ROYALSMeghan Markle Is Making A *Pretty Penny* From Event Appearances — Find Out How Much
Oct. 1 2020, Published 7:20 p.m. ET
Every minute counts for Meghan Markle! The Duchess of Sussex is said to have made more than half a million dollars for her 15-minute appearance at the Fortune's Most Powerful Women Zoom chat.
According to PR expert Mark Borkowski, Markle, 39, may have earned $42,000 for her time.
Speaking to Fabulous Digital, the PR expert said: "There is curiosity in anything she does and has to say, her earning potential is very high. I would say she would get anywhere in the region of $321,725 to $643,450 for doing something like that."
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Borkowski also said that the money she made might not have been shared with other participants in the chat, adding that it acts as "payback" for the Sussexes and is a "giant networking opportunity."
The PR professional continued: "Harry & Meghan still need high levels of publicity, both for their brand but more importantly to send a signal to the British royal family — they ain't going nowhere."
"There's a certain amount of gamesmanship going on, I think their ego wants to say 'look who we are, we're not the 3rd or 4th choice in the royal pecking order. We're still more than relevant,'" he added. "They had to stand in line to William and Kate, Prince Charles and the Queen and this shows their potency to the royal family — this is their little bit of payback."
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Borkowski noted that even though Markle is cashing in right now, she needs to be aware of how many events she commits to. "The more you do, the less your value," he said. "You've got to strike the balance, you've got to develop traction and media and at the same time you have to keep your value high. They are absolutely in the perfect place for them to do this — Brexit Britain is a backwater and Meghan is a high watt bulb."
During the event, the former actress dialed in from her new Santa Barbra mansion, which she and husband Harry purchased last month. The brunette beauty insisted that she is not a "controversial" person and said "what ends up being inflammatory is people's interpretation."
Markle and Harry are eager to make more money outside their multi-million Netflix deal by speaking at public events.
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In other recent news, Markle lost her court battle against Mail on Sunday, as a court ruled that the publication could use the tell-all book Finding Freedom in its defense.
She had sued the U.K.'s Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL) for breaching privacy and copyright infringement after the publication printed a 2018 letter from Markle's estranged father, Thomas Markle Sr.
