Prince Harry has turned his back on British fashion

Since Prince Harry split from the monarchy in 2020 and moved to the United States with Meghan Markle, it would appear that he left more behind in Britain than his family and the tabloids.

At his new home in California, Harry started a fresh chapter of his life, embarking on a new career as an entertainment professional and author, developing a unique path of global philanthropy for himself, and on a more personal note, leveling up his sense of taste and style.

While male members of the royal family may receive less attention for what they wear than their female counterparts, their fashion choices are as easily and interestingly dissected by fans and the media.

As Harry turns 40, his style has undergone a noticeable transformation over the past four years. He has swapped out the Savile Row suits and discounted off-duty-wear for a wardrobe filled with pieces from some of the world’s top fashion houses, echoing the enviable roster of designers worked with by his wife.

So Long To Savile Row and T.K. Maxx…

Harry’s pre-2020 wardrobe appeared to follow a noticeable pattern. For royal engagements, he was either in an expertly crafted suit, made specially for him by one of the world-famous tailors of Savile Row in London, or in a military uniform.

For his off-duty and more casual moments, he’d wear a classic pair of chinos with an off-the-rack shirt or sweater.

In his memoir, Spare, the prince wrote to the surprise of some that his nonworking wardrobe was mainly purchased from the discount store T.K. Maxx (British equivalent of T.J. Maxx), when they had a sale at their store next to Kensington Palace.

Fashion, he said, he “didn’t fundamentally believe in.”

“Each year I received from Pa an official clothing allowance, but that was strictly for formal wear. Suits and ties, ceremonial outfits,” he said.

“For my everyday casual clothes I’d go to T.K. Maxx, the discount store. I was particularly fond of their once-a-year sale, when they’d be flush with items from Gap or J.Crew, items that had just gone out of season or were slightly damaged.

“If you timed it just right, got there on the first day of the sale, you could snag the same clothes that others were paying top prices for down the high street! With two hundred quid you could look like a fashion plate.”

Hello, Christian Dior and Giorgio Armani…

Today, it appears that the prince has warmed to the fashion world, which is undoubtedly reflected in the growing number of designer pieces filling his wardrobes.

One key change of the past four years is that Harry appears to have turned his back on British fashion—nearly unheard of for a British royal but doubly left-field for a male royal, with England the established capital of men’s fashion and tailoring.

Monarchs, presidents, business tycoons and men from all over the world travel to London especially for coveted appointments with Savile Row tailors where suits can cost $15,000.

With his new global outlook, though, Harry has now looked beyond Britain when it comes to dressing for important occasions.

Perhaps the most important example of this was when the prince attended the coronation of his father, King Charles III, in 2023.

Harry traveled to London for the historic ceremony despite ongoing strains with his family, enhanced by the publication of his bombshell memoir just five months earlier.

As he walked through Westminster Abbey’s vaulted halls, he did so not in a military uniform or the robes of one of Britain’s orders of chivalry but in a morning suit designed by Paris’ premiere couture house, Christian Dior.

“Dior is honored to have dressed Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, for the coronation of King Charles III in a custom design by Kim Jones,” the house effused on social media after the event.

It’s not just Dior’s French elan that has won Harry a fan; the Italian fashion brand Giorgio Armani has also supplied the prince with suits.

Most recently, he wore an Armani creation to the 2024 ESPYS in Los Angeles, where he received the Pat Tilman Award for Service.

Beyond these event-wear suits, Harry has leveled up his casual wardrobe, too. Gone are the discount store chinos and shirts; in are the Armani blazers and Loro Piana loafers.

As Harry and Meghan increase their global visibility moving forward, undertaking more overseas tours and launching large-scale media projects, the prince could soon find himself taking on another royal title: prince, duke, earl, baron, and now, fashionista.

James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek‘s royal reporter, based in London. You can find him on X (formerly Twitter) at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek‘s The Royals Facebook page.

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