During Queen Elizabeth II’s recent Platinum Jubilee celebrations, some of her great-grandchildren have been the protagonists of many videos and memes going around the world, but Amaia Arrieta (49) took it from a more personal perspective. Both Princess Carlota and Prince Luis, two of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s three children, wore clothes from Amaia Kids, a brand created by Arrieta, a London resident from San Sebastian. And although the firm noticed a significant surge in interest after the anniversary, it’s something the Gipuzkoan designer has long been accustomed to.
It all started in 2013 when someone from the British royal family visited the Amaia Kids store in London’s Chelsea area to buy a present for the newborn Prince George, thinking the clothes suited Kate Middleton’s taste. A few weeks later, the Duchess of Cambridge appeared in the store herself with her mother, Carole. “She told us she had just had a baby and asked us to help her choose. It felt very fresh to me,” EL PAÍS Arrieta recalls. But it wasn’t just a single meeting. “You buy collections, but we also make them to measure,” explains the businesswoman. “They have a lot of different factors to consider, and there are times when it’s easier to make their clothes,” she adds. Later, yes, the brand markets versions of these garments, which takes away the exclusivity of the princes’ attire. “They are a couple trying to give their children as much normal life as possible and to spend time with them. They are doing very well and are firmly on the ground,” concludes the designer.
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Amaia Kids was born in the British capital 18 years ago when Arrieta, then working in finance, was expecting her first child. “I worked in investment banking and put in a lot of hours. I stopped working in the city, but I had to do something. In those first few months I bought all baby things in San Sebastián and when I returned to London my friends from other countries told me that they liked everything very much. One of them suggested I do a sale at home, and I replied that I wasn’t crazy about doing a Tupperware-style sale,” she recalls, laughing.
Eventually, she listened to her friends and visited children’s fashion fairs in Valencia to identify Spanish brands for sale in the UK. Later he started designing his own collections. “I started because I couldn’t find what I was looking for. In London I had very expensive things or the other extreme. Our brand offers quality but at reasonable prices. Burberry or Bonpoint are 50% more expensive”.
Amaia Kids is the company pioneering the boom in Spanish fashion for children around the world. Together with other London companies of Spanish origin and classic style such as La Coqueta or Pepa & Co, they confirm that Made in Spain is an international benchmark in children’s fashion. Its collections are designed in London, but the garments are made entirely in Spain in workshops in Bilbao, Madrid and Andalusia. The central idea is to adapt the Spanish style to the tastes of other countries by lengthening the bottoms or using different colors. “It’s a very traditional process. They are small workshops for women with a lot of experience. I see them as a treasure to be preserved, part of our heritage to be protected. We underestimate ourselves and there is no reason to go anywhere else.” The six employees in your company are freelancers, women and mothers. “We are very flexible. It’s important because there’s a lot of untapped female talent,” says Arrieta.
His clients also include Sienna Miller, Adele, Liv Tyler, Kate Hudson, Naomi Campbell, Victoria Beckham and Meghan Markle. In the photo, which the Duke and Duchess of Sussex celebrated the first year of their baby daughter Lilibet, the girl is wearing an Amaia Kids suit.
Lilibet Diana Mountbatten-Windsor, daughter of Meghan Markle and Henry of England, in the photo released by her parents to celebrate her first birthday last June Misan Harriman (Portal)
Despite the success, the company has gone through some tough times. Arrieta admits that the impact of Brexit was so great that he considered throwing in the towel: “It was very tough. We import and export a lot and the rules weren’t clear at all. It felt like the year 2000 at the turn of the millennium, but in the end nothing happened, and this time it did. Transport companies calculated the maximum rates and tariffs. We had to pay for it and then demand it. Our knitwear collection arrived months late, already for sale. I fought, I asserted and everything, little by little, we learned. This summer season is the first in which we are calmer. Now the fees for European customers are paid by us. Our margin has fallen, but that compensates us,” he explains.
Lately, however, it’s all good news for her. On 12 July Buckingham Palace presented him with an award in the International Trade Category for British Enterprises (Queen’s Awards for Enterprise); In his case, the award – presented to him by Charles of England – was for increasing his sales outside the country over the past three years. Brands awarded by Isabel II can use this royal seal on their products and labels for five years. “It was a joy and a pride, it gave us a lot of prestige,” he says. To decide what to wear for the occasion, Arrieta consulted protocol experts from across the British royal family. “I chose a yellow dress and when I arrived, 85% of the guests were men in dark suits. I thought who sent me to dress in that color, although I ended up getting a lot of compliments,” he says.
The brand has one store in Japan, another in London and has just opened a second one in China. In September they will start selling in Spain through El Corte Inglés. “We have worked very hard and have remained constant in our style and the margins we get,” explains the San Sebastian their success factors. “As my grandmother says, whoever has a shop should run it, and if not, sell it.”
Amaia Arrieta, designer for childrenswear brand Amaia Kids, as she headed to Buckingham Palace to accept an award. Photo courtesy