Meghan Markle to return to royal duties from maternity leave with launch of fashion collection
Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, is returning from maternity leave to launch a fashion collection, one of her most high-profile projects to date.
The duchess, 38, will launch the Smart Works capsule collection in London next Thursday, Sept. 12, according to Buckingham Palace.
The capsule collection of "workwear essentials" will benefit Smart Works, a U.K. charity for women of which Meghan is patron. The collection was first announced at the end of July in a piece Meghan wrote for the September issue of British Vogue, which she guest edited.
Meghan surprised a group of women last month at a photo shoot for the capsule collection. The surprise, which also offered a sneak peek of the collection, was shared as an Instagram story on @SussexRoyal, the official account she shares with her husband, Prince Harry.
Meghan partnered on the collection with her friend and designer Misha Nonoo, as well as Jigsaw, a British fashion line, and U.K.-based retailers John Lewis & Partners and Marks & Spencer.
The line includes “work wear essentials to help equip Smart Works’ clients with the key essentials they need as they attend interviews and enter into the workplace – including a shirt, trousers, blazer, dress and bag,” Buckingham Palace announced in a statement Wednesday.
For each item purchased from the collection, one item will be shared with a woman at Smart Works.
"Not only does this allow us to be part of each other's story; it reminds us we are in it together," Meghan wrote in her British Vogue essay announcing the collection.
Meghan has technically been on maternity leave since her son's Archie's birth in May but has continued to work behind the scenes on initiatives, including the British Vogue issue and the capsule collection.
She and Harry and Archie will travel to South Africa later this month for their first official overseas tour as a family of three.
The family will visit South Africa on behalf of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, according to Buckingham Palace, which announced the family's trip in June.
Harry will also visit Malawi and Angola at the request of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office during the family's trip, and will also undertake a "working visit" to Botswana.
"On a personal note, I can’t wait to introduce my wife and son to South Africa! We’ll see all of you very soon," Harry wrote in a message shared on Instagram Sunday.
