Princess Kate’s kind gesture helped a charity see an “incredible” surge in donations, raising a whopping £15,000.
The princess sported a pair of earrings from a Perthshire-based company dubbed the Issy star earrings - dedicated to a young girl who died of suicide last year.
She wore the pair during a visit to Birmingham on World Mental Health Day 2023, which led to a “phenomenal” surge in sales which enabled the company to raise £15,000 for BraveMind charity.
EARSASS, a jewellery company founded by Sophie McGown, released the special earrings in tribute to Issy, McGown’s 17-year-old niece.
Princess Kate's sweet gesture helps charity raise a whopping £15,000PAPrincess Kate was gifted the earrings by McGown when she visited the rugby grounds where Issy used to play. She visited as part of her Shaping Us campaign, which aims to spotlight the importance of early years development in children.
Following Kate’s outing with the earrings, McGown told FEMAIL: “My team member, Jaz and I were just like a little factory with all these orders coming in.
“I still can't believe that we got through all that, but we did. It was phenomenal, just the two of us and really put some incredible structure into the business to handle it and raise so much money for charity.
“Issy's mum and Issy's friends all came and helped us pack. It was just such a special time to keep Issy alive and her legacy, and she just went global.”
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Princess Kate was gifted the earrings by McGown when she visited the rugby grounds where Issy used to play
PAMcGown said that her niece’s mental health problems were exacerbated by lockdown, which left her feeling isolated from her peers.
On April 29, 2023, Issy took her own life after a battle with depression.
To cope with her own grief, as well as commemorate her niece, McGown created the Issy earrings - which sees £5 from every purchase going to the mental health charity.
Describing Kate’s public appearance with the earrings in 2023, McGown said: “On World Mental Health Day last year, she clearly waited and knew what she was going to do and wore them in honour of Issy, and we genuinely didn't really think she would, you know, I mean, certainly not necessarily on that day.
Princess Kate launched Shaping Us in 2023PA“We'd all kind of just thought, right, she would wear them one day, but it kind of went to the side, and then obviously it happened, and it was just mind-blowing.”
The money raised via the sales has gone to provide suicide awareness training in various establishments involving young people.
Tomorrow is this year’s World Mental Health Day, and McGown has released the Issy Star earrings in rose gold to mark the occasion.
She is hopeful that Kate may sport the pair of earrings again this year.