Meghan Markle is opening up about the lasting impact of life in the royal spotlight. Reflecting on her experiences with the British royal family and life as a working royal following her 2018 marriage to Prince Harry, the Duchess of Sussex, 43, revealed in a new interview with The New York Times that being in the royal spotlight “changed everything” about how she “thinks about putting an outfit together.”
“Times where I know there is a global spotlight, and attention will be given to each detail of what I may or may not be wearing, then I support designers that I have really great friendships with, and smaller, up-and-coming brands that haven’t gotten the attention that they should be getting,” Meghan said. “That’s one of the most powerful things that I’m able to do, and that’s simply wearing, like, an earring.”
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The mom of two – she shares son Prince Archie, 5, and daughter Princess Lilibet, 3, with her husband – said she first realized how much of an impact her sense of fashion could have in 2017. During a public appearance with Harry amid their romance and November 2017 engagement, a handbag that she wore from Scottish brand Strathberry sold out within 11 minutes. Meghan said that after she learned of the boost in publicity and sales she caused for the brand, “it “changed everything in terms of how I then looked at putting an outfit together.”
The so-called “Meghan Effect” has been on display ever since, with the royal’s fashion choices in 2018 leading to all items of her Audi Polo Challenge in Ascot, Berkshire selling out. More recently, in September 2023, J Crew’s website crashed after the Duchess wore a white blazer from the brand during the Invictus Games in Germany.
Acknowledging the impact her fashion choices have, Meghan said she now spends “a lot of time just Googling, looking for brands” to invest in and support. She explained that “when people are online looking for things or reading things, I’m trying to find great new designers, especially in different territories.”
She first began investing in brands during the pandemic, in 2020 announcing her investment in Clevr Blends. Her latest investment is in Cesta Collective, which specializes in basket bags that are handwoven by women in Rwanda and finished in Italy. Meghan said she discovered the brand while online shopping, and she first publicly wore one of the bags while she and Harry went on a dinner date with friends Cameron Diaz and her husband, Benji Madden, and Gwyneth Paltrow and her husband, Brad Falchuk, in May 2023.
According to the Times, there are between five and 10 brands in the duchess’ portfolio. Meghan said that “investing in them has helped me line up for this chapter where I’m investing in myself,” adding that she thinks of her venture-capital initiative as a “dolphin tank” rather than “Shark Tank… These are friendly waters.”
