “Of course, we don’t know how many products there were in the first place – we don’t know how limited it was.
“But in a way, it seems to me to be quite a good branding strategy because she is working on the scarcity principle. She’s whipping up demand through the idea that the products are something to prize and that you have to wait for it – and that she is going to have more supplies very soon.
“The whole story at the moment, according to her, is that it has been hugely successful because everything has sold out within the hour so people who want to get the product will be on tenterhooks following when she is going to announce there’s more. That can work quite well but I don’t suppose she will reveal how limited the stock was. But this is a tried and trusted strategy for encouraging demand and increasing anticipation around particularly high-value products.
“The price of her jam is really the price that Fortnum and Mason charges so it is really at the top end with a high-end pricing point. At the moment, I have to say that after what seems like a pretty shaky start, the launch has been good with a bit of a punch.”
However, the marketing expert does have a warning for Meghan when it comes to further product drops. She explained: “But you have to balance it very finely of course, because if you leave it too long, people will get fed up. But releasing a certain number at fairly regular intervals so people build up anticipation but don’t have to wait so long and start to get annoyed should be the strategy.
“What Meghan will have to be careful with is that she does have more product to get to people within a reasonable timeframe because the more you whip up people’s desire but you don’t have the products to meet that demand then it will fall flat.”
Among those who did manage to get their hands on the whole product range are several influencers as well as celebrities including Kardashian matriarch Kris Jenner and Hollywood actress Zoe Saldaña. And Professor Maclaran believes this could actually be an astute move by Meghan when it comes to her brand.
She said: “Certainly getting her friends to mention the products and to endorse them, she is using a celebrity endorsement – and that will all whip up to keep interest in the product range. It also enhances the aspirational element, which is very much around her as a lifestyle brand.
“You’re really buying a little dream of this celebrity lifestyle that she puts in front of people through the Netflix programme and through her social media channels.”
