Crowning glory

Look in your closet or kitchen cupboard and you might find you have grander tastes than you thought. Whether it’s a crisp poplin-cotton shirt or a piquant table sauce, around 800 companies have the right to bear the ciphers of the Windsor family on their goods, ranging from the echelons of high fashion – including Burberry and Cartier – to essential services, like Jeeves of Belgravia dry cleaners and Milborrow Chimney Sweeps.

While the coat of arms on a Colman’s Mustard jar or Burberry trench could appear to be just another token of endorsement, these Royal Warrants of Appointment are far removed from the money- spinning celebrity collabs churned out by the dozen. There is no financial gain for the grantee of a royal warrant and the companies that hold them bill their royal clientele as they would any other customer; goods or services are not gifted. A royal warrant is perhaps one of the few original stamps of commendation that has to be honestly earned – not bought – in our age of modern consumerism. “In a market where most things are attainable through purchase, the royal warrant is coveted as it is only awarded through the continuous supply of product of an unwavering standard – in both function and production – and must be reapplied for every five years,” says Gerald Bodmer, CEO of Launer, which supplied Queen Elizabeth II with her signature handbags from the 1960s onwards. During the Platinum Jubilee, of course, Launer was immortalised when Her Late Majesty revealed in an endearing skit with Paddington Bear what we all wanted to know – what does she stash in her bag? Marmalade sandwiches, it transpired.

Dan Jago, CEO of Purdey, gun and clothing maker, which has held an unbroken line of royal warrants since 1868, also agrees the strength of the royal warrant is its integrity. “A warrant is not an endorsement – it’s not about commerciality. It’s about being able to say that you have been recognised as producing the very best. People look at it and think you must have done something good to deserve that,” he explains. “Whether you offer the service or product it shows that you reached a level of either skill or quality that is appreciated by the royal family,” echoes Robert Stephenson, Deputy Chairman of Lock & Co. Hatters, which held the late Duke of Edinburgh’s warrant from 1953 until 2023. Alongside this is the warrant’s sense of continuity – a word often associated with monarchy – proving that it is also an institution that aims to provide context and stability as society shifts on its axis. “There’s longevity to a business with a royal warrant – it’s not a company that’s just started up that could become insolvent as soon as you have an issue with a purchase,” adds Stephenson, whose family firm has been trading since 1676.

At the most basic level, even the staunchest republican would admit the arcane magic of monarchy has long held sway over the public psyche – and the royal warrant has a cachet like no other by association. “The United Kingdom has one of the last great monarchies and it’s no exaggeration to say the royal family is among the most powerful brands on the planet,” says Joanne Milner, CEO of Garrard, long-serving jeweller to the royal household. It’s an effect that stretches well beyond Britain’s fair shores. “There’s appreciation abroad for the clout and prestige the warrants represent. A royal accreditation is incredibly exotic from an outsider’s perspective,” explains Luc Goidadin, Creative Director of Smythson, the Bond Street stationer that holds three warrants. Robert Ettinger, Chairman and CEO of leather goods firm Ettinger, which gained the Prince of Wales’s warrant in 1996, is familiar with this potency. “We were struggling to break into the Japanese market – they are very choosy. The year I turned up with a royal warrant, it changed everything. I’m convinced it was the warrant as the product hadn’t changed,” he recalls. Japan is now one of the brand’s biggest markets.

Although the origins of the royal warrant can be traced back to the medieval period, the modern royal warrant system – presided over by the Royal Warrant Holders Association – originated in 1840, during Queen Victoria’s reign. Today the acquiring – and retaining – of a royal warrant follows a stringent process, where a business must supply a royal household with goods or services for five years within a seven-year period before it can apply for a warrant, and it can take a year to gather the necessary material. “The requirements of the warrants are extremely detailed, technical and, above all, ambitious; the audit process is incredibly rigorous, robust and exhaustive,” says Goidadin.

But what happens to warrants when the grantee dies? In the case of the Duke of Edinburgh and Queen Elizabeth II, firms have two years after the death of the grantee before warrants expire, in which time they can attempt to transfer their association to another horse of the royal stable. And the transitional period between monarchs also presents an opportunity for a royal warrant’s symbolism to evolve. For King Charles III, who, as Prince of Wales, never shied away from tackling ecological issues, the companies he chooses to patronise will no doubt gain further green kudos. “His Majesty’s passionate commitment to the environment, sustainability and traditional trades for many years will give an even greater significance to his warrants,” observes Steve Quin, Head of Bespoke at Turnbull & Asser.

In fact, sustainability and ethics – covering everything from plastic use to modern slavery – has been a pillar of the application process for a royal warrant for 15 years; its purpose being to influence change for the better, from the top. “The sustainability document of the warrant application has made us think even more about how we conduct our business – our factory was built in 1890 and we’ve now installed double glazing, new roofs, boilers and LED lighting to improve our energy efficiency,” says Ettinger.

This, perhaps, is where the future significance of the warrants lies. In an era where republics are the norm and monarchies the minority, the meaning of a royal warrant needs to feel relevant for the next generation, where deference is not always default, but has to be earned. For Gen Z, who consume trends and topics through a dynamic and capricious digital lens, the ability for warrants
to address the social and ecological issues we face is key. “This is where the warrants are really going to shine for the younger generation,” says Stephenson of Lock & Co. Hatters. “It’s not just that we make a good-quality product. You can be assured that we don’t buy from a sweatshop in Bangladesh. We source materials responsibly, look after our staff and give back to the community. Our customer is getting younger and they’re asking these questions.”

“The warrants have a powerful tradition and perhaps they are even more relevant today when there is much opportunity for an appreciation of what they stand for and such a need for action,” adds Mark Henderson, former Chairman of Gieves & Hawkes, the Savile Row atelier that could be legitimately called ‘the royal tailor’.

Like the British monarchy, which has weathered the shifts of time in a trapeze-like balancing act between tradition and modernity, royal warrants with their subtle evolution can remain a gold standard of certainty and trust in what can seem like an ever-uncertain world. Because as a wise lady once said, “It’s worth remembering that it is often the small steps, not the giant leaps, that bring about the most lasting change.”