Meghan Markle tried to sell Valentine’s sweetness with red balloons and jam. The internet, as ever, chose horror.
On Wednesday, February 4, the Duchess of Sussex posted a photograph on the As Ever Instagram account to promote a “Limited Edition Sweetheart Bundle.” In the image, Meghan Markle is holding a cluster of bright red balloons tied to a jar of jam, dressed in a black gown with red flats; her face is obscured, which might have been intended as chic minimalism—or at least a way to keep the focus on the product.
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Instead, the balloons became the story. In the slightly deranged logic of social media, red balloons don’t mean romance; they mean Pennywise. And once that association clicks, it’s very hard to unsee.
The post’s caption was straightforward marketing copy: “A sweet surprise! Shop the Limited Edition Sweetheart Bundle featuring our Signature As ever x @compartes Chocolate Collection paired with our Raspberry and Strawberry Spreads in Keepsake Packaging — just in time for Valentine’s Day. A gift for yourself, or the one you love.”
But within hours, critics were circulating side-by-side images of Meghan Markle’s balloons next to Pennywise, the killer clown from It—a character from Stephen King’s novel and its film adaptations, memorably associated with floating red balloons.
The comments, as quoted in the Express report, were the kind that travel because they’re nasty and simple. One user asked, “What is Meghan trying to tell us?” while another replied, “OK. She actually looks like Pennywise without makeup.” Others went for the blunt-force approach: “Meghan is more terrifying than the clown,” and “Scary!”
#MeghanMarkle is REALLY hyping this $185 bundle for Valentines Day. What an awkward picture-balloons tied to jam? It looks heavy as hell but hiding her face behind the balloons is not a bad idea.I feel like it’s a ripoff of something, I can’t put my finger on it.… pic.twitter.com/GRZPMsiin6
— Princess CarParkle 👑 (@unreMARKLEble) February 5, 2026
It’s tempting to dismiss this as the usual Sussex pile-on—an online hobby for people who treat every Meghan Markle post as a grievance memo. But what makes this moment revealing is how quickly the internet turns branding into a referendum on a woman’s existence. A balloon isn’t a balloon; it’s a Rorschach test, and plenty of viewers arrive already primed to see menace.
And yes, there were kinder responses too. One Instagram user called the image “Simple Elegance,” suggesting the intended mood wasn’t lost on everyone. Still, it’s the Pennywise edit that goes viral because cruelty is more “shareable” than admiration—and because ridicule offers community with zero effort.
The wider context is that As Ever is not a one-off whim. This is the brand’s third consecutive Valentine’s Day launch, following earlier drops including jars, limited-edition chocolates, and a Valentine’s “Edit” bundle. In other words, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s post-royal era isn’t just philanthropy and documentary work; it’s product, packaging, and a tight calendar of seasonal releases.
The chocolate collaboration itself is real and widely covered outside the tabloid ecosystem. People magazine reported that As Ever’s Valentine’s line includes a partnership with Los Angeles chocolatier Compartés, anchored by a “Signature Chocolate Collection” that retails for $62 and incorporates As Ever spreads into handcrafted bars.
Always waving to her invisible friends 🤣#MeghanMarkle #MeghanMarkleIsAConArtist #MeghanIsTheProblem #MeghanMarkleExposed pic.twitter.com/VjPW6iSf11
— Think Beautiful (@ThinkBeautiful_) October 29, 2025
Whatever you think of the aesthetics, it’s not amateur hour in terms of strategy: high-margin gifting, limited-edition scarcity, and the familiar lifestyle-brand pitch of indulgence as self-care.
Which is why the Pennywise mockery stings, at least reputationally. It takes an aspirational image—dark dress, red accents, a “sweet surprise”—and flips it into a meme that suggests creepiness rather than charm. That’s the tightrope for any celebrity commerce: you’re not merely selling jam or chocolate; you’re selling taste, mood, and trust. And the internet’s favorite sport is proving you don’t deserve any of it.
If Meghan Markle’s goal was to keep attention on a Valentine’s bundle, she certainly achieved that. The problem is the sort of attention she got—because red balloons, once they belong to Pennywise, don’t easily return to the gift shop.
