NEED TO KNOW
- As Ever brand criticism escalated after jam-maker Donna Collins reportedly called Meghan Sussex’s apricot spread a “failed jam,” though she later denied making the remark and accused the media of misrepresentation.
- Despite increasing inventory nearly tenfold, Meghan’s second As Ever launch sold out within hours, with the apricot spread and honey gone in minutes.
- Meghan continues to face disproportionate media scrutiny compared to other lifestyle founders, even as her brand sees repeated commercial success.
Meghan Sussex’s As Ever lifestyle brand sold out its second seasonal collection within minutes last Friday. Despite increased inventory and strong consumer demand, the media chose to spotlight one critic’s remarks—remarks that were later denied.
At the center of the criticism sits Texas-based jam-maker Donna Collins, who allegedly slammed Meghan’s apricot spread as a “failed jam.” Her comment dominated headlines across right-leaning outlets, even though she later issued a statement denying she ever criticized Meghan. The tabloid-driven spin is an old tactic repackaged with a new jar.
Selling Out Is Not the Scandal
The As Ever apricot spread sold out in minutes, and the rest of the collection followed within an hour. According to InStyle, the June launch offered nearly ten times more inventory than Meghan’s debut raspberry spread in April. The Duchess of Sussex took to Instagram with gratitude, thanking supporters and noting her surprise at how quickly everything moved. However, Meghan’s success remains hard for some in the media to stomach, and they seize on any hint of criticism to amplify it loudly.
Page Six, GB News, and the Daily Express zeroed in on Collins’ criticism. Her description of spreads as “jams that didn’t set” became a media soundbite, repeated widely across articles that ignored both context and consumer response.
Yet there’s a glaring gap in the coverage: Collins had not tasted the apricot spread before commenting on its quality. That detail went unchallenged in many reports. In a public statement released on June 22, Collins clarified, “I have never criticized Meghan Markle. Any statements attributed to me…are entirely false, misleading, and a disappointing example of clickbait journalism.”
Media Bias Follows Meghan Into Every Room
This keeps happening. When As Ever announced earlier this year, tabloids pushed false claims about Meghan stealing the name and logo—even though her trademarks were legal and the designs clearly different. And Meghan continues to attract a level of scrutiny that few lifestyle founders face, especially those with proven commercial success. When white influencers or reality stars launch boutique wellness lines or limited-edition food products, media narratives tend to frame them as savvy entrepreneurs. With Meghan, the story becomes one of suspicion and a campaign to spotlight any poorly researched and ill-conceived criticism.
Related | Meghan Markle Faces Another Manufactured Controversy Over ‘As ever’
Right-leaning headlines described the As Ever product restock as a PR stunt, suggesting the limited stock was intentionally low to create hype. But that claim contradicts the data. The company planned for demand and scaled up significantly. It still wasn’t enough. That’s not a marketing gimmick—it’s a signal of genuine interest and need.
A 2023 Journal of Food Science study confirms that consumer perception of quality in products like jam or honey relies on direct sensory experience. And the proof is in the pudding—a blind taste test conducted by The Telegraph found that Meghan’s raspberry preserve was the favorite among participants, even outperforming traditional brands.
So publicly attacking a product without tasting it defies both expert standards and fair practice. But for critics of Meghan, the rules never seem to apply.
Meghan Sussex Builds With Grace Despite the Noise
The response to Meghan’s brand shows two things can be true at once: She has built something with mass appeal, and she continues to be targeted unfairly. Critics continue to rush to delegitimize a product that thousands were trying to buy before they even had a chance to try it.
Donna Collins’ walk-back only shows the media’s eagerness to frame Meghan as a failure, even in success. The real story isn’t that someone didn’t like the spread. It’s that they never even tasted it, and the media still ran with their quote.
Meghan Sussex has delivered two sellouts in under three months. Her products are resonating. The facts are simple, but the coverage is anything but. When excellence threatens the status quo, it often gets mislabeled as something else.
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Rinse and repeat, no surprise that the tabloids are attributing comments to any individual only for that person to come out and say they did not say that,or that their comments are misrepresented. Lesson is that people should always say no comment when asked about Meghan cause even if they say something positive it will be spinned into something negative.
It’s more than obvious that this is a disturbing, well coordinated smear campaign by The Royal Family & their racist cronies to destroy Meghan. Her success is a threat to them. They desperately want Meghan to fail. However, they have crossed too many boundaries. These heinous attacks are going to backfire on them!.
Do these so called writers ever read back what they have written or is criticism enough?? Their words belied what they were saying as they stated the jam was runny just hours after it was sold out, how would anyone know what the jam or spread was like when it wasn’t available unless it was shipped to the buyer afterwards?? They said the same about the raspberry preserve. I find these so called adults so petty. The world is facing untold challenges right now and all these people are concerned about is jam and one woman minding her own business, IN ANOTHER COUNTRY !!!! Really, they’re all going to have a stroke if they don’t stop obsessing about Meghan business and her IG postings. It’s not healthy.