The reason behind Harry and Meghan’s big rebrand
Why I think the Duke and Duchess have launched Sussex.com now
Hello Royal Clubbers,
By the time they arrived in Whistler this afternoon, Prince Harry and Meghan had already generated hundreds of headlines, thanks to the launch of their new Sussex.com website
The story has really picked up momentum since I exclusively revealed details of the rebrand over on hellomagazine.com on Monday, and the new site has proved controversial to say the least.
Critics have picked apart the use of a royal coat of arms, the couple’s biographies and the unexpected link to their former website sussexroyal.com, which was launched to coincide with their announcement that they were stepping back from royal duties in early 2020.
That site was effectively mothballed after a dispute with Buckingham Palace over the use of the word “royal” in the title, so it’s an interesting move to reconnect it to their new operation, an ocean away from the institution of monarchy.
I’m told the link is there to serve as a “cultural and historical” reference to Harry and Meghan’s work while still part of the institution, but my take on this is that they want to remind people of the work they did in the first 18 months or so of their marriage, before they left royal life behind.
The old site also serves as a reminder of the outcome so-called Sandringham Summit, which included their agreement not to use “’Sussex Royal’ or any iteration of the word ‘Royal’ in any territory,” once their transition to non-working royals had taken place.
Naming their new site Sussex.com and simply dropping the word “royal” is perhaps closer to what they originally wanted for their “brand” and a much more personal name than Archewell.
I think this is the biggest clue as to why they’ve made this move now.