FEEL that? There’s a chill in the air, blowing all the way from Montecito.
But this icy blast is coming from the queen of the backhanded compliment, Hollywood A-lister Gwyneth Paltrow.
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Gwyneth Paltrow founded wellness brand Goop, which is reported to be worth almost £200millionCredit: Getty
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She reacted to her rival Meghan’s foray into the wellness industry with a backhanded complimentCredit: AP
The actress, who lives in the same Californian town as fellow lifestyle influencer the Duchess of Sussex, 43, this week weighed in on the comparisons between them.
Gwyneth, 52, reacted to her rival’s foray into the wellness industry, thanks to the Netflix series With Love, Meghan and its tie-in brand As Ever.
She said: “I was raised to see other women as friends, not foes. I think there’s always more than enough to go around.”
The Oscar-winning actress founded wellness brand Goop, which is reported to be worth almost $200million.
She coolly added: “Everybody deserves an attempt at everything that they want to try.”
Generous? Sure. But genuine? I’m not so sure. Let’s not forget that after winning a bitter court battle against Dr Terry Sanderson, who claimed Gwyneth had caused him injuries during a ski collision in 2016, she whispered to him: “I wish you well.”
Feel that chill again?
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Gwyneth Paltrow with director husband Brad Falchuk
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Meghan Markle with hubby Prince HarryCredit: Pixel8000
The true meaning behind her words that day in court has been much discussed.
And now, Gwyneth’s carefully chosen comments about the duchess and her new TV series — which was panned by critics when it was released earlier this month — are up for debate too.
Social media users were quick to point out that Gwyneth was talking to Vanity Fair — the same magazine that tore Meghan and Prince Harry to shreds in January in a waspish report about their business endeavours, of which there have been many, and their home life.
But with Meghan’s As Ever products soon to become available, we look at how she stacks up against lifestyle guru Gwyn . . .
WELLNESS WARRIORS
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Gwyneth is catering to a very wealthy, experimental marketCredit: BackGrid
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Meghan has only just started laying the groundwork for her big business dreams
GWYNETH is the undisputed original wellness guru, having founded Goop in 2008, initially as a newsletter service.
She has since steered it to a fortune of around £190million, by expanding the brand to include pop-up shops, a print magazine, podcast, recipe book, luxury cruise, beauty, clothing, home, decor and food ranges, a meal-delivery service as well as health summits.
She even beat Meghan to her own Netflix documentary series, with The Goop Lab in 2020 and Sex, Love And Goop a year later.
The company has been lambasted for its overpriced, non-scientific advice and products, though.
As well as her sold-out This Smells Like My Orgasm candle, for $75, Goop has promoted a $15,000 gold-plated dildo, $18,000 gold dumbbells, $27 bottle of psychic vampire repellant, and a $755 saucepan.
But the company got into trouble in 2018 when it was forced to pay a $145,000 settlement over unsubstantiated claims including its infamous “vagina eggs” helped to “balance hormones, regulate menstrual cycles, prevent uterine prolapse and increase bladder control”.
Gwyn was forced to make staff cuts last year following poor sales.
But Goop appears to have a loyal fanbase, who love its dedication to “out-there” approaches to health and wellness.
Meghan, on the other hand, has only just started laying the groundwork for her big business dream.
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Gwyneth launched her lifestyle brand, Goop, as a newsletter back in 2008Credit: Netflix
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Netflix series With Love, Meghan and its tie-in brand As Ever marked Meghan’s arrival into the wellness industryCredit: Netflix
So far, we know her brand, As Ever, plans to sell organic honey, shortbread, strawberry spread – jam, to you and I – crepe mix, and edible flowers.
She has also applied to trademark textiles, gardening gear, tableware, cosmetics and pet supplies.
But some of her plans have already been thwarted, as the budget Chinese clothing brand ASEVER has blocked the duchess from selling clothes under the As Ever umbrella.
Comparatively, while Gwyneth embraces her aspirational and, some might say, elitist approach to health and wellness, Meghan cannot seem to pick a lane.
She insists she is just like a working mum, but how many parents really have time to grow their own organic fruit and vegetables, sift salt crystals for guestroom bathtubs, make Pinterest-perfect charcuterie boards and also “find the fun” at breakfast by sprinkling flowers on their kids’ food?
Her “out-of-touch” attitude to domesticity has rattled some viewers, who wish she would just own the fact that she is a multi-millionaire, living a very elevated existence in her Montecito ivory tower.
It seems as long as Meghan lacks self-awareness, she will tarnish her carefully curated brand.
MOMS OF MONTECITO
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Gwyneth was the first to invest in the area in 2016, buying a $5m home to add to her sprawling portfolioCredit: BackGrid
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Meghan made a big splash when she and Harry bought their Montecito mansion for $14.65million in 2020Credit: Google Earth
INSIDE the ultra-wealthy celebrity enclave of Montecito in Santa Barbara, you can find endless juice bars, yoga studios and luxury homeware stores.
