The team behind Meghan's multi-million dollar relaunch

The team behind Meghan’s multi-million dollar relaunch: Duchess enlists powerhouse agent who is friends with Dubai royals, his fashion designer wife and skincare guru who can ‘build her into a global brand’

Meghan Markle’s mega-bucks rebrand is being driven by a vegan super agent who has become one of the world’s richest executives thanks to UFC and counts the ruler of Dubai as a close personal friend.

The Duchess of Sussex, 41, is also believed to be leaning on make-up entrepreneur Victoria Jackson, who is 26 years older than the former Suits star and appeared on her recently axed Spotify podcast Archetypes.

Meghan and Harry are believed to be on the verge of a multi-million pound deal with Christian Dior.  Her new agent Ari Emanuel is a key player in the fashion industry and his wife Sarah Staudinger is the founder and designer of the luxury Staud brand, which Meghan loves.

Mr Emanuel is the chief of the talent agency WME, which represents the Sussexes’ friends Oprah Winfrey and Tyler Perry, and is said to be ‘the best in the business’ when it comes to ‘corporate deals and making money’. 

Ari is also ‘super connected’ in the Middle East and considers the ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, a good friend.  ‘A growing number of people look at Harry as a deer caught in the headlights and she’s steering the car. Ari Emanuel is going to fix that. There’s finally an adult in the room’, one PR expert told the Mail on Sunday.

Super agent Ari Emanuel now represents Meghan Markle

Victoria Jackson and her husband Bill Guthy, who are both close to Meghan and Harry. Experts believe she can help build Meghan build a new beauty brand

Meghan wears earrings given to her by Saudi prince Mohammed bin Salman – just days after his regime admitted killing journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Experts say Ari will not allow her to make mistakes like this

During Covid, WME – which owns the Ultimate Fighting Championship – set up a ‘bubble’ on an island off the Emirati coast, dubbed ‘Fight Island’, and continued to stage televised bouts, which brought in millions through television rights and pay-per-view streaming. 

READ MORE: The Duke and Duchess of Dior? Experts say both Meghan AND Harry could be part of mega-bucks deal with French fashion house after Prince ‘plugged’ brand at Coronation 

Harry wears Dior for his father the King’s Coronation, which was then promoted by the fashion house on social media

‘Hollywood ground to a halt and no one was making money but Ari figured out a way to make millions, even during Covid,’ a source said. 

He will, no doubt, be careful to avoid any pitfalls if he chooses to link ‘Meghan Inc.’ to his wealthy Arab clients. 

The Duchess was criticised for wearing ‘blood diamond’ chandelier earrings gifted to her on her wedding day by Saudi Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, the man whose regime was responsible for the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018. 

At the time, her lawyers Schillings put out a strongly worded statement defending the Duchess, insisting she had no idea about Prince Mohammed’s suspected involvement in the murder. 

The source said: ‘Ari won’t make those kind of mistakes. He’s super connected, tough and brilliant.’ The influence of Emanuel on his latest client is already apparent. 

The agent is married to fashion designer Sarah Staudinger and Meghan chose to wear a two-piece pink linen suit from her Staud label for a recent – and much-photographed – appearance at an LA Lakers basketball game. ‘Emanuel’s incredibly disciplined in his personal life,’ my source told the Mail on Sunda. 

‘He’s been a strict vegan for years and knows everything there is to know about gut health. He becomes obsessed with subjects and talks to experts until he knows everything. When he goes to a restaurant he takes his own vegan food made by his private chef. 

‘Meghan is fortunate to have him on her team. If Ari can’t build her into a global brand, no one can.’

WME also represents Meghan’s close friends Oprah Winfrey, Wimbledon champion Serena Williams and filmmaker Tyler Perry.  It was Perry who loaned the Sussexes his Hollywood mansion when they arrived in Los Angeles after Megxit and he is godfather to their daughter Lilibet, two. 

Sarah Staudinger and Ari Emanuel attend the 2023 “Kering Women in Motion Award” during the 76th annual Cannes film festival at on May 21

Meghan in head to toe Dior at St Paul’s Cathedral last June

The Sussexes are said to have enjoyed holidays on Perry’s private island in the Bahamas, too. 

After Spotify cuts ties with the Sussexes, what deals do they have left? How do they make their money?  

Book deals – £16million ($20m)

Harry and Meghan are said to have signed a four-book deal worth upwards of £16 million ($20 million) with the publishing giant Penguin Random House.

And its sales have been huge. In the US Spare sold 629,300 print copies its first week – just short of Barack Obama’s record of 831,300 copies.

