Meghan Markle recently shared the song that captures her deep connection to California during the fifth episode of her Lemonada Media podcast, "Confessions of a Female Founder."
The Duchess of Sussex welcomed Hannah Mendoza, founder of Clevr Blends, for a conversation about their entrepreneurial journeys and shared love for the Golden State.
During their discussion, Mendoza revealed she listens to Miley Cyrus's "Party in the USA" when landing at LAX.
Meghan then shared her own musical association: "When my plane touched down at LAX and I was going back and forth when I was filming [Suits] in Toronto for a long time... I would always hear Joni Mitchell's 'California, I'm coming home' every single time in my head, and I would just go, 'I'm home!'"
Meghan Markle reveals the song that 'would play in her head' when returning home to California
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Though born and raised in California, Meghan now lives in Montecito with Prince Harry and their children.
Meghan revealed that Clevr Blends was her first-ever investment opportunity, which came about unexpectedly.
"The funniest thing about it is I had never invested in something before," she explained. "You saw me when I was very pregnant, and my friend sent over this gift basket filled with an assortment of products that he thought I would like."
After trying the turmeric latte that only required adding water, Meghan was immediately intrigued.
Meghan Markle pictured with Hannah Mendoza
Clevr Blends
"I looked at the back. I said, 'Who is this person?... What is this company?'" she recalled.
The Duchess noted she didn't have an investment portfolio at the time, describing it as "the first and truly organic experience of looking at something and saying, 'I want to support this.'"
She jokingly referenced her mindset at the time: "I was watching a lot of Shark Tank... And I said, 'This is not Shark Tank. Think of this as Dolphin Tank. These are very friendly waters.'"
Meghan also shared how she introduced Clevr Blends to her famous neighbour, Oprah Winfrey.
The duchess has invested money in the coffee brand, Clevr Blends, and has endorsed the brand by sending samples to friends such as Oprah Winfrey.Getty"I want this to succeed, but I also want to authentically share it," Meghan said. "I remember calling you and saying, 'I just want to share it with my wonderful neighbour, Miss Oprah Winfrey.' It was a turmeric latte that I loved the most, the Golden Latte."
The impact of Oprah's endorsement was immediate and dramatic for Mendoza's business.
"There's a little count of how many people are on our website. Three people are looking at our website. And then it just started climbing and climbing and climbing," Mendoza recalled.
Within 30 seconds, thousands of visitors flooded the site.
Meghan Markle starring in a coffee promo video for Clevr Blends company
"I see the Instagram tag: 'Oprah tagged you in a post.' I fell off my chair," Mendoza shared, describing the transformative moment for her brand.
Meghan also discussed her own brand, As Ever, which launched successfully in March.
"When I think about big milestones for my own business, As Ever…Netflix coming on as my business partner is huge," she said.
The launch exceeded expectations, with inventory selling out quickly.