With its focus on exclusivity and wellness, it is the perfect base for yummy mummies like Gwyneth and Meg.
Gwyneth was the first to invest in the area in 2016, buying a $5million home with her husband Brad. They spent seven years transforming the property into an “eco-mansion”, which now boasts an Olympic-sized swimming pool.
Meanwhile, Harry and Meghan moved into their $14.65million mansion in 2020 and live their with kids Archie, five, and three-year-old Lilibet. Meghan chose to rent a property nearby for filming of her new TV series to protect their “safe haven”.
But there were snippets of the couple’s house in their 2022 Netflix documentary, in which she is seen tending to her chickens. Vanity Fair points out Gwyneth lives “high in the hills of Montecito, beyond Oprah and Harry and Meghan’s gates”. Ouch!
VANITY FAIR PLAY
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Gwyneth posing for the legendary tome under the headline ‘Gwyneth’s world’Credit: Ned Rogers / Vanity Fair
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The magazine took Meghan and husband Prince Harry to task in a damning expose titled ‘American Hustle’Credit: Vanity Fair
EVERY luvvie worth her Gucci gown wants to be on the cover of fashion bible Vanity Fair.
So, Gwyneth is riding high this month after posing for the famous magazine.
The interviewer waxes lyrical about the star’s impressive acting credits and business acumen, hailing Gwyneth as “our ultimate celebrity influencer and alternative-wellness thought leader, seeding the culture with phenomena”.
The wellness guru poses up a storm in lingerie and a cut-out dress for the cover shoot titled Gwyneth’s World, with the sultry snaps fawned over across the globe.
Sadly for Meghan, she didn’t get such a glowing write-up from the same magazine in January.
Taking the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to task in a damning exposé under the headline American Hustle, Vanity Fair revived allegations about Meg’s bullying and “mean girl” behaviour in the workplace.
It also detailed the couple’s cluelessness as wannabe entrepreneurs and quoted one anonymous neighbour, who described them as “the most entitled, disingenuous people on the planet”.
Harsh, but Vanity Fair.
THEIR RICH & FAMOUS PALS
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Gwyneth dated some of Hollywood’s biggest stars, including Brad PittCredit: Getty – Contributor
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Meghan hasn’t been pictured with Serena Williams for yearsCredit: Getty
MEGHAN may have married a blue-blooded prince, but Gwyneth was born into Hollywood royalty.
Thanks to her actress mum Blythe Danner, and director father Bruce Paltrow, Gwyneth grew up among A-listers and even has legendary director Steven Spielberg for a godfather.
She also went on to date some of Tinseltown’s biggest stars, including Brad Pitt and Ben Affleck.
After marrying Coldplay frontman Chris Martin in 2003 and having two children – Apple and Moses – they famously “consciously uncoupled” in 2014.
She then married TV producer Brad Falchuk in 2018.
When Gwyneth is not busy testing vagina eggs for her Goop website, she is hobnobbing with her A-list besties, including Demi Moore, Robert Downey Jr, Cameron Diaz and Reese Witherspoon.
As for Meghan, it is no secret she has worked hard to widen her network.
Just take her 2018 wedding to Prince Harry, when David and Victoria Beckham, George and Amal Clooney, Oprah Winfrey and Serena Williams rocked up to St George’s Chapel in Windsor.
Since then, though, the Beckhams and the Clooneys have seemingly distanced themselves from the Sussexes.
And Meghan didn’t quite set the small screen alight with the guests she invited on to her new TV series.
With Love, Meghan’s biggest “get” was Mindy Kaling, who she has previously described as an “email pen pal”.
One of Meghan’s biggest plays for celeb endorsement happened last year, when she sent out an exclusive batch of her jams to 50 heavy-hitters, including Mindy, Kris Jenner and Chrissy Teigen.
Despite living so close to one another, it appears Gwyneth wasn’t lucky enough to receive a jar. Or, if she did, she didn’t bother posting about it.
THEY LOVED ACTING UP
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Gwyneth won an Oscar for her role in Shakespeare In LoveCredit: Alamy
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Aside from starring in popular TV show Suits, Meghan has few film credits to her nameCredit: Getty – Contributor
AFTER 30 years in Hollywood, which included winning an Oscar for her role in 1999 film Shakespeare In Love, Gwyneth took a step back from acting in 2019 to concentrate on Goop.
But even as a “retired actor”, she has been in demand.
She is soon to appear in sports comedy-drama Marty Supreme, where she gets hot and heavy with her much-younger co-star Timothee Chalamet.
As for Meghan, she never quite hit the big league before meeting her prince. Even though she had a role on popular TV show Suits, she has few film credits to her name besides playing “Hot Girl” in 2005’s A Lot Like Love and narrating Disney documentary Elephant in 2020.
According to insiders, Harry and Meghan hoped the latter would land her more gigs with the production company, but it appears to be a bumpy road to happy ever after.
