As a working royal, the Duchess of Sussex was known for her love of expensive designer brands like Givenchy, Dior, and Oscar de la Renta.
But this week, with what some would say is a certain level of self-importance, he revealed that he uses brands he wants to put in the global spotlight to boost his sales.
“I support designers that I have very good friendships with and smaller, emerging brands that haven’t gotten the attention they should have,” she told the New York Times.
When Meghan, 43, became a member of The Firm in 2016, there’s no doubt she boosted the fashion industry – but the Princess of Wales, 42, had been spotlighting British brands long before her.
Market analyst Mintel estimated that the “Kate Effect” was responsible for a £1bn increase in public spending in the year after her wedding.
So which of the two women – the classic working royal or the California actress turned humanitarian – has had the bigger impact on the fashion industry?
Strathberry’s £17m turnover can no doubt be attributed to Meghan, who carried the Scottish brand’s £495 tricolour midi handbag on her first walk with Prince Harry in 2007.
The brands Meghan has promoted
Strawberry
Strathberry’s £17m turnover can undoubtedly be attributed to Meghan, who carried the Scottish brand’s £495 Tricolour Midi Tote bag on her debut outing with Prince Harry in Nottingham in 2017. The bag sold out within 24 hours and changed the lives of husband and wife team Guy and Leeanne Hundleby overnight, catapulting the fledgling label into the big leagues.
The Kate effect was equally potent: the £295 Multrees chain wallet also sold out within hours when she stepped off a train in Cardiff with one in her possession in December 2020.
Leeanne Hundleby says diplomatically: ‘Any Royals purchase generates interest in the brand and an increase in traffic to the site.’
Winner: Meghan
The £295 Multrees chain wallet also sold out within hours when Kate stepped off a train in Cardiff in 2020.
Aguazurra
In June 2016, Meghan posted a photograph on her now-defunct lifestyle blog The Tig of 39 pairs of her shoes, neatly arranged side by side and worth an estimated £20,000.
Six of them were Aquazurra, designed by Colombian Edgardo Osorio, who said at the time: ‘She likes strappy shoes, sophisticated, sexy, which is very much our style. Her look tends to be elegant, simple and classy, and she always accentuates it with a beautiful pair of shoes.’
So it was only natural that she wore her £420 Matilde cross-body heels when she announced her engagement to Harry on November 27, 2017.
She has since inspired a generation of royal women to wear the brand, including Kate, who wore Aquazzura’s £645 105 suede bow shoes to the National Portrait Gallery in 2023, as well as Beatrice, Eugenie and Zara.
Winner: Meghan
Meghan wore the £420 Aquazurra Matilde cross-over stilettos when she announced her engagement to Harry on 27 November 2017
Kate wore the £645 Aquazzura 105 suede bow heels to the National Portrait Gallery in 2023
See
It was Meghan who discovered the company Veja, created by Frenchmen Sébastien Kopp and François-Ghislain Mori-llion, who created the world’s first eco-friendly trainers. Meghan wore their £120 white design, with a black V logo, at the 2018 Invictus Games, while Kate wore the same trainer, with a gold V, on a tour of London in 2022.
Winner: Meghan
Meghan wearing the £120 white Veja design, with a black V logo, at the Invictus Games in 2018
Kate sporting the same sneaker, with a gold V, while strolling around London in 2022
And how Kate has transformed the fortunes of these British designers
Emilia Wickstead
Kate definitely set a trend when she wore a £1,150 green Emilia Wickstead coat dress to the St Patrick’s Day parade in 2012.
She is a favourite of the princess and has a wardrobe full of Wickstead designs. Other royals have followed in her footsteps, including the Duchess of Edinburgh, Princess Beatrice and Meghan, who wore a custom green dress (a mix of several styles by the designer) at her last official royal engagement at Westminster Abbey in March 2020.
Winner: Kate
Kate definitely set a trend when she wore a £1,150 green Emilia Wickstead dress to the St Patrick’s Day parade in 2012.
Meghan wore this custom green dress (a mix of several styles from the designer) to her last official royal engagement at Westminster Abbey in March 2020.
Self-portrait
Malaysian designer Han Chong’s Self-Portrait brand has become a favourite of the Royal Family, but it was Kate who discovered it first, wearing her £320 white lace dress to the premiere of A Street Cat Named Bob on 3 November 2016. That year, Selfridges sold one Self-Portrait item every six minutes and the brand has continued to grow.
Chong found out the princess had worn her dress when someone posted a blurry photo of her on Instagram. “I couldn’t sleep that night,” he said. “I was too excited. I had always imagined her wearing Self-Portrait, but I never thought it would happen.” Meghan followed suit, wearing her £300 green floral midi dress to the Invictus Games reception in 2018.
Winner: Kate
Kate first discovered Han Chong’s Self-Portrait brand when she wore their £320 white lace dress to the premiere of A Street Cat Named Bob on November 3, 2016.
Meghan wore her £300 green floral midi dress to the Invictus Games reception in 2018.
Reiss
When Kate wore a £159 cream Nanette dress by Reiss to her official engagement photograph, the brand’s website crashed and was down for two hours. The luxury high street brand re-released the dress, but it sold out again.
Ever the thrifty type, she is seen wearing it again in Canada in 2011. Several years later, the £185 black and white Reiss Azzura dress Meghan wore on International Women’s Day in 2019 didn’t cause the same stir.
Winner: Kate
Kate wore a £159 cream Nanette dress by Reiss in her official engagement photograph, sending the brand’s website into meltdown.
Meghan’s £185 black and white Reiss Azzura dress on International Women’s Day in 2019 didn’t cause the same stir.
Monica Vinader
Monica Vinader’s bohemian jewellery is a real eye-catcher for actresses, but when Kate wore her £745 Riva collection earrings and £2,000 necklace to a gala at the Natural History Museum on 21 October 2014, the designer hit the jackpot. They sold out in no time in the US.
“I was on holiday in Florence, sitting outside a café,” she said at the time. “The friend I was with suddenly looked at a man who was reading a newspaper and said, ‘Isn’t that the Duchess of Cambridge wearing your earrings on the front page?’
“It was a very surreal moment. I was emotional.”
It wasn’t until 2020 that Meghan first wore her £125 Linear Friends bracelet in public. By then, the brand was already well-established.
Winner: Kate
