Konnichiwa, Zara.
While Meghan Markle has been rocking affordable brands from J.Crew to Banana Republic at the Invictus Games 2023 this week, she surprised royal fans by stepping out in a Zara romper Friday after reportedly ditching the brand in her “Suits” era.
The Duchess of Sussex, 42, wore the ecru ensemble — which is a past-season item from the fast fashion brand — with a matching oversized blazer to take in the events (and celebrate Prince Harry’s 39th birthday) at the Invictus Games in Düsseldorf, Germany.
While she went with a bargain one-piece look, Markle stuck to her Invictus formula of pairing attainable brands with designer accessories, wearing a pair of black YSL sandals ($725) with Bottega Veneta hoops ($305) and a $995 gold Brilliant Earth pendant featuring her astrological sign, Leo.
Her choice of brands is an interesting one, as Markle is famously said to have thrown a “Sayonara, Zara” party after she landed her role in “Suits,” during which she “gave away the lower-priced clothes in her closet to her guests,” per Vanity Fair.
Indeed, she hasn’t worn Zara since her early days of dating Prince Harry, although she sported several items from the brand in the years before, including a blue-and-white patchwork dress she wore for a 2016 Good Housekeeping photo shoot and a striped frock she modeled on Instagram the same year.
Susan Courter, founder of fashion blog What Meghan Wore, calls the “unexpected” Zara outfit “a delightful surprise” after so many years, telling Pvnew Style that the “accessible” choice “aligns well with the brand’s growing commitment to sustainability.”
Friday’s outfit follows a week of more affordable choices for the usually designer-clad duchess, a decision royal fashion expert Christine Ross tells Pvnew Style is a strategic move on Markle’s part.
“Meghan’s fashion power is strongest when it’s accessible, and what could be more accessible than Zara?” she says, adding the move seems to be “a very conscious decision to be more appealing, down to earth and likeable.”
Ross tells us the decision to “return to her fashion roots” is a refreshing change. “She’s clearly trying to be herself, without titles or pretense, and people love it.”
