Prince Harry’s Girlfriend Meghan Markle’s Favorite British Boot Brand Opens in Her Backyard
Charlie Carballo
Executive Digital Director
British boot brand Hunter will be stomping out in new territory with the launch of its first store in North America.
Doors will open in October in Toronto, where Prince Harry‘s girlfriend Meghan Markle resides when she’s filming her legal drama “Suits” — and now the celebrity fan of the label can pick up the footwear at its new Yorkdale Shopping Centre outpost.
The foray across the pond will mark the third stand-alone store for the brand after opening shops in London and Tokyo.
“Toronto’s diversity and vibrancy makes it one of North America’s most exciting places to be and reflects the Hunter ethos,” creative director Alasdhair Willis told WWD.
Willis added that North America represents Hunter’s largest region for business and the U.S. is its biggest market. The brand has a presence in more than 30 countries, and more growth is on the radar.
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“Q4 is a very important period for us,” Willis explained. “And we are planning activity in New York and London, in addition to the Yorkdale store opening, in line with that. Details to be outlined in due course.”
Willis identified Taiwan as another important market for the brand.
Hunter’s Toronto digs boast 2,800 square feet with a minimalist design aesthetic that nods to its outdoorsy heritage — even down to the floors, which incorporate rubber material from the brand’s Original green boot, WWD noted.
The store will launch with Hunter’s fall 2017 men’s, women’s and kids’ Hunter Original footwear, outerwear, accessories and the Hunter Field technical collection.
Markle, who was catapulted to worldwide fame last year after it was revealed that she is Prince Harry’s girlfriend, was spotted in the British footwear label’s Original Tall Gloss boots while visiting the royal in London, where Hunter has a flagship store.
She joins several other boldface names who are fond of the brand. Rita Ora, Ellie Goulding and Cara Delevingne were among the celebrity fans who waded through the mud in Hunter boots at the Glastonbury Festival in June last year.
