Meghan Markle has sparked speculation over a potential return of her successful lifestyle blog, The Tig, after submitting a trademark application for its name.
Her bid was first rejected six months ago, when the US Patent & Trademark Office said the description of the website was “too broad” and the paperwork had been left unsigned.
Now, however, the Duchess of Sussex seems closer to seeing her application approved after, as her first submission submitted 12 months ago was rectified with the assistance of an additional lawyer, Danielle Weiss, and is “under examination” by the US federal agency.
The revised application shows Meghan is seeking to trademark The Tig in five different and descriptive “classes”.
These are travel, interior design (including “environmentally conscious living”), food preparation (including cooking and recipes), health and “wellness”, and personal relationships (including, rather surprisingly, fashion and personal lifestyle).
The application reportedly cost £1,500 ($1,750) to be submitted.
In July 2021, publicly available records showed lawyer Marjorie Witter Norman had filed a new application to trademark The Tig name.
The trademark application was filed under a Delaware-based holding company called Frim Fram Inc, which links back to Meghan’s business manager Andrew Meyer.
At the time a representative of Meghan said: “The lasting trademark is to prevent false branding, to avoid others purporting to be the Duchess or affiliated with her.”
This new trademark application could be seen as a step closer to Meghan re-launching her once-popular lifestyle blog – or even starting one anew.
However, Meghan could have chosen to apply for fresh trademark to avoid copycats and protect her and her fans from false branding, without necessarily wanting to revive her old brand.
