Meghan Markle and Cuyana Are Dressing Women for Success with Stylish Donation Ahead of Giving Tuesday
Mark Cuthbert/UK Press via Getty; Cuyana
Meghan Markle is paying it forward.
The Duchess of Sussex, 41, is connecting a go-to brand with a good cause. On Monday, apparel and accessories brand Cuyana announced that it would be donating 500 of its Classic Structured Tote Bags to Smart Works, a U.K. charity that helps unemployed and vulnerable women find work by providing them with coaching tips and professional attire for job interviews. Meghan has served as patron of Smart Works since 2019. The organization is one of the four original public patronages she received after marrying Prince Harry in 2018.
Style-wise, the Duchess of Sussex has also long been a fan of Cuyana, a California-based, female-led sustainable brand and its Classic Structured Tote, carrying the bag at Wimbledon in 2014 and even filling the totes with goodies as thank-you favors for friends who attend her NYC baby shower for son Archie in 2019.
Cuyana shared the news online ahead of Giving Tuesday, where Meghan made a statement about what the partnership means to her.
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"Over the years, I've had the privilege of witnessing the magic of Smart Works - women's confidence and lives transformed," the Archetypes host began. "Smart Works invests in women so they know they can thrive in any workplace, and Cuyana is a company that is by women and for women, so this feels like the perfect fit. Similar to the Smart Set collection we created many years ago for Smart Works, this collaboration will support women in the UK as they mobilize back into the workforce. I am proud to bring these two together to further our shared mission of uplifting and empowering women all around the globe."
The donation will see 500 women being helped by Smart Works receive the office must-have, "enhancing their readiness for the workplace and providing them with the confidence they need ahead of their interview," Cuyana said.
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While living in the U.K., Meghan visited the Smart Works office in London multiple times to meet with women benefitting from the charity's support, helping them choose outfits and sitting in on interview coaching sessions. Meghan has remained close to the cause since she and Harry, 38, stepped back from their senior royal roles in March 2020, making video calls and sending supportive messages to women job hunting with Smart Works.
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One project with her Smart Works partnership was launching a capsule collection of women's workwear in September 2019. In a call celebrating the Smart Set Capsule Collection one year later, Meghan spoke about the power of the charity, which has helped 25,000 women since it opened its doors in 2013.
"People can say that so much of Smart Works is about the clothes themselves, but it's really not," she said at the time. "All of that stuff is the exterior, but it's what it does for you on the inside that ends up being the best accessory. It's the confidence. It's what's built within, that is the piece that you walk out of that room with and walk into that interview with that will take you to the next layer of success. That's what I love so much about the organization."
