|
ralf103
|
Well we know the RF do sometimes live by "never complain, never explain". I can't see the late Queen funding huge royal wardrobes personally (nor Charles) so I wonder if they discreetly borrow bags which are then returned afterwards. I mean it is a no brainer for the companies - lend a bag and if it gets damaged you know the RF could afford to buy it anyway and there is good PR for the company along the way. The Royal may decide they like it so much any buy it themselves anyway, so win win. I remember reading a piece in Vogue once that stated royal ladies do borrow items hat are then returned - I would have thought Vogue would know.
I wonder how much if at all the RF actually get for clothing, I mean I can't see them getting anything from the sovereign grant so it must come from the royal duchies which is effectively private income for the sovereign and heir. I can imagine anything to reduce he bill - apart from accepting freebies - would be permitted. I guess really, whilst it may seem they spend a lot on clohes to us if your income is XXX times bigger in the first place proportionally it isn't that much.
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Miss Marple
|
They would not admit that, because it is a grey zone, while it is not a gift, it is still commercial. I know that many actress going to the Oscars have lots and lots of offers of free dresses. It is done very subtle ...
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
periwinkle
|
But working members of the royal family are essentially government employees and as such gifts are generally verboten. It's the same from local officials to national officials you cannot be seen as taking a gift because of conflict of interest policies and favoritism issues. I would assume this extends to the royals even if people gift them things all the time. They essentially have to put it in a closet or donate it depending on what it is.
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
ralf103
|
But is it a gift if its a loan of something to wear which is either returned or then purchased? The guidelines don’t discuss that scenario from what I can see… and equally the companies willing to do so would probably be known to the royal. We know unsolicited gifts are returned but if Sophie wanted to borrow a gown from Suzannah, a fashion brand she has used repeatedly, its not unsolicited and isn’t putting pressure on her, she already wears their clothes.
Who knows, its a closely guarded secret either way.
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Aubiette
|
SHREWTON centre providing outdoor activities to young people and adults has received Royal approval after a visit from Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh. Her Royal Highness toured the Gul Outdoor Therapy’s Riverside site and met young people and adults who benefit from the charity’s work, which includes hosting a range of outdoor activities. https://salisburyandavon....-visits-shrewton-charity/  Second engagement HRH today visited Stable and Wick Bakery and Farm Shop, at Wick Farm, in Salisbury.    |
|
|
|
« Last Edit: September 14, 2023, 04:40:46 PM by Aubiette »
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
|
bumbershoot
Warned
|
Sophie does pull it off well, but I have to wonder if these endless engagements that involve plaque unveiling etc. ever get old. I wonder what she'd do for fun if she didn't have to duchess all the time?
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
|
Paulina
Warned
|
The python print on that dress made my physically shudder.  Her smile and general who she is does not. |
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
The problem with incompetent, corrupt, fascist government is incompetence, corruption and fascism, not government (Jerome à Paris - paraphrased)
|
|
|
|
|
|
Molly2101
|
Apparently this is her 75th Sophie Hapsburg bag. I don’t know that I’ve owned 75 bags (purses over here across the pond) in my life, much less 75 of one brand to go along with a million other bags by other brands. I think I have a personal pet peeve in general about bags/clutches. Kates bags/clutches annoy me too so I’m not just picking on Sophie, but this is nuts.  don’t see the need to have so many hand bags. Surely there cannot be enough occasions to use all of them! I do think some of them are rented for advertising purposes but some we have definitely seen repeatedly used. I can just imagine Edward’s face when she brings another bag home! There must be a room in Bagshot Park solely dedicated to her hats and bags. Any wonder Edward doesn’t buy new clothes; there wouldn’t be anywhere for him to put them. |
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
"All my heart is yours, sir: it belongs to you; and with you it would remain, were fate to exile the rest of me from your presence forever." Jane Eyre, Charlotte Bronte.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Lord G¡n
|
I understand her." Not another bag !?"  |
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
|
fairy
Most Exalted Member
Reputation: 5084
 Offline
Posts: 21439
|
I quite wonder if royals do get extremely well discounts. Like buy one dress and get two more (esp, same design diff. colour or long sleeves vs short). Or they only pay some bottom price. (I just bought a leather weekender from a well-known luxury car brand that sells for around 500Euros - and that the company gives as freebies to customers who have just ordered a 500.000 car model in a specific tint to match their wives's lipstick - and I paid 20 Euros! Once the costs are ticked off, a lot of merchandise isn't worth anything)
So they might give Sophie those bags for virtually nothing, but as loan? The company can't take them back, what are they supposed to do with the merch, once it was used? They certainly do not want it on a "private marketplace" or ebay.
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Lady Liebe
|
I quite wonder if royals do get extremely well discounts. Like buy one dress and get two more (esp, same design diff. colour or long sleeves vs short). Or they only pay some bottom price. (I just bought a leather weekender from a well-known luxury car brand that sells for around 500Euros - and that the company gives as freebies to customers who have just ordered a 500.000 car model in a specific tint to match their wives's lipstick - and I paid 20 Euros! Once the costs are ticked off, a lot of merchandise isn't worth anything)
So they might give Sophie those bags for virtually nothing, but as loan? The company can't take them back, what are they supposed to do with the merch, once it was used? They certainly do not want it on a "private marketplace" or ebay.
I could see it being done like this. That way the royals still technically pay something - it's not a freebie and it's not a loan. The label/brand/company gets free advertising when the article is worn/used for engagements, even when it's a rewear. |
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
It doesn't matter how old you get, buying snacks for a road trip should always look like an unsupervised 9-year-old was given $100.
Anonymous
|
|
|
|
|
bumbershoot
Warned
|
I would really like to see a serious newspaper or magazine do an in-depth report on the royals -- not just the BRF -- and how they acquire their clothing and how their duds are financed. I'm sure it's all over the map, but I'd be interested to know. NOT the Daily Fail, however.
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
