In January 2019, during the Duchess of Sussex’s first pregnancy, she made a visit to her patronage, Smart Works. It was a great event for her – she met some of the women being helped by Smart Works and she helped style them for their job interviews. I think she sat in on some interview prep sessions, and she looked through the available clothes and accessories. Maybe that was when she came up with the idea for the Smart Works capsule collection, one of her wildly successful initiatives while she was being held hostage in the UK.
As you can see, Meghan was dressed in a simple black dress and trench coat. We heard, at the time, that her earrings were from Kimai, and they were a pair of artificial diamonds. What we didn’t know until now is the backstory of how Meghan came to wear those earrings. The story was told by the Belgian jewelry designers on the UK show Dragon’s Den, which is the UK’s version of Shark Tank. Small business owners go in and “pitch” for investment, and that’s when the Meghan story was revealed:
Meghan Markle accepted £1990 worth of diamond earrings from a female-founded jewellery business, the owners have revealed. The Duchess of Sussex, 42, was sent the jewellery by artificial diamond brand Kimai when she was still a working member of the Royal Family in 2019. The mother-of-two wore the brand’s Felicity earrings, which are sold separately for £995, when she visited the charity Smart Works’ headquarters in London.
It comes after Prince Harry revealed in his memoir that his wife would keep freebies sent to her at Kensington Palace and distribute them among her staff – despite the Royal Family usually sending back unsolicited gifts.
Earlier this month, Kimai’s founders Sidney Neuhaus and Jessica Warch appeared on Dragons’ Den where they boasted about the Duchess of Sussex wearing their designs. The founders – who were looking for a £250,000 investment for a three per cent equity stake in their business – revealed how the royal endorsement boosted their business, just a two months after they first launched.
They explained: ‘We’ve launched without investment, and then two months after our launch we got Meghan Markle to wear our pieces, which enabled us to grow the revenue significantly, and from there we raised $1.2 million.’
Steven Bartlett – who ended up investing in the business – questioned the duo on how they managed to get the Duchess of Sussex sporting their jewellery.
Sidney said: ‘Cold emails.’ Jessica then added: ‘We’re big believers in cold emails!’
Despite also peaking the interest of dragons Deborah Meade, Sara Davies and Peter Jones, the pair ended up choosing Steven. The entrepreneur said he was convinced to make an offer after seeing that Meghan Markle had worn their designs.
‘The moment you told be about hounding down Meghan Markle, you had me,’ he said.
As you can see, the British papers are picking this up and running it as a negative, like HOW DARE Meghan accept freebies, blah blah blah. Kate accepts freebies too, it’s just that the British media doesn’t climb up her ass when she does it. Instead of talking about the bloody freebies, talk about how Meghan received a cold email about lab-grown diamonds and she gave such a huge boost to female entrepreneurs!! She gave them millions in free advertising just by wearing their earrings once.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.
Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, is welcomed by Kate Stephens, Smart Works’ CEO, as she visits Smart Works charity in West London, Britain, January 10, 2019.,Image: 535048343, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: NO UK USE FOR SEVEN DAYS – Fee Payable Upon Reproduction – For queries contact Avalon.red – sales@avalon.red London: +44 (0) 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles: +1 (310) 822 0419 Berlin: +49 (0) 30 76 212 251 Madrid: +34 91 533 4289, *** NO UK USE FOR 48 HRS ***, Model Release: no, Credit line: – / Avalon 
Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, chats with Patsy Wardally as they pick out clothes, during her visit at Smart Works charity in West London, Britain, January 10, 2019.,Image: 535048552, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: NO UK USE FOR SEVEN DAYS – Fee Payable Upon Reproduction – For queries contact Avalon.red – sales@avalon.red London: +44 (0) 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles: +1 (310) 822 0419 Berlin: +49 (0) 30 76 212 251 Madrid: +34 91 533 4289, *** NO UK USE FOR 48 HRS ***, Model Release: no, Credit line: – / Avalon 
Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, is pictured during her visit at Smart Works charity in West London, Britain, January 10, 2019.,Image: 535048558, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: NO UK USE FOR SEVEN DAYS – Fee Payable Upon Reproduction – For queries contact Avalon.red – sales@avalon.red London: +44 (0) 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles: +1 (310) 822 0419 Berlin: +49 (0) 30 76 212 251 Madrid: +34 91 533 4289, *** NO UK USE FOR 48 HRS ***, Model Release: no, Credit line: – / Avalon
USA Rights Only – London, UK -20190110-Meghan Duchess of Sussex during her visit to Smart Works, in London, on the day that she has become their patron, as well as patron of the National Theatre, the Association of Commonwealth Universities, and the animal welfare charity, Mayhew. -PICTURED: Meghan Duchess of Sussex -PHOTO by: PA Images/INSTARimages.com -40549265.jpg This is an editorial, rights-managed image. Please contact Instar Images LLC for licensing fee and rights information at sales@instarimages.com or call +1 212 414 0207 This image may not be published in any way that is, or might be deemed to be, defamatory, libelous, pornographic, or obscene. Please consult our sales department for any clarification needed prior to publication and use. Instar Images LLC reserves the right to pursue unauthorized users of this material. If you are in violation of our intellectual property rights or copyright you may be liable for damages, loss of income, any profits you derive from the unauthorized use of this material and, where appropriate, the cost of collection and/or any statutory damages awarded Featuring: Meghan Duchess of Sussex Where: London, England, United Kingdom When: 10 Jan 2019 Credit: PA Images/INSTARimages.com **USA Rights Only** 
Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, smiles during her visit at Smart Works charity in West London, Britain, January 10, 2019. 
Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, chats with Patsy Wardally, during her visit at Smart Works charity in West London, Britain, January 10, 2019.
Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, smiles during her visit at Smart Works charity in West London, Britain, January 10, 2019. 
Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, smiles during her visit at Smart Works charity in West London, Britain, January 10, 2019. 
Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, is welcomed by Lady Juliet Hughes-Hallett, chair of Smart Works, and Kate Stephens, Smart Works’ CEO, as she visits Smart Works charity in West London, Britain, January 10, 2019.ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7pLHLnpmirJOdxm%2BvzqZmcW1lZ4R5e8OumqGdo6isrrHGoZinl6ekv6arwJinmqGilLynq8aina2dlJS5oq6MoKmor56UsaqtzKilnZeVlr%2Bztc2gqpihnpR%2FcX2YaA%3D%3D