In Britain Spare has sold 750,000 copies across all formats – hardback, audio and e book – in the UK since its publication on January 10.

Harry is widely reported to have secured £16 million ($20 million) last year as an advance. 

Netflix – £81million ($100m)

Harry and Meghan announced their deal with Netflix just six months after setting up home in California in March 2020, saying they wanted to provide ‘hope and inspiration’ by teaming up with the streaming goliath.

Their docu-series proved to be a hit for the streaming service with nearly 2.5 million people watching the first episode on the day of its launch in the UK.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex also fronted and executive produced the series Live to Lead in conjunction with The Nelson Mandela Foundation, which was launched with a glossy two-minute trailer in December.

But the Mail revealed, the seven-part project – which was inspired by the late South African leader streamed from New Year’s Eve- was actually devised by the Foundation as a charitable endeavour in 2019.

They then received a snub from Jacinda Ardern, New Zealand’s outgoing prime minister and one of the guests, who put out a statement saying signed up for the project well before the Sussexes were onboard.

Nelson Mandela’s granddaughter then tore into Harry and Meghan, accusing them of ‘stealing’ the statesman’s words and using his name to ‘make millions’ on the show.

Spotify – £25million ($30m) 

Archetypes was part of Meghan and Harry’s £18million deal with the streaming giant.

It is now over as Archetypes was not renewed. Experts believe it could lose cost the couple $10million from the $28m to $30m deal. 

Property – £11million ($14.7m)

They also took out a £7.5million mortgage on their nine-bed, 13 bathroom, £11million ($14.7m) mansion in Montecito, California.

With the cash rolling in, it is possible that the couple have paid off some or all the loan, but it’s not clear based on US records.

However, they clearly grabbed a bargain, in California terms. The previous owner Russian magnate Sergey Grishin, paid £20.4million ($25.3 million) in 2009.

But it’s no doubt that they will have made a huge profit on their Santa Barbara property, which sits on a five acres of prime land close to mountains and beaches.

Inheritance and existing wealth – £30million ($37m)

Diana left £21million to her sons William and Harry, to be held in trust until they turned 25.

Estimates now put Harry’s portion at up to £20million as it gained value over time.

Speaking circuit – up to £800,000 per event ($1m)

GDA Speakers, whose clients include Nicole Kidman and Diane Keaton, said the Duke and Duchess of Sussex would attract much higher fees than regular celebrities, even without their HRH titles.

In November wealthy Americans spent up to $1million per ticket to rub shoulders with Prince Harry and Markle at a glittering New York gala. Experts have said that both could ask that for a speech.

But in a leaked contract in 2020, an event creator warned that many organisations will ‘raise their eyebrows’ at the couple’s demands. 

‘Harry and Meghan coming on the speaker circuit is certainly as significant as the likes of President Obama or Arnold Schwarzenegger,’ read a virtual event request form by the Harry Walker Agency.

‘So back then figures between the 750k and $1m mark seemed steep, but possible. Realistically their earnings range is closer to $250k to $400k’.

Jobs – Unknown but likely to be millions of dollars

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle backed a ‘hippy’ Wall Street investment firm in October 2021.

It owns tens of millions of dollars of shares in Twitter, Facebook and YouTube’s owner Google despite the couple decrying the ‘hate’ they have encountered online and their personal crusade against fake news.

Ethic, where Harry and Meghan are ‘impact partners’, has pumped clients’ money into the world’s largest social media platforms alongside oil companies and the biggest corporations in America as part of its business managing $1.3billion of investments for around 1,000 wealthy clients.

Harry and Meghan are investing their own money in Ethic, and are also reportedly shareholders, despite both of them previously criticising social media firms the investment firm has bought shares in.

In March 2021 Harry landed a job as an executive at a Silicon Valley life-coaching firm in a deal which could net him millions.

Harry was appointed ‘chief impact officer’ for San Francisco-based start-up BetterUp Inc. 

The circle offering business advice to the couple also includes close friend and neighbour Victoria Jackson, who built one of the first TV ‘infomercial’ make-up empires. 

Ms Jackson is married to Bill Guthy whose direct marketing company Guthy-Renker helped ex-supermodel Cindy Crawford turn her Meaningful Beauty line of creams and cosmetics into an £80 million brand, and also represents Jennifer Lopez’s JLo Beauty. 

‘Meghan and Victoria are very close,’ a Montecito source said.

‘If anyone can help Meghan develop a skincare or make-up brand it’s Victoria and Bill.’ 

Meghan recently renewed her trademark for The Tig, the wellness and lifestyle blog she started in 2014 but closed down in 2017 when she got engaged.

