Before the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's son Prince George's latest pictures were released online, his Cath Kidston blue wool £32 tank top had already sold out. And it seems that Start-Rite, the brand of shoes that the toddler was sporting in the shots, is also experiencing 'the George effect'. The Norwich footwear brand, whose shoes have long been worn by royal children – said demand had soared since Prince William and Kate Middleton's first-born was spotted wearing one of their designs.
New pictures of Prince George were recently released
Apparently dealers and distributors around the world have been making frantic phone calls to the brand's headquarters to request more stock, according to the Daily Mail. "We are delighted that the Duke and Duchess have selected Start-rite shoes for Prince George," said company chairman Peter Lamble. "It's a great morale boost for the staff here in Norwich – and, of course, there is a commercial opportunity which could come from it as well."
The outfit that Prince George was wearing in the new photos
He added: "For someone as busy as the Duchess is, it's fantastic how important she thinks it is to take the time to get children's shoes fitted." After Prince George's photos showed him wearing the Cath Kidston Horse Guards top, the brand were inundated with requests, but simply had no stock left. "We sold it but it sold out a while ago," they said on their Twitter account.
His Cath Kidston tank top had sold out before the photos were even released
"Given the huge demand, we're looking into getting more. "We'll be speaking to our team tomorrow to see what's possible so we'll be able to update you next week #fingerscrossed." The vintage-style clothes, accessories and homeware company was of course delighted to see George in one of their designs. They wrote on their blog: "We were so proud to see our favourite little soldier Prince George wearing his London Guards tank top for official Christmas portraits this year." Unfortunately though, the retailer was caught off-guard ahead of the sudden furore that was to hit its website as it didn’t know that George was going to be pictured looking adorable in its Guards Tank Top, which retailed at £28 but was reduced to £16 before selling out.