Meghan Markle has faced criticism this week after she posted photographs from a party on Archewell social media accounts.
The Duchess of Sussex, 43, stepped out without her husband Prince Harry, 40, to attend the launch of a new haircare line by the brand Highbrow Hippie, which is co-founded by her friend Kadi Lee, on Thursday.
The duchess has invested in the brand and attended the launch on the same day as the King’s birthday, with pictures showing the mum-of-two hugging her friend at the glitzy event.
However, after these pictures of the party were shared on the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s Archewell Instagram account, which should focus on the couple’s charitable work on Friday, Meghan has received criticism from followers, with one accusing her of “self-promotion”.
The post was captioned: “Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex got out yesterday to support her friends Kadi Lee and Mika Harris who launched the Highbrow Hippie product line.”
Commenters were quick to criticise the duchess and her decision to post pictures of the event on the Instagram account, with one person accusing her of trying to boost her image.
One person wrote: “Another self-promotion tour and a little PR for the Duchess? We don’t have titles in the US, remember? Actually, there are rules about trying to capitalize off of titles in the US, since we fought a war to be done with them.”
Another commented said: “Let Harry represent Archwell for everything. He’s the only one that’ll make things better for them.”
A third harsh comment said: “Who cares!”
The duchess’ appearance at the event without her husband comes after the couple are reportedly heading their separate ways when it comes to their professional lives.
This is believed to be as a result of them experiencing more success on solo ventures, for example with Prince Harry’s latest solo tour.
Renae Smith, founder and director of PR firm Atticism, exclusively told Express.co.uk: “I think their decision to pursue individual brands could indeed work in their favour over the long term, although it’s bound to spark a fair amount of public speculation in the short term.
“From a PR perspective, this shift might allow each of them to create distinct brands that better reflect their different priorities and resonate more coherently with their individual audiences.”
Despite focusing on their individual ventures, the couple – who are parents to Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet – did come together in a joint video appearance last week to discuss the need to protect children in a digital world.
