In 2022 and 2023 especially, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s communications strategy pissed me off regularly. They couldn’t decide if they should still play by “royal rules” and they missed many opportunities to shut down or clarify certain stories. The worst period of Sussex communications was the summer of 2023: everything during and after the paparazzi swarm in New York; Spotify dropping the Sussexes; the British media’s soap opera storyline about a Sussex divorce. All of that was woefully mismanaged. Thankfully, things have started to look up this year – the Sussexes have been more responsive, they launched sussex.com, they’re doing more brand-building and everything feels more professional and polished. Well, now the Sussexes’ Global Press Secretary is starting her own communications firm, and the Sussexes are her first clients. Oh.

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s Global Press Secretary and Head of Communications, Ashley Hansen, has unveiled a new venture that will continue to include the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.

After working with the royal couple for over two years, Hansen is launching her own Los Angeles-based communications firm, Three Gate Strategies. The firm will specialize in offering bespoke communications services and brand management for a select group of distinguished organizations and individuals, including the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. Hansen will continue to represent and advise the couple as part of her new firm while providing strategic oversight to their international communications team.

“I am incredibly grateful to The Duke and Duchess for their continued trust in me. Their unwavering support and belief in my new firm has been meaningful and is a testament to their leadership. I knew when they first hired me that they were giving me the opportunity of a lifetime and I couldn’t be happier to continue working together,” Hansen said in a statement.

Beyond her work with the Sussexes, Three Gate Strategies will also handle communications for Meghan’s new business ventures and creative projects, including her upcoming Netflix show and lifestyle brand.

“We are so proud of Ashley, especially as a female entrepreneur. We look forward to having her focused expertise on our business and creative projects and her continued oversight of our communications team. My husband and I are excited to be alongside Ashley as she builds something extraordinarily special with her firm,” the Duchess of Sussex said in a statement on behalf of the couple.

The firm’s client roster now extends across industries, including entertainment, technology and finance. Meghan and Harry fully support the new venture, which originated after other clients approached Hansen seeking the same high-quality counsel that has been provided to the Sussexes. The Duchess of Sussex has been a vocal supporter of female-led enterprises, and this new firm joins the portfolio of women-led businesses she has championed since relocating to the U.S. in 2020.

This new chapter comes after significant growth within the Sussexes’ communications team earlier this year, with the appointments of Kyle Boulia and Charlie Gipson, senior-level communications executives based in Los Angeles and London, respectively. The team also includes longtime executives Miranda Barbot and Deesha Tank, who have been instrumental in managing the couple’s projects since 2022.

[From People]

“…Which originated after other clients approached Hansen seeking the same high-quality counsel that has been provided to the Sussexes….” *looks into camera* I mean… I’ll be generous and say that we don’t actually know which strategies Ashley Hansen has suggested, only to see Meghan and Harry reject the strategies for various reasons. It’s possible that the Sussexes’ comms strategy could have been a lot better if they were taking Hansen’s advice instead of going with their gut instinct “ignore it and maybe it will go away.” Or that old chestnut of “never complain, never explain.” As for what this means for the Sussexes… it’s not some big change. Hansen will still be focused on the Sussexes and Archewell, but now she’ll do it as the head of her own firm.

PS… You know how this will be reported over there, right? “The Sussexes have lost another staffer!” “Duchess Difficult drove her press secretary out of a job!”

Photos courtesy of Backgrid.