13-05-2025
Kate champions fashion industry in Victoria Beckham at design awards
The Princess of Wales showed emphatic support for young British fashion talent today, presenting the Queen Elizabeth II Award for British Design (QEII Award) to Patrick McDowell. McDowell's eponymous independent London-based fashion label, known for sustainable practices as well as highly regarded designs, was honoured with the annual award from the British Fashion Council at 180 Studios on London's Strand.
Catherine looked characteristically elegant despite London's 22-degree heat, wearing an olive green suit by Victoria Beckham over a white shirt with organza frills. She took an extensive tour of the space with McDowell before presenting the award.
'This kind of support for a business like mine is invaluable,' said McDowell, after receiving the award. 'It provides a game-changing stamp of approval for our circular luxury brand.' The designer also praised the enduring legacy of the late Queen Elizabeth II and the royal family's recognition of British craftsmanship.
'I was already on cloud nine, but then to meet the Princess, to see her genuine interest in craftsmanship was really amazing,' the designer told me after the presentation. 'She was interested in the creative point of view. We're narrative-led and she was really amazed by the stories and the embroiderers.'
Catherine's appearance was especially notable given the subtle step away from the fashion spotlight we have seen her take this year. It comes after Buckingham Palace had to issue a clarification, after saying in February that it would no longer share details about her wardrobe choices for public engagements, except for state and other big occasions.
Writing at the time, The Telegraph 's head of fashion Lisa Armstrong wrote: 'Catherine has been of incalculable value to the £37-billion-a-year British fashion industry... And why hide the many quiet but oh-so-thoughtful sartorial gestures? I know from my WhatsApp groups how touching it was, at a time when so many Jews feel frightened, to see the Princess wearing a pearl necklace from the vintage jewellery site Susan Caplan, whose eponymous founder is Jewish, at a commemoration ceremony to mark Holocaust Memorial Day in London.'
The series of ensembles Catherine has since worn, while as stylish and perfectly pitched as ever, have been notably quiet.
Clearly, the Princess – and royal family in general – still recognises the value of engaging with the fashion industry. Established in 2018, when the late Queen presented it to Richard Quinn, the QEII Award recognises the work of an exceptional emerging designer who demonstrates a commitment to sustainable and community-driven practices. Last year's, awarded by the Duchess of Edinburgh, went to S.S Daley, the buzzy young label backed by Harry Styles and now stocked at John Lewis.
'It's such an honour to receive something like this, especially from the royal family,' McDowell told The Telegraph, adding that it feels like a 'full circle moment'. The designer received a scholarship from the BFC to attend Central Saint Martins, and the brand they have since formed has always focused on British craftsmanship, working alongside the King's Foundation scholarship students.
McDowell recalls the wedding of the Prince and Princess of Wales – more specifically the latter's wedding dress by Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen – as a moment 'ingrained' in their mind at the point when they were learning how to create clothes. 'It was such an impressive moment,' says McDowell. 'It would be incredible to dress the Princess of Wales one day. 'And, you know, I guess this award is possibly a step closer to that.'
She wouldn't be the first style icon to don McDowell's designs, which have been worn by the likes of Sarah Jessica Parker, Lady Gaga and Keira Knightley. 'We've been really lucky that these amazing people have naturally come to us,' says the designer, whose modesty is striking. 'They're an eclectic mix of talent that somehow have style codes in common that resonate with what we do.'
A key element of the brand's own code is circularity. It's become known for limited-edition, made-to-order pieces crafted from planet-friendly materials in London. Each is intentionally designed to last, but there are also redesign and repair services available to maximise longevity.
This comes naturally to McDowell, who shares that the first thing they ever made, aged 13, was a bag crafted from a pair of jeans. 'At that time, it wasn't from a sustainability point of view, it was purely because I had jeans that I didn't wear and I wanted a new bag,' they say. That flair for upcycling has served them well, from a debut collection made from discarded Burberry fabrics to an spring/summer 2025 show filled with deadstock Erdem silks.
It's also allowed for the creation of garments that are striking in their beauty and theatricality as well as their sustainable credentials. 'I think to shift the dial, really, and convince people, first of all you just have to make a great dress, and then tell them about why it's better for the planet,' says McDowell. As the Princess proved today, a great suit can be just as convincing.
