L.K. BENNETT: SALES SLUMP

A ROYAL wardrobe essential, High Street label l.K. Bennett has become something of a trademark for the Duchess — particularly its nude Sledge platform courts (£195), which Kate rarely leaves the Palace without. She owns six other styles from its footwear range, most of them in patent nude, as well as an array of similarly hued handbags, such as the Nina clutch, which she carried to an event at the National Portrait Gallery in 2016.

one of her most memorable looks was the £245 blue-and-white lasa Poppy dress, which she wore to a tour of an Australian air base in 2014; plus the £400 floaty number she donned to meet Barack and Michelle obama in 2016 — both of which were instant sell-outs.

She also owns the striking red Ami coat, which she’s worn four times since 2011, and the teal Jude jacket, which she wore on a walkabout in leicester with the Queen in 2012. Here, she is wearing the £225 Eugenia dress in red

FINANCIAL LOSSES: Earlier this year l.K.Bennett reported losses of £5.9 million in 2016/2017, compared with a £100,000 profit in the previous 12 months. Total sales also fell by 1.8 per cent to £77.4 million. The company blamed the figures on ‘exceptional costs’ of £28.7 million, spent on corporate restructuring.

OTHER WOES: last month the company was hit by an IT glitch, forcing it to cease all online trading for three days. Unhappy customers were stopped from buying anything new from the website, and there was a delay in dispatching existing orders.

WHAT THEY SAID: ‘Clearly, the results for this period were unsatisfactory and we have taken decisive action to improve performance.’