How Much Is It All Worth?!
NOTE: This is a constantly updating post and subject to change as pieces are identified.
As is becoming our annual tradition, Heaven and I have sat down with our notes, spreadsheets, and calculators to bring you a comprehensive look at the value of the new clothing of 14 different royal ladies from around the world. We have done this since 2017 at UFO No More in an effort to provide a more comprehensive look into the statistics side of things that come with Royal Fashion Watching.
When we calculate costs we break down the numbers into 3 categories:
Pieces that remain UFO (Unidentified Fashion Objects)
Pieces that are identified and costs can be found
Pieces where the designer is known but the design is custom or a price us unknown
In very few instances, we will estimate a price of an article of clothing. This occurs when the piece is similar to a “base model” being sold and there are minor details changed (color, neckline, sleeves, etc). Out of 800 new pieces debuted this year by these ladies - only 7 of these pieces did we estimate a price. We mention this in an effort to convey the most transparent and accurate view of the costs.
Now onto the data! In total, these 14 royal ladies debuted clothing retailing over 469,272.34 € ($573,615.04 USD) during 2020 on clothing and accessories. This 469,272.34€ ($573,615.04 USD) takes into account the 575 pieces which were identified with costs or had costs estimated. Excluded from this tally were 225 pieces where the pieces remain UFO or are custom pieces.
We acknowledge that some of these tallies could be higher because a royal has more pieces identified than others - which is why we include the average price-per-piece graphic for you below. These numbers are calculated by dividing the cost of pieces we have prices for by the number of pieces we have prices for (Example: Even though Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden had 81 new pieces, we divided her total amount by 59 because that was how many pieces we had prices for). This gives us a better idea of her spending habits and trends.
In the top spot, Princess Charlene leads the pack with her 2020 wardrobe additions costing 106,238.03€ ($129,860.06 USD) for 52 pieces and debuting 74 pieces. Her average price-per-piece was 2,083 € ($2,546.16 USD), putting her at the top of the ranking for our cost-for-pieces tally.
Following her was the Duchess of Cambridge, who debuted 134 new pieces this year. Of those 134 pieces, only 115 of them factored into her 86,800.30€ ($106,100.35 USD) total. Her average price-per-piece was lower than 2019 coming in at 754.79€ ($922.62 USD).
The Duchess of Sussex takes the third spot in our tally with a retail price of 50,035.05€ ($61,160.34 USD) for 71 pieces and debuting 81 pieces. Her average price-per-piece was 704.72€ ($861.41 USD), putting her at the middle of the pack for our cost-for-pieces tally.
Following the Duchess of Sussex on our list, is Queen Maxima of the Netherlands. She debuted 83 new items in 2020 with 55 of those items being factored into her total of 49,008.63 € ($59,905.70 USD). With these 44 items, her average price-per-piece was 891.07 € ($1,089.20 USD).
After being 3rd last year, Crown Princess Mary moved down to the fifth spot with a retail price of 34,437.66 € ($42,094.87 USD) for 36 new items, while debuting 70 new pieces. Still mixing Danish and International designers, her average price-per-piece was 956.60 € ($1,169.30 USD). (Visit Princess Marie’s Closet’s post for a further analysis)
Princess Sofia of Sweden had her hands full this year, announcing her third pregnancy and working 2 days a week at a local hospital, during all of this she debuted 49 new items, with 37 of them factoring into her total 27,281.94€ ($33,348.08 USD). Continuing to mix couture and budget friendly designers- she finished the year with an average price-per-piece number of 737.35€ ($901.30 USD).
Next up on the list is Sophie, Countess of Wessex who impressed us all by her eagerness to jump in and volunteer during the COVID-19 Crisis. During the year, we saw 30 new items with 25 of those items contributing to her total of 24,423.75 € ($29,854.37 USD). Her choices tended to be on the more costly price-point with her average price-per-piece being 976.95 € ($1,194.17 USD).
Next is Princess Marie who relocated with her family last summer to France, thus reducing her average number of appearances. In 2020, she debuted 22 new items, 14 of those items accumulating to her total of 23,937.43€ ($29,259.92 USD). She mixed high-end, and high-street designers bringing her average price-per-piece to 1,709.82 € ($2,090.00 USD). (Visit Princess Marie’s Closet’s post for a further analysis)
Crown Princess Victoria managed to continuously show that it is possible to champion local designers without breaking the bank. She debuted 81 new items this year with 59 of those items being accounted for in her 21,296.66 € ($26,031.97 USD) total. She also had a average price-per-piece at 360.96 € ($441.22 USD).
Following her, is Queen Letizia of Spain who continued her love of high street brands which allowed her to debut 97 new pieces but remain a middle figure on the tally. With 56 of those pieces factored into her total of 15,892.03 € ($19,425.62 USD) her average price-per-piece was 283.79 € ($346.89 USD).
Crown Princess Mette Marit takes the next spot in our tally. We saw her debut 12 pieces contributing to her total of 11,287.72 € ($13,797.72 USD) and a total of 23 new pieces in total throughout 2020. Her average price-per-piece was 940.64€ ($1,149.79 USD).
Princess Eugenie is up next in our rundown, debuting 18 new items this year. Of those 18 items, 15 of those items factored into her 7,573.86€ ($9,257.91 USD) total. Her average price-per-piece for 2020 was 504.92€ ($617.19 USD).
Second to last was Princess Madeleine who had a quiet year due to being locked down in Florida due to the Coronavirus pandemic. With this she debuted 16 new items, with 12 of those items being accounted for in her total figure of 6,383.65 € ($7,803.05 USD). Her 2020 average price-per-piece was 531.97 € ($ 650.25 USD)
Princess Beatrice had an exciting year, quietly marrying her fiancé Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi. During this exciting year, Princess Beatrice debuted 17 new items totaling 4,675.66 € ($5,715.29 USD) with 22 new items in total throughout the year. Her average price-per-piece for the year was 275.04 € ($336.20 USD).
In summary, the standings from 2020 are:
Princess Charlene of Monaco
Duchess of Cambridge
Duchess of Sussex
Queen Maxima
Crown Princess Mary of Denmark
Princess Sofia of Sweden
Countess of Wessex
Princess Marie of Denmark
Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden
Queen Letizia of Spain
Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway
Princess Eugenie
Princess Madeleine of Sweden
Princess Beatrice
Did any of these numbers surprise you? Leave a comment and let us know!
**At face value our calculations are what the royal’s clothes are worth, and in theory, what they would cost for you or I to buy. However, we are not saying that these calculations are what the royals ladies specifically spent, as we cannot verify that. We fully recognize that royals may receive discounts, shop sales, or be gifted some of these pieces. However, in order to stay objective, we made the decision to only use the full retail value of the pieces so that we do not show bias. These numbers should be viewed as the retail cost of their new pieces, rather than the exact number they personally spent.**
Check out our Complete Series of “How Much is it All Worth” posts from the past 4 years below!
If you would like to use these numbers for your own article - please make sure to credit us and link back to our original post. If you have any questions or want more information about the data posted here, send us an email.