King Charles III is one of the richest people in the world 2:32
London (CNN Business) --
For years, King Charles has been preparing to take on the role of monarch after the historic reign of his mother, Queen Elizabeth.
Meanwhile, he kept another job: he owned a profitable business.
A passionate advocate for environmental causes, Charles founded Duchy Originals in 1990, when he was Prince of Wales, to market produce from his farm.
It has since become the UK's largest organic food and drink brand, according to the company.
In the year to March 2021, Duchy Originals had a profit of almost 3.6 million pounds ($4.1 million) before tax.
Why is King Charles III now one of the richest people in the world?
The brand has had its ups and downs, but has thrived since partnering with Waitrose in 2009. The luxury supermarket chain now has the exclusive right to sell products under the Duchy name, and shoppers can find salmon, sausages, milk, carrots and blueberries under the name "Waitrose Duchy Organic" in their stores.
"It's become a very successful business," says Andrew Bloch, a London-based public relations expert.
"You can feel that this brand has heart and soul behind it."
However, the future is uncertain.
Control of the Duchy Originals brand is up in the air during a period of national mourning that culminates with the Queen's state funeral on Monday the 19th.
"We will contact the Royal House about future deals when the time comes to do so," a Waitrose spokesman said.
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Packets of Prince Charles branded products on the shelves of a Waitrose supermarket in central London.
Credit: Johnny Green/Pool/Reuters
Ownership of Duchy Originals will most likely go to Charles' eldest son, Prince William, who also inherited the separate estate of the Duchy of Cornwall, valued at about 1 billion pounds ($1.2 billion).
And while the prince is educated in organic farming, he is likely to be less involved than his father.
"He will be interested, but he will trust others to direct him," said Sally Bedell Smith, biographer and author of "Charles: The Misunderstood Prince."
A passion project
Carlos spent decades preaching the benefits of organic farming and environmental protection, even before these issues became mainstream causes.
In 1985, he converted Home Farm, near his Highgrove estate in Gloucestershire, to a fully organic system.
The Duchy Originals company emerged five years later.
"Since the early 1980s, when I first had responsibility for managing some land in my own right at Highgrove, I have wanted to focus on an approach to food production that avoids the impact of the prevailing conventional system of industrialized farming, which is becoming increasingly clear is having a disastrous effect on soil fertility, biodiversity, and animal and human health," Carlos told Country Life magazine in 2021.
The first Duchy Originals product was an oatmeal cookie sold in 1992. At first, the brand's items were only found in high-end stores such as Harrods and Fortnum & Mason, although they later expanded to outlets such as Waitrose, which caters to wealthier buyers but has many more locations.
The business was on rough ground early on, Smith wrote in his book.
It fell into too much debt, and Duchy Originals had to find new growers and manufacturers when it got too big to rely solely on Highgrove.
According to Smith, his luck improved later.
He recounted that when Carlos visited the British embassy in Spain in 2004, he burst in with gift-wrapped products, announcing, "I'm a self-made millionaire!"
King Charles got top promotion, but 100 of his workers could lose their jobs
Waitrose intervention
However, a failed expansion attempt in the United States, combined with the onset of the global financial crisis, brought the business to the brink of collapse.
Facing million-dollar losses in 2009, Carlos turned to Waitrose, who threw him a lifeline by agreeing to be the exclusive distributor.
This marked the end of the prince's ambitions to have a large presence in the US market, but the beginning of a solid change in the outlook for the business.
"Waitrose's bailout during the financial crisis in September 2009 was absolutely vital," said Smith.
By 2017, 25 years after the oatmeal cookie debuted, the line had expanded to 300 items, including fruits, vegetables, meat and beer, with annual sales reaching 200 million pounds ($231 million).
More than 30 countries around the world, including the United States, Germany, Japan and Australia, have received exports of select products.
Prince Charles and his wife Camilla visit a Waitrose supermarket in central London in 2009. Credit: Johnny Green/Pool/Reuters
Carlos has access to great personal wealth through his portfolio of land and property, but has never directly benefited from the Duchy Originals business.
All royalties collected from Waitrose have been donated to charitable causes.
In its 2019 annual report, the firm said it had raised more than 30 million pounds ($35 million) since reaching the licensing deal with Waitrose.
"It has provided a very substantial stream of income to his foundation and has helped fund his charitable work as well as promote organic products," Smith said.
However, the company has not been without controversy.
A range of herbal remedies, including the artichoke and dandelion mix "Herbals Detox Tincture", have been accused by an alternative medicine expert of being based on "absolute quackery".
A regulatory agency later said online advertisements for two of the line's herbal medicines were misleading and ordered Duchy Originals to change the wording.
What can the world expect from King Charles III?
William's new adventure?
Changes have taken place in recent years as Charles prepared to ascend the throne.
In 2020, his team said they would not renew the lease on the sprawling Home Farm, but would continue to farm organically on the late queen's Sandringham estate in Norfolk, which she had started managing in 2017.
Observers now believe that William will take the reins of Duchy Originals and its partnership with Waitrose, part of his new responsibilities as Duke of Cornwall.
"I think there will be a tension between his new role as King Charles III and what he can and cannot do," said Bloch, who has also volunteered with Charles's Prince's Trust charity.
"Prince William is likely to take over."
Prince Charles looks at the products during a reception in 2013 to celebrate the anniversary of Duchy Originals.
Credit: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images
In his first address to the nation as king, Charles acknowledged that his responsibilities will change.
"It will no longer be possible for me to devote as much time and energy to charities and issues that I care so deeply about," he said.
"But I know that this important work will continue in the hands of others."
William spent a lot of time on the Highgrove estate growing up and enrolled in a farm management course at the University of Cambridge in 2014. Still, Smith doesn't think he gets that involved in the details of the business.
"I don't imagine that he gets into the details like Carlos did," he said.
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