Meghan Markle 'breaks major rule' according to critics as she risks royal uproar

Meghan Markle is believed to have broken royal protocol with her American Riviera Orchard launch, as she used her Sussex royal title and branding to help promote it.

The Duchess launched her new lifestyle brand in March and soon grew a huge online following via Instagram, reports the Mirror.

And despite the new brand yet to begin retailing, it's beloved to focus on selling a wide range of items including household goods, cookware, pet products, gardening tools, beverages, food and condiments.

It's now been noted that American Riviera Orchardand its launch could potentially land Meghan in trouble as she's seen as breaking Royal protocol.

The rules prohibit members of the royal family from advertising or associating themselves with brand partnerships and endorsements.

The new venture also uses Meghan's royal title of Duchess of Sussex as featured in the brand's Instagram bio, where it states 'by Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex'.

Meghan could be directly breaking royal rules by stating her name alongside the brand.

Earthweb privacy expert Trevor Cooke said: "Members of the royal family must tread carefully on social media, balancing their personal interests with their responsibilities to the monarchy. Any misstep could have significant repercussions for their reputation and the institution they represent."

The new brand has also seen Meghan slammed by food icon and celebrity chef Martha Stewart who is said to find comparisons to Meghan Markle "irritating and insulting", leaving the Duchess of Sussex embarrassed.

It was claimed Meghan could earn more than six-figures in sales in the weeks following the launch of American Riviera Orchard, and she's already been compared to the likes of Martha Stewart - which has not gone down well.

A source claimed to In Touch the chef isn't pleased with the comparison as they said: "Martha has seen hundreds of Meghan types come and go — and says they all come in with the same self-inflated hype, only to find out it’s a whole new ball game when it comes down to brass tacks. She’s tired of being quizzed by people over how she feels about Meghan’s venture because, honestly, it’s irritating and insulting to her that she’s being compared to a rookie!"

An inside source also explained Martha has spent "decades building her brand" as they added: "If Meghan thinks she can come along and replicate that with barely any experience simply because she’s married to a prince, she better think again. Martha doesn’t put a whole lot of faith in her succeeding, but if she does prove to be any competition, Martha won’t hold back in trying to take her down."

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