Princess Kate inspiring Meghan Markle as Duchess of Sussex taking notes on tour
Princess Kate has seemingly inspired Meghan Markle on her Colombia tour alongside Prince Harry.
The Princess of Wales, 42, is known for respecting local cultures and designers during royal tours, and always makes an effort to wear creations from the countries she visits.
Meghan Markle, 43, and Prince Harry, 39, touched down in Colombia on Thursday, after being invited by the country’s vice president, Francia Marquez.
The duke and duchess, along with Marquez and her husband Rafael Yerney Pinillo, stepped out to watch Colombian folkloric performers in Bogota.
Princess Kate and Meghan Markle
Meghan Markle
Meghan Markle wore a beautiful dress by a Colombian designer
Courtesy of the Vice President’s Office
For the visit, the mother-of-two wore the Navajo Weaver dress by Johanna Ortiz.
Meghan has worn the designer before, but it was a poignant choice given Ortiz’s Colombian heritage.
According to her website, Ortiz was born in Cali, one of the cities that Meghan and Harry plan to visit during their trip abroad. Ortiz continues to live in Cali with her husband and three sons.
Meghan has appeared to take inspiration from Kate, who frequently wears clothes by local designers when she goes on international royal tours.
Princess Kate and Prince William
Princess Kate arrived in Ottawa in 2011 wearing Canadian designer Erdem
Princess Kate
Kate wore a purple dress by local designer Prabal Gurung in Singapore in 2012
That way, when customers want to replicate her look, they have to buy locally and therefore boost the economy of the place the princess is visiting.
She has done this on almost every tour since she became an official working royal in 2011.
Kate’s first tour as an official royal was to Canada, and when she got off the plane in Ottawa, she was wearing a blue lace dress by Canadian designer Erdem.
Later during a trip to Singapore in 2012, Kate wore a purple dress by local designer Prabal Gurung.
Prince William and Princess Kate
Princess Kate wearing an independent local designer in Tuvalu in 2012
Princess Kate
Princess Kate wearing white trousers by Maheen Khan and a scarf by Satrangi in Pakistan in 2019
In addition, for a trip to Tuvalu in 2012, Kate wore a yellow dress that was from an independent local brand, although the designer was never revealed.
In 2019, Prince William and Kate toured Pakistan for several days, and Kate wore several local designers, including white trousers by Maheen Khan and a scarf by Satrangi.
She wore these to complement a long green coat by one of the princess’s favourite brands, Catherine Walker, which was created in a traditional Pakistani style.
In 2022, the Princess of Wales stepped out in a dress featuring a turquoise hue, paired with a bangle by a local designer in Jamaica.
Princess Kate
Princess Kate wore a bangle by a local designer in Jamaica in 2022
The bangle was created by Jamaican designer Lashawndla Bailey-Miller.
Kate later wore two gold bracelets from Jamaican brand Steelz and Mantraz, also designed by Lashawndla Bailey-Miller.
Meghan is also known to highlight designers from the countries she visits. In Nigeria, she sported a red dress by Nigerian designer Orire for a panel discussion she co-hosted on May 11.
On another day of the visit to Africa, she donned a traditional Nigerian skirt she was gifted during their time in Abuja.
