Kate Middleton’s parents Carole and Michael face fresh heartache over Party Pieces following the collapse of…
Kate Middleton’s parents Carole and Michael Middleton have faced fresh heartache over their Party Pieces business, after restructuring professionals tasked with handling the insolvency of the business hit a major setback.
Party Pieces, the company set up by the Middletons back in 1987, went into administration last June, with over £2.5 million pounds worth of debt. At the time, reports suggesting Carole had been left ‘upset and deeply disappointed’ by the situation. Interpath Advisory were placed in charge of dealing with the insolvency of the business – however now, according to The Times, it has found itself unable to cover all recoupment costs as the growing sum surpasses £260,000.
According to the newspaper, the city-based firm found that the ‘realisation of Party Pieces’ assets was insufficient to cover the advisers’ time costs of £268,928.’ It means that Interpath’s team were not able to recoup the total fees for the work by its restructuring professionals, who were charging an ‘average hourly rate of £566’.
Before marrying into the Royal Family, Kate Middleton spent time working as project manager for Party Pieces. She stopped the job ahead of her 2011 royal wedding to Prince William. At the time, a royal aide told People magazine, ‘She has handed over her work to colleagues and is now preparing for her future life.’
In 2021, reports emerged that Party Pieces had experienced a significant financial loss of over £250,000 following the effects of the pandemic and Brexit. Despite this, the business insisted that the losses had been anticipated, and they launched a retail partnership in the US. ‘It’s very exciting to see our Party Pieces Collection expanding into the US starting with Saker ShopRites, a leading retailer in New Jersey and family-owned business with a long history of commitment to the customers and communities its stores serve,’ Carole said at the time.
However, the future of the business was then thrown into doubt. First, two of their three financial backers stepped down as directors: lingerie tycoon Steven Bentwood and former chairman of Oxford United Football Club, Darryl Eales. Then, Party Pieces appointed consultancy Interpath to advise on strategic ‘options’, which included ‘a sale or finding new investors,’ according to The Daily Telegraph.
Will Wright, head of restructuring at Interpath and joint administrator, told the Daily Mail: ‘Party Pieces is a well-established brand with a proud British heritage, but like many other companies across the retail space, had been impacted profoundly by the effects of the pandemic and the ensuing restrictions on social gatherings.’
The business then fell into administration, with over £2.5 million pounds worth of debt. ‘Due to the company’s cash flow challenges and inability to secure additional funding, rescuing the company… is not achievable,’ a report filed to Companies House in June last year. A close friend of Carol Middleton told the Daily Mail’s Richard Eden: ‘Carole is understandably upset and deeply disappointed in this situation. Over the past five months she really has done her best to find a buyer, who not only would take the business forward, but would also honour any outstanding debts. Carole believes in accountability and accepts she had been a little naïve to step back and trust someone else to run the business she had spent decades nurturing and it’s been desperately sad to see the company sold off in this way.’
Carole and Michael are currently supporting the Princess of Wales, as well as Prince William and their three children, as she faces her health battle. Royal commentator and biographer Duncan Larcombe told the Mirror that Carole and Michael have been putting a ‘safety blanket’ over George, Charlotte and Louis, as well as offering William, whom they consider an ‘adopted son’ support. The couple are said to be ‘desperately upset’ about Kate Middleton’s cancer diagnosis but have been ‘rallying’ to support her and the Prince during this time.
He said, ‘They’ll have rallied around her, especially her young family. Carole and Michael will have essentially thrown a safety blanket around the young children to help protect them. In times like this for Kate, it is hugely important. It is crucial the children are looked after carefully.’
Always the proud grandmother, Carole has previously commented that she will always take an active role in Princes George, Louis and Princess Charlotte’s lives: ‘I want to run down the hills, climb the trees and go through the tunnel at the playground,’ she told Good Housekeeping. ‘As long as I am able to, that’s what I’ll be doing. I cook with them, I muck around dancing, we go on bike rides.’ The Wales’ move to Windsor last year means Carole and Michael are closer to their grandchildren, and recent rumours that George may be bucking the royal trend and attending Marlborough College, his mother’s alma mater, would mean he wasn’t far from their Berkshire abode.
Carole and Michael have been present for several significant royal events, including Harry and Meghan’s wedding in 2018 and the funeral of the late Queen Elizabeth in 2022.
