ALICE TEMPERLEY: €10 MILLION LOSSES
THE bohemian brand is a favourite of Kate’s — for everything from casual days out (the embroidered blouse she sported on her 2011 Canadian tour) to formal occasions (the green lace gown she wore to a London gala in March 2017).
She chose Temperley London, founded by 43-year-old Alice — dubbed the ‘English Ralph Lauren’ — for a post-engagement outing to Wimbledon in June 2011, and again in 2014, when she wore a daring black cut-out number to a London charity event. Both times the garments, which can cost up to €5,600, sold out overnight, with fans flocking to the website.
In a 2013 interview, Alice, who said she received no prior warning when Kate was about to step out in one of her creations, described the duchess as ‘the perfect modern-day woman’. With Carole and Pippa both also Temperley fans — not to mention a host of celebrity devotees including Beyoncé, Emma Watson and Heidi Klum — it seemed its future was secure. But beneath the surface cracks were beginning to form.
FINANCIAL LOSSES: In 2016, reports showed losses of more than £9million (€10million) over five years. In both 2011 and 2012, Temperley Holdings lost more than £1million (€1.1million), followed by pre-tax losses of over £5.8million (€6.5million) in 2013.
In 2014, the company posted losses of £2.8million, with auditors warning of ‘material uncertainty’ over the brand’s future. Well-connected Alice secured a £1.8million bail-out from 20 wealthy friends. And in January it was reported that things may be turning round with growth almost doubled to 9%.
OTHER WOES: Alice’s business troubles coincided with the breakdown of her marriage to German financier Lars von Bennigsen, whom she married in 2002. The pair, who have an eight-year-old son, Fox, separated in 2011.
She put Cricket Court, her beloved listedmansion, on the market in 2016, slashing the price by £250,000 to £2million after it failed to sell.
WHAT THEY SAID: ‘Temperley London’s business continues to develop strongly on the back of a newly-focused strategy.’