Holly’s sell out style
It’s made her the hottest force in fashion: how the outfits Holly Willoughby wears each morning are sold out by the afternoon
SHE is the queen of daytime TV, known as much for her enviable curves as her girl- next- door charm. Now Holly Willoughby can boast another title – fashion guru. The 36- year- old has become a social media star in recent months by sharing on Instagram the outfits she wears to present ITV’s This Morning.
Such is her influence that she has more than 2.8 million followers, with her clothing choices often selling out within 90 minutes of the programme being screened.
Last week, many of Holly’s stylish finds, including a pair of maroon trousers from Marks & Spencer and a belted skirt from Topshop, vanished from stores and online even as the show was still on air.
A pink pleated skirt from M&S’s Per Una range is also no longer available after receiving more than 90,000 Instagram ‘likes’.
The phenomenon has grown over the past few months thanks to new stylist Angie Smith. She has taken advantage of Holly’s recent weight loss – which is attributed to a gruelling Pilates regime – by dressing her in figurehugging pencil skirts, slimline jumpers and thigh-skimming dresses.
Unlike other social-media ‘influencers’, the star is not paid to plug brands, but is sent the clothes for free and later returns them. Each Instagram photo – taken at Holly’s £6 million home in South-West London – is helpfully accompanied by a top-to-toe shopping guide listing exactly where each item has come from.
Fans say they like being able to compare the Instagram image with the show’s footage, so they can see how the clothes actually appear in real life.
Ms Smith said: ‘We don’t tend to choose things from the catwalks for This Morning because we’re keen that Holly doesn’t wear things that are ridiculously expensive.’
Not that the presenter – who has an estimated £ 11 million fortune – is against luxury. In September, a £1,400 sequined Ashish minidress worn for an appearance on the Jonathan Ross Show sold out on online retailer Matches within half an hour.
Indeed, so powerful are her fashion credentials that Holly has even topped a poll of style ‘influencers’ by the online fashion website Styledlike – pushing the Duchess of Cambridge into second place.