Forget the romance, for many in the fashion industry, Kate Middleton’s fairy tale is a financial one. During her transition from “Waity Katie” to blushing bride, the soon-to-be-royal’s impact on sales and what we wear has intensified. This will culminate with the revelation of the Dress, complete with intense press coverage and soaring sales for its still-secret creator. But is hers a sustainable commercial influence, à la Michelle Obama, whose every sartorial move is still breathlessly chronicled by no fewer than 10 blogs, or will it fade with time? For British designers, to whom Middleton is bound by national loyalty, the answer is crucial.
對時尚產業中的很多人來說，凱特•米德爾頓(Kate Middleton)的童話故事與浪漫毫無關係，卻充滿金融色彩。在從「待嫁的凱蒂」(Waity Katie)向嬌羞新娘的轉變期間，即將嫁入皇室這一訊息對時裝銷售和人們的穿著帶來的影響不斷強化。隨著婚紗的公佈，這種影響將達到頂峯，並伴隨鋪天蓋地的媒體報導和仍密不外宣的婚紗設計師的銷售額飆升而結束。但是，凱特的穿著會產生長期持續的商業影響，從而使其成爲第二個蜜雪兒•歐巴馬(Michelle Obama)嗎？——歐巴馬夫人每一次的著裝行爲目前仍有不少於10個部落格在不停地跟蹤關注。抑或她的影響力將隨時間而被人們淡忘？對於米德爾頓的同胞英國設計師來說，上述問題的答案至關重要。