Meghan Markle may be forced to hire ‘small army’ of staff to avoid lifestyle brand fail | Royal | News [Video]

Meghan Markle may be forced to hire a “small army” of staff to compete with her major rivals if her lifestyle brand American Riviera Orchard takes off, experts are warning.

They believe the Duchess of Sussex faces being swamped by initial demand for a vast range of products from high-end foods to cookware, cutlery, pet and gardening products, stationery, candles, and home décor such as pillows, curtains, fine linens and picture frames.

Many of her new company’s functions, such as distribution and tech support, are likely to be outsourced to established firms – but experts say she will also need a strong core staff to operate on the same level as established competitors Martha Stewart and Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop.

Goop, which now has a net worth of nearly £200 million, employs 297 full time staff while Martha Stewart’s Omnimedia company employs 406, including a “home team” of 30 who work out of the farm where she also lives in Bedford, New York…