Meghan Markle is the epitome of what it means to be a mega-influencer. The actress-turned-Duchess of Sussex is fiercely relatable, as reflected by her wardrobe. She loves labels like Aquazzura and Givenchy, but she’s also a big fan of accessible brands like J.Crew and Everlane. On occasion, the Suits alum will even peruse the American e-commerce site Etsy for a one-of-a-kind find.
Yes, you read that right. Like you and me, the British royal family member scopes out the best of the best homemade Etsy finds.
In 2019, Lyst — a global fashion search platform — named the former blogger, the world’s most powerful dresser. “Her outfits sparked, on average, a 216% increase in searches for similar pieces,” the company reported.
This statistic’s timing wasn’t exactly a surprise, given that her world influence was (and still is) tremendous. She had recently become a member of the royal family by marrying Prince Harry on May 19, 2018. Net-a-Porter said that sales for her wedding day labels, Givenchy and Stella McCartney, skyrocketed after the royal wedding.
As evidenced by Lyst, Markle’s impact on the fashion industry is not limited to fashion luxuries. “After she wore five different shirt dresses on the Royal Tour of South Africa, searches for the category grew 45 percent over a month,” Lyst reported. “The Club Monaco dress sold out in less than 24 hours, following a 570 percent spike in searches and wearing a J. Crew shirt saw a 102 percent increase in searches for the brand.”
With that said, Markle’s influence — which has been dubbed “The Meghan Markle effect” — can obviously transform a small business overnight. For example, when the mom of Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor stepped out in a $76 dress in July 2020, the frock became number one in clothing sales on Etsy.
The asymmetrical white linen dress from the sustainable fashion brand, MagicLinen, is still available, and the frock has a five-star rating.
Entrepreneur Rob Kalin and partners Chris Maguire and Haim Schoppik humbly launched Etsy in an apartment in Fort Green, Brooklyn, in 2005. Today, the company’s CEO is Josh Silverman. According to FactSet, the company’s full-year 2019 revenues added up to $818 million. The brand’s mission has been and remains “keep commerce human.”
With the influence of people like Markle, that dream can become reality. But are small businesses able to handle such an influx? MagicLinen was seemingly able to fulfill orders, but the team says that it was a challenge. “It honestly took us by complete surprise and our small team had to work extra hard to fulfill all of your orders,” a representative wrote on Instagram. “For those who had to wait a little longer than usual, we want to thank you for your patience and understanding during this busy period.”
This isn’t the only time Markle’s embraced Etsy fashion. In honor of World Mental Health Day, on October 10, 2020, Markle and Prince Harry appeared on the Teenager Therapy podcast. For the event, the former Deal or No Deal briefcase model wore a T-shirt and face mask honoring the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
The pale blue unisex T-shirt is available via the Etsy shop FerrisBuilt for $25. The top features the former Supreme Court Justice’s initials in distressed lettering. Markle’s black protective face mask has RBG’s iconic quote, “When there are nine,” written in white script. It is available for $16 via JustPoshStyle. Both of these styles are now deemed “bestsellers” on their respective Etsy pages.
In addition to Markle’s direct impact on small businesses, brands have harped on the success that comes with creating replicas of the duchess’ fashion. When you type “Meghan Markle” into Etsy’s search bar, you’ll get over a thousand results, including jewelry and fashion inspired by the duchess.
Ever since Markle and Prince Harry announced their plans to step back as “senior” members of the royal family, the couple has been pursuing new endeavors in their new home base of Southern California. In September 2020, they signed a multi-million dollar production deal with Netflix.
Besides her charitable clothing line for Smart Works, launched in September 2019, Markle hasn’t announced any fashion partnerships just yet. Perhaps she should give Etsy a ring.
