JUST IN: Princess Kate champions brand made famous by Meghan Markle during Wales visit

The Princess of Wales championed a brand once made famous by Meghan Markle on Tuesday as she paid a visit to textile manufacturers in the stunning landscapes of West Wales.

Kate, 44, spent time at Melin Tregwynt, a woollen mill weaving traditional designs in a remote wooded valley on the Pembrokeshire coast. She joined weavers at the loom, learning about the traditional process of double-cloth weaving, and following the process of blanket weaving.

Later, the royal is set to visit Hiut Denim, a family-owned company based in Cardigan – and a brand once associated with Meghan Markle. The Duchess of Sussex famously wore their high-waisted skinny jeans on a trip to Cardiff Castle with Prince Harry in 2018, her first official royal visit to Wales, and brought the company to global attention.

It sparked what the founders called the “Meghan Markle effect”, telling the BBC previously: “When Meghan Markle wore our jeans we had the world’s press on our doorstep, so our grand masters [workers], as we call them, have become used to being featured in things… it’s good for business.”

The Princess of Wales looked radiant on Tuesday as she arrived in West Wales wearing a bespoke tartan coat, believed to be vintage.

Her visit is intended to celebrate the heritage, creativity and craftsmanship of textile manufacturers, showcasing the heritage skills in the industry.

It is the latest of the royal’s visits to British textile manufacturers, having last month paid a visit to a tartan-weaving studio in Stirling in Scotland.

In 2025, she visited textile manufacturers in Carmarthenshire, Suffolk, Kent and County Tyrone and has sought to increasingly give them a platform with her work. She also looked at a William Morris fabric sample book during a visit to the V&A East Storehouse in Stratford, east London.

Kate also has a close family connection to the industry, as her paternal ancestors owned William Lupton & Co, a woollen merchant and manufacturer based in Leeds.

Melin Tregwynt has been in continuous operation since 1841 and today employs over 40 local people to create woollen blankets, scarves and cushions.

Melin Tregwynt was run for more than 100 years by generations of the Griffiths family before it was set up as an employee-owned trust in 2022.

Known for its luxurious woollen blankets and throws, the company still weaves its fabrics in the mill bought by Henry Griffiths in 1912 when he started the business.

She spent time with weavers at the loom, learning about the skills required for Welsh double cloth weaving, which Melin Tregwynt is renowned for. It is a traditional technique that produces reversible, thick blankets with inverted patterns on each side.

The Princess heard how the mill is preserving traditional craft skills by drawing on generations of expertise among its staff to mentor and inspire a new cohort of young apprentices.