Meghan celebrated her 41st birthday at Jackson’s ranch close to Santa Barbara, where Harry plays polo for Los Padres, and the couple’s children, Archie and Lilibet, have spent time petting the businesswoman’s mini pigs on her sprawling farm.

Jackson appeared on Meghan’s podcast Archetypes and told The Cut that the couple are ‘good people’, saying she wants to help them ‘get out of the house because it’s complicated for them to go anywhere’.

She is part of the Sussexes’ ‘close-knit group of friends’ in Montecito, California. 

Experts believe Meghan could earn up to £200,000 per post to endorse brands. 

Alison Bringe, of brand performance company Lauchmetrics, said: ‘She’ll be in line with the best-paid mega-influencers, if not the highest paid in the world.’

 Jeremy Murphy, who runs New York’s 360bespoke PR agency, says Meghan is reclaiming her identity. 

‘She and Harry seem to be on different tracks which could be an issue,’ he said. 

‘I don’t think most people know what Harry believes in other than his wife and children. 

Meghan Markle’s potential deal with Christian Dior is a sign she has realised it is ‘easier to be a clothes horse than an issues warrior’, experts told MailOnline today.

Prince Harry is also highly likely to be part of any agreement because the French fashion house will be desperate to have a royal promoting its menswear, it has been claimed.

The Duke of Sussex’s decision to wear a Christian Dior suit for his father’s Coronation is being viewed by some as a ‘plug’ for his wife – or a bid for work himself. And he also appears to have donned $1,000 Dior ‘Bee’ shirts during recent appearances at the High Court in London. He also wore Dior to the UN last year.

PR guru Mark Borkowski told MailOnline today that it is not yet clear if a deal with Dior is already done – or if the Sussexes are touting for one. ‘It shows that they have great power in fashion and they are wanted by fashion houses. It is easier to be a clothes horse than an issues warrior’, he said.

Meghan wore head-to-toe Dior when she attended the National Service of Thanksgiving at St. Paul’s Cathedral, London, to celebrate the Platinum Jubilee of Her Majesty the Queen last June. Dressed in all white, she wore a trench coat, skirt, and shirt from the Dior Haute Couture Spring-Summer 2022 collection by Maria Grazia Chiuri, a white hat from Dior by Stephen Jones, Dior gloves, and Dior D-Moi shoes. 

She has also worn Dior to the Queen’s funeral, Archie’s baptism and other major events and royal tours before Megxit.

Mr Borkowski said: ‘It could be a case of poking the bear (to get a deal) or I suspect that is something that has been running for a while in terms of a negotiation and it now manifests itself into something.

‘It’s no coincidence that they are veering towards fashion. They are more comfortable in this world. Style over substance. It does seem to be a series of weird coincidences: Harry wears a Dior suit at the coronation and Dior at the hacking case and now a deal may be in the offing’. 

Brand and culture expert Nick Ede said: ‘Harry will be part of the deal for sure. Dior are so well known for their menswear that I’m sure they will have wanted to seal an exclusive contract between them both’. 

Meghan was dealt a blow by audio giant Spotify last week after it was announced that they would not be renewing her podcast Archetypes for a second season following a ‘mutual’ decision – a move that could see Meghan and Prince Harry lose $10 million. 

But she is set to weather the storm, reclaiming her identity with one insider close to the California-based couple claiming she could be ‘worth hundreds of millions of dollars’ if she does accept the brand deals reportedly being thrown her way as a super-influencer.

Harry decided to wear a Dior suit for his father’s Coronation that was then promoted by Dior in a tweet. The Duke of Sussex wore the bespoke three-piece suit designed by the fashion house’s artistic director Kim Jones especially for his appearance at Westminster Abbey. Some called it petulant because most other guests wore British labels – but now the couple could be in line for a mega-money deal.

One royal watcher said on social media last night that it was now obvious that ‘Harry wearing a Dior suit was the plug’ for his wife’s deal. 

Another speculated that Meghan’s husband may also be part of any tie up, tweeting: ‘Harry was making a deal with Dior and that’s why he merched his Coronation suit & one of the shirts he wore to court. Maybe they are trying to get a deal by publicly wearing Dior’.

Meghan has been tipped to  become one of the highest paid influencers in the world, receiving £200,000 per post to endorse brands such as Dior, experts have suggested.  

Nick Ede told MailOnline that ‘Meghan could become one of the biggest influencers in the world’ and ‘could command millions’.

He added that if the deal goes ahead it could even rival the revenue Kim Kardashian has brought in over the years through her partnership with Dolce & Gabanna – which saw her paid $47million for simply wearing the designer on her wedding day. 

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