It’s no secret that the royal family has a ripple effect in the fashion world is nothing new, as we all know that Princess Diana inspired countless copycats as women tried to emulate her style back in the day. Fast-forward a few decades, and the Royal Family continues to heighten the profile of designers and generate countless dollars for brands. This is thanks largely to what has been termed the “Kate Effect” and the “Markle Sparkle.” Naturally, the online marketplace makes getting our hands on royal looks easier than ever for those of us without a royal title attached to our names.
Here are 11 times that fashion brands made serious cash thanks to the royal family.
Mackage
Homegrown success story Mackage, became even more of a coveted outerwear brand when Meghan wore a coat by the company during a trip to Northern Ireland. According to Business of Fashion, this resulted in media impressions worth a cool $20 million.
Clarins
It isn’t just fashion brands that reap the benefits of being royal choices. When Kate was snapped this year at Wimbledon holding Clarins’ Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector – an affordable item to the masses – sales of the product jumped by 500 per cent on Amazon.
Mother Denim
Breaking all the royal rules, Meghan rocked a pair of ripped jeans by denim brand Mother to her anticipated first public appearance at The Invictus Games in Toronto with her now-husband Prince Harry back in 2017. The Mother “Looker” ankle fray jeans sold out everywhere almost immediately.
Birks
Meghan is a longtime fan of Montreal-born jewellery brand Birks. She’s worn the brand during countless appearances solo, with Harry, during her engagement announcement, and at a Christmas lunch with the Queen. After being photographed on Markle, traffic to the Birks website increased 400 per cent.
Aden & anais
Prince George became a trendsetter when he was just days old. The world caught a well documented glimpse of the newborn royal wrapped up in a bird-printed swaddle blanket by Brooklyn-based aden & anais as he left the hospital with his royal parents. According to ABC News, immediately after George’s big debut, over 10,000 orders were placed.
Outland Denim
Another go-to denim brand of Meghan’s is do-good company Outland Denim, which is touted as the most humanitarian denim company thanks to the fact that it employs former victims of human trafficking. When Meghan wore the brand’s Harriet black skinny jeans during an Australian tour, they became the most coveted pair of jeans in the world, selling out immediately.
Sentaler
Back in 2016, Kate wore luxury coat brand’s Sentaler Signature Wrap Coat with Ribbed Sleeves in Gull Grey while on a royal tour of Canada. The coat sold out almost immediately, and is known as the “Kate Coat” to this day. Meanwhile, Meghan had become a fan of the brand while living in Toronto, and did her part to drum up sales after she appeared in the Royal Baby Alpaca Wrap in grey.
Reiss
When Kate met the Obamas back in 2011, all eyes were on her perfect-fitting camel-coloured Reiss dress. According to the Telegraph, in the wake of its appearance on Kate, the dress sold out at a rate of one per minute, with the design selling on ebay for over five times its retail value.
Strathberry
Meghan has also played a role in popularizing luxury handbag brand Strathberry, having accessorized with the brands bags on three separate occasions, including on her first royal engagement in November 2017. According to Glamour, sales increased by more than 200 per cent immediately after the first photograph was published.
Line
The chic white Line coat worn by Meghan at her and Prince Harry’s engagement announcement became just as famous as the couple for its 10 minutes of fame. Shortly after the appearance, the coat was such a coveted item that it caused the Canadian company’s website to crash.
Marks & Spencer
Even the simplest of fashion items become the most coveted when worn by the Royal Family. A basic black Marks & Spencer knit sweater worn by Markle during a trip to Brixton in January 2018 sold out twice after being seen and snapped on the then soon-to-be royal.