Jessica Alba made a fundamentally different bet than Meghan Markle: she bet on *recurring revenue* rather than one-time paydays. The Honest Company operates on the subscription and repeat-purchase model that generates compounding wealth—diapers, wipes, and cleaning products get reordered monthly by millions of parents. Meghan, meanwhile, locked in a $100M Netflix deal (substantial, but front-loaded) and launched American Riviera Orchard as a lifestyle brand. Netflix deals depreciate in value as content ages; consumer packaged goods appreciate as they scale. Alba's stake in Honest likely grew as the company matured, whereas Meghan's wealth is more dependent on maintaining deal momentum and brand partnerships.

The timing of their wealth-building also matters enormously. Alba spent the 2000s-2010s building Honest Company while still acting, which meant she was diversifying during her peak earning years—her Hollywood salary subsidized the venture capital phase. Meghan's entrepreneurial sprint happened post-Megxit (2020 onward), starting from a position of already-substantial wealth but with compressed timeline and higher expectations. She had to move faster and bigger, which is why the Netflix deal was so aggressive, but also why it doesn't compound like Alba's equity stake.

Finally, there's the difference between *holding equity* versus *earning fees*. Alba owns a meaningful piece of Honest Company and benefits from every uptick in valuation; that's wealth multiplication. Meghan is primarily earning through service deals (Netflix), brand licensing, and product sales—all valuable, but structurally more vulnerable to market shifts and brand fatigue. If Honest Company goes public or gets acquired, Alba's $340M could spike further. Meghan's $60M, by contrast, is closer to a career earnings total than an appreciating asset base.