Now, a trademark to sell aprons under the As Ever brand has been rejected, with the name found to be similar to a Chinese firm, ASEVER, which supplies garments to high-street stores.
The Duchess of Sussex will not be selling clothing under her new As Ever brand name after trademark authorities ruled it could risk “likelihood of confusion” with a Chinese clothing company.
As Ever, the name the Duchess said she had “secured” in 2022, has been found to be similar to the name of clothing firm ASEVER, which supplies garments to high-street stores.
A 145-page report, filed in July 2023 and reported by the Mail on Sunday, details a “partial rejection” of the Duchess’ team’s original trademark application, which requested to use the As Ever name for aprons.
ASEVER, it noted, already created items in “clothing category 25”. The US Patent and Trademark Office paperwork includes evidence from the websites of H&M, Anthropologie and Laura Ashley that “establishes that the same entity commonly manufactures, produces or provides the relevant goods and/or services”.
The trademarks were found to be “identical in sound and virtually identical in appearance, and are thus confusingly similar for the purposes of determining likelihood of confusion”.
Meghan launched As Ever’s Instagram page with a photo of her drizzling honey on a croissant with her dog by her side. Photo / @aseverofficial
The situation was resolved by the Duchess’ team removing that part of the application and continuing with the rest of the proposed range.
It retains a wide variety of products, from meditation cushions to pet treats to hospitality services.
It is understood the present version of As Ever is intended to be a lifestyle brand and will not be making clothing or providing photography services.
The paperwork goes some way to settling a public dispute over trademarks. A New York clothing brand and a photography company of the same name this week posted on social media when customers pointed out the similarity.
When the Duchess launched the new name of her brand on Instagram last week, she said: “I’ve been waiting for a moment to share a name that I had secured in 2022, and this is the moment, and it’s called As Ever.”
“In the last 36 hours there has been an outpouring of support and concern regarding recent events around our namesake brand,” he said last week. “We are aware. We are not affiliated.”
A photographer, trading under As Ever Photography, joked that Netflix could at least now give her some business, writing: “When one of the most famous people in the world starts using your biz name of 12+ years (that you named in honour of your grandmother), seems like they could throw me a lil bone?”
The mayor of a village in Majorca has said they are considering legal action against the Duchess over the similarities between her logo, which features a palm tree and two hummingbirds, in its coat of arms, which dates back to 1370.
The Duchess’ As Ever products will be sold in partnership with streaming giant Netflix, said by Meghan to be launching in “spring 2025”.
Netflix has previously sold merchandise from some of its most popular shows, with superfans of Bridgerton, Stranger Things and Squid Games able to buy clothing, phone cases and water bottles among its offerings.
Meghan Markle in a the trailer for her new Netflix show With Love, Meghan. Photo / Netflix
Viewers of Love Is Blind can buy a gold necklace with the words “Pod Squad” engraved on it for £60 ($132), Bridgerton obsessives can take home a T-shirt with pictures of lead characters Penelope and Colin on it under their fan nickname “Polin” for £32 ($70).
They have previously launched frozen pizza tied into Stranger Things that sold at Walmart, and sells hot sauce from the same show online for £32.
It has been reported the Duchess’ range will be sold at Netflix stores in shopping malls in Dallas and Philadelphia and on the internet.
Explaining why she changed the brand name from American Riviera Orchard, which was rejected by the patent office in part because businesses cannot trademark geographical locations, the Duchess told her Instagram followers: “Last year, I had thought, American Riviera, that sounds like such a great name.
“It’s my neighbourhood; it’s a nickname for Santa Barbara, but it limited me to things that were just manufactured and grown in this area.
“Then Netflix came on, not just as my partner in the show, but as my partner in my business. Which was huge.”
The Duchess’ lifestyle show, With Love, Meghan, will air from March 4. It was postponed from its original launch date after the Los Angeles wildfires.
