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Prince Harry and Meghan Markle hire US public relations team including ex-Pinterest executive

The team will oversee communications strategy for Archewell, future production projects, and other personal ventures 

Justin Vallejo
New York
Saturday 14 November 2020 04:08 EST
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Harry and Meghan to launch charitable organisation named Archewell

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Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have hired a new public relations team as they build their post-palace careers in the United States.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex named former Pinterest communications head Christine Schirmer to join their team along with Hollywood PR firm Sunshine Sachs.

As head of communications, Ms Schirmer will manage another new US hire, press secretary Toya Holness, along with UK-based communications lead James Holt.

The hiring was first reported by PR Week.

Ms Schirmer held the top communications role at Pinterest from 2017, while Ms Holness was previously director of corporate communications at Deluxe, a video creation and distribution company.

The digital-leaning backgrounds of the two new hires could signal the focus of the Sussex's moves to develop content for Netflix and unveil their new charitable foundation Archewell, named after son Archie.

The new hires joined the team in October and together will oversee the communications strategy for Archewell, future production projects, and other personal ventures. 

The Archewell website, launched in late October, says the organisation will create "compassionate communities online and off, to serve our collective wellbeing".

The Archewell branding was created following the couple’s applications to trademark "Sussex Royal" for a range of goods and activities.  

According to the website, Archewell is a combination of the Greek words Arche and Well, meaning a "source of action" and a "plentiful source or supply; a place we go to dig deep".

The couple told The Daily Telegraph in April they would launch Archewell "when the time is right".

“Before SussexRoyal, came the idea of ‘Arche’ - the Greek word meaning ‘source of action," they said.

“We connected to this concept for the charitable organisation we hoped to build one day, and it became the inspiration for our son’s name. To do something of meaning, to do something that matters.

The couple's former head of communications, Sara Latham, moved to the Queen's private office after the Megxit relocation from London to Los Angeles, where the family now lives in Santa Barbara.

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