Meghan Markles clothing collection with M&S and John Lewis goes on sale
Meghan Markle has today unveiled her Smart Set capsule collection of workwear for women.
The Duchess of Sussex arrived at the John Lewis department store in Londons Oxford Street to formally launch her charity clothing collection in aid of Smart Works – for which she is patron.
Meghan said the wardrobe – made up of five items – was a special project and deeply important to her.
The high street range of four pieces of clothing and one accessory, created by Jigsaw, John Lewis & Partners, Marks & Spencer and her designer friend Misha Nonoo, are now available to buy in shops for the next two weeks.
Sizes range from six to 24 and for every item bought, the retailer will donate one item to Smart Works.
Meghan posted pictures from an earlier photoshoot to Instagram today, where she said: Since moving to the UK, it has been deeply important to me to meet with communities and organisations on the ground doing meaningful work and to try to do whatever I can to help them amplify their impact.
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It was just last September that we launched the Together cookbook with the women of the Hubb Kitchen in Grenfell.
Today, a year later, I am excited to celebrate the launch of another initiative of women supporting women, and communities working together for the greater good.
Thank you to the four brands who came together in supporting Smart Works on this special project – placing purpose over profit and community over competition.
In convening several companies rather than one, weve demonstrated how we can work collectively to empower each other – another layer to this communal success story, that I am so proud to be a part of.
Smart Works provides training and interview clothes to women and Meghans collection includes work wear essentials from a blazer and suit trousers, to a tote bag.
By launching the collection in London today, the duchess is carrying out her first official public engagement since the birth of her son Archie on 6 May.
During her unscripted speech at John Lewis, Meghan said: Community is going through your closet and saying, “This is the blazer I wore when I nailed my first job interview and got my dream job, and I dont need that any more because Im where I want to be”.
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But if Im able to share that blazer and be part of another womans success story – then thats community.
She added that when she began thinking about who could help Smart Works create its collection, she wanted to pick traditional and quintessential British brands that would resonate with Smart Works clients and so chose John Lewis and M&S, and was drawn to Jigsaw because of an advertising campaign it launched that celebrated Britains diversity.
Meghan also said she looked forward to future projects with her husband, Prince Harry, as part of their new foundation, saying: This is the kind of work Ive been doing for a really long time and to be able to do it here in my new home of the UK means quite a bit to me.
Its also the same vein of work my husband and I will continue doing – really strong community-based projects, and this is something we will be excited to share more about next year when we launch our foundation Sussex Royal in 2020.
Meghan's clothing collection
The crepe dress: £19.50
The Smart Set Crepe Shift Dress, which costs £19.50 from Marks & Spencer, is available in vibrant blue and classic black, and in regular and petite sizes.
Described as a staple in your autumn wardrobe and a perfect choice all year round too, the dress is cut from crepe that handily doesnt require ironing, the shift shape flatters your figure with its clean and simple lines.
