Kate Middleton’s Influence Killed A Fashion Label? Designer Behind Her Engagement Dress Reveals ‘Kate Effect’ Ruined Issa

Kate Middleton has been making headlines since she and then-fiancé Prince William announced their engagement in November 2010. Aside from news of them tying the knot, the Duchess of Cambridge’s 12-carat sapphire ring and her matching dress had also been the focus of many royal watchers and reports.

Middleton has since become a style icon, with women all over the world following fashion trends she sets. And while most would think that the duchess wearing their creation is no doubt a great boost for any designer, this wasn’t the case for Daniella Helayel, who was responsible for her 2010 royal blue engagement dress.

Helayel revealed in a new interview with You magazine that while the “Kate Effect” may have momentarily given her label Issa a boost, this eventually contributed to its downfall. The label closed down in 2015.

Helayel explained that her label had already been experiencing financial trouble in 2008 and 2009. “Only the previous year the label was on the verge of financial crisis; it wasn’t all rose-tinted glasses. Issa was a niche brand, we had a loyal following but in 2008 and 2009 we were in serious financial trouble. When Kate wore that dress everything changed,” she told the magazine.

Middleton wearing her royal blue creation got her the promo the label needed and got stars such as Kylie Minogue, Madonna and Elizabeth Hurley knocking on her door. However, she and her team weren’t prepared for the onslaught of orders that followed after the duchess wore her dress on the day she announced her engagement to Prince William. “That morning I’d gone to yoga as usual, and then I got a call from a friend telling me about the royal engagement. It was all very exciting. We didn’t have a TV at the studio and this was pre-Instagram, but we soon knew Kate was wearing Issa because at four o’clock the phones began ringing and didn’t stop. It was bonkers,” she added.

Issa’s sales doubled following Middleton’s engagement, but the label couldn’t keep up with the demand and experienced several obstacles. “I didn’t have the money to finance production on that scale. The bank refused to give me credit and the factory was screaming for me to pay its bills. I needed an investor,” she said.

While Helayel did eventually find an investor — Camilla Al-Fayed, half-sister of the late Dodi Al-Fayed who died in a car crash with Princess Diana in 1997 — this did not result to good things for her and the label. She clashed with the new CEO that came on board and was forced to leave the brand in 2013, just two years before it shut down completely. “I left because I couldn’t take any more. I felt so stressed that my hair went white and started falling out. I was broken by the end of it. I had a great business, which I’d built up on my own over a decade. To watch it evaporate was heartbreaking,” she explained.

Helayel took a break from designing clothes to spend more time with her family and to travel. Now, she’s returned to the fashion industry with a brand new label, Dhela. “Designing is what I do, it’s what I love, and I’m just so happy to be back,” she said.

Meanwhile, Middleton and her royal husband are busy preparing for their move to London. In January, they released an official statement confirming that the couple and their two children — Prince George and Princess Charlotte — will be living in London starting this fall. They currently reside in Anmer Hall, their country home in Norfolk.

“Their Royal Highnesses love their time in Norfolk and it will continue to be their home,” read the statement obtained by Vanity Fair. “From this autumn, however, the Duke and Duchess will increasingly base their family at Kensington Palace. As they have in recent years, their royal Highnesses are keen to continue to increase their official work on behalf of the Queen and for the charities and causes they support, which will require greater time spent in London.”

A source told People that the royal couple will be engaging in more activities once they move to the England capital. According to the insider, Middleton’s “primary role” will be as a “mother” to their two children and that she and her husband will be spending most of their time in London.