Meghan Markle purchased pair of £1990 diamond earrings from Dragons' Den hopefuls

Release time：2024-05-21 21:23:39 Source：International Insights news portal

Meghan Markle purchased £1990 worth of diamond earrings from a female-founded jewellery business, the owners have revealed. 

The Duchess of Sussex, 42, was sent the jewellery by artificial diamond brand Kimai when she was still a working member of the Royal Family in 2019.

The mother-of-two wore the brand's Felicity earrings, which are sold separately for £995, when she visited the charity Smart Works' headquarters in London. 

Earlier this month, Kimai's founders Sidney Neuhaus and Jessica Warch appeared on Dragons' Den where they boasted about the Duchess of Sussex wearing their designs. 

The founders - who were looking for a £250,000 investment for a three per cent equity stake in their business - revealed how the royal endorsement boosted their business, just a two months after they first launched. 

Pictured: Meghan Markle seen wearing the £1990 pair of diamond earrings to visit the Smart Works headquarters in January 2019

They explained: 'We've launched without investment, and then two months after our launch we got Meghan Markle to wear our pieces, which enabled us to grow the revenue significantly, and from there we raised $1.2 million.' 

Steven Bartlett - who ended up investing in the business - questioned the duo on how they managed to get the Duchess of Sussex sporting their jewellery.

Sidney said: 'Cold emails.' Jessica then added: 'We're big believers in cold emails!' 

Despite also peaking the interest of dragons Deborah Meade, Sara Davies and Peter Jones, the pair ended up choosing Steven.

The entrepreneur said he was convinced to make an offer after seeing that Meghan Markle had worn their designs. 

'The moment you told be about hounding down Meghan Markle, you had me,' he said. 

The deal is the biggest investment made by The Diary Of A CEO podcast host since he first joined the programme in 2022. 

Kimaï's founders, Antwerp-born friends Sidney Neuhaus and Jessica Warch, were frustrated with the lack of supply chain transparency across the industry, so pioneered the use of 100 per cent traceable lab-grown diamonds. 

Kimai's Felicity Earring features 26 lab-grown diamonds, totalling 0.24 carat, and retails at £995 each. 

Dragons' Den's Steven Bartlett with Kimai's Co-founders Jessica Warch and Sidney Neuhaus after investing £250,000 in their business

In 2019, the pair made £350,000 in revenue and a net loss of minus £350,000. The second year of trading saw a revenue of £890,00 and a net loss of minus £350,000 again.

Last year, sales spiralled, and they made £3 million, with a net loss of £100,000. 'And this year, we're on track to do £5 million, and a profit of £500,000,' Jessica told the judges.

Steven offered the duo their asking price in exchange for a five per cent equity stake of the company, which they rejected. Jessica's negotiating skills successfully haggled Steven down to the original three per cent Kimaï offered.

Kimaï's global e-commerce is growing at a rapid rate of 120 per cent year-over-year, as the online market for sustainable fine jewellery is on the rise.

The Antwerp-born duo were chuffed after receiving three offers, but it was Steven they went for 

After the negotiating was over, Steven embraced both Jessica and Sidney with a warm hug 

After the negotiating was over, Steven embraced both Jessica and Sidney with a warm hug

'They are two of the most impressive entrepreneurs I have ever seen in the Den', said Steven. 'Rock solid on their numbers, vision and convictions. Kind, humble, smart, tenacious and passionate.

'Annoyingly, really incredible negotiators - which is annoying as an investor but perfect as business partners, so I'm happy to be in business with them.

'They are the absolute full house. I'm going to support them in any and every way I can - I'll bring a wealth of knowledge to the business as it relates to marketing, innovation, community growth, scaling and I'm planning to use my vast network of contacts to open doors that will help to accelerate their incredible business even more'.

Crafted without environmentally harmful mining practices, the firm's sustainable stones are said to be physically, optically and chemically identical to mined counterparts.

Using cutting-edge technology, labs are able to replicate the heat and pressure that create natural diamonds found in the earth. These sustainable gems can also provide 100 per cent supply chain traceability.

Catering to an eco-conscious clientele, the brand offers a range of lab-grown diamond and recycled 18k gold earrings, necklaces, bracelets and rings and is proud to be one of the few fine jewellery labels to be certified B-corp.

Kimaï will be working with Steven and his team to amplify their digital presence, and the investment will be used to elevate the customer experience at the brand's flagship store in Marylebone, London.  

This article has been amended since initial publication to correct a suggestion that Kimai had gifted a pair of earrings to the Duchess of Sussex. We are happy to clarify that the Duchess purchased the earrings. 

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