Prince Harry and Meghan Markle‘s team has seen another departure as their long-serving global press secretary steps down to launch her own venture.
Ashley Hansen has parted ways with her role at the Sussexes’ after a two-year tenure.
This move comes shortly after she praised her time with the couple in an American magazine, despite contrasting reports in other media about Meghan’s alleged tough treatment of staff, earning her the nickname ‘Duchess Difficult’.
Yet, Hansen hasn’t cut ties entirely with the Duke and Duchess. She’s established her own PR firm in Los Angeles, Three Gate Strategies, and is reported to continue offering her services to Harry and Meghan, alongside a roster of clients from various sectors including entertainment, technology, and finance, reports the Mirror.
Meghan expressed her support, stating: “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.”
Hansen reciprocated the sentiment, saying: “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”.
The announcement of Ms Hansen’s departure from her position, although she will continue to represent the couple, follows a public feud between current and former staff members of Harry and Meghan regarding their experiences working for the Sussexes.
Since relocating to the US four years ago, the couple has gained a reputation for having a high staff turnover rate at their Archewell organisation. Harry’s former chief of staff, Josh Kettler, lasted only three months in his role before leaving.
Last month, allegations surfaced in the Hollywood Reporter that Meghan “belittles people”, “doesn’t take advice”, and has the nickname “Duchess Difficult”, prompting other staff members to defend her.
One of them was Ms Hansen, who described her bosses as extremely supportive. In an interview with US Weekly magazine, she shared that after undergoing serious surgery and taking time off work, she received numerous supportive phone calls, care packages, and flowers from Meghan.
Ms Hansen stated: “When I told them, I was met with the kind of concern and care a parent would express if it were their own child.”
She added: “Most profoundly to me, Meghan would personally reach out to my husband daily to make sure that we both were OK and had support. It meant so much to him and even more to me. You don’t realise how much that kind of kindness and thought means until you need it.”
Moreover, some have expressed their bewilderment at the fresh “Duchess Difficult” allegations, with a staff member anonymously sharing with the magazine: “This is the first company I’ve worked [where I] liked every person. Harry and Meghan picked the best of the best from every field and watered the seeds for them to flourish. We have an enormous microscope on us. But good things are happening.”
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