The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have released a snapshot of Princess Charlotte on her second birthday. The photo is, once again, by her mother; the effect is that of a Facebook post. Look, they’re a normal family! They swear!
The Guardian notes that the release of this photograph was accompanied by a statement from Kensington Palace:
The Duke and Duchess are very pleased to share this photograph as they celebrate Princess Charlotte’s second birthday. Their royal highnesses would like to thank everyone for all of the lovely messages they have received and hope that everyone enjoys this photograph of Princess Charlotte as much as they do.
What pomp and circumstance? Just a mum and a dad and a couple of kiddos, romping about the countryside. Don’t get them started on their trials with the contractors for their big move in the fall for Will’s new job. Say, you’re bringing store-bought biscuits to playgroup next week, too, right? Thank God! Who has the time?
Except, of course, that when they post these kinds of photos, it has an immediate effect on the bottom line of any clothing company in the frame. The Telegraph says:
It’s estimated that Princess Charlotte’s influence will generate $3.2 billion for the UK economy during her lifetime and, at two, she already causes the same sell-out effect for fashion brands as her mother does whenever she debuts a new outfit.
“We were thrilled when Princess Charlotte was photographed wearing our Rose Stitch Cardigan in her official first birthday pictures,” says Emma Davison, co-founder of Olivier Baby & Kids, who experienced the ‘Princess Charlotte effect’ first hand last year. “As a young British brand we were honoured that the Duchess of Cambridge chose to dress her daughter in our clothes, she has such fabulous style it is a huge compliment.”
A year ago, after her first birthday, a rep for the company Early Days told Hello!: “Our factory capacity has been fully booked since Prince George wore our shoes early in 2014 and now the Princess is wearing our shoes, this trend looks set to continue,” adding that, “They have both had a huge impact on our sales—since Prince George wore our shoes we have seen our sales grow by over 40 per cent—and we are currently trying to increase our output to cope with the extra demand.”
That sweater has sold out, but the Telegraph notes there’s still a pink knit sweater dress along the same lines available, marked down to £10.