Are Kate Middleton’s Parents Guilty Of Using The Duchess As A Cash Cow?

Kate Middleton’s parents certainly know how to turn a buck. Their Party Pieces company has made Mr and Mrs Middleton millionaires, but are Kate’s parents guilty of cashing in on their daughter’s royal connections?

Cynics would say, “Hell yeah!” Especially in the light of recent revelations involving a certain bracelet that Kate Middleton was pictured wearing.

Whilst touring New Zealand in April, Kate was given the sort of colorful band which are currently very popular with children all over the world and go by the name of Rainbow Looms.
Kate was photographed sporting the glittery must-have accessory for children and two months later, Carole and Michael Middleton are selling products very similar to Rainbow Looms on their Party Pieces website.

Is it all mere coincidence or are Kate Middleton’s folks exploiting both their royal connections and the latest kid’s craze to hustle a dollar or two?

You can’t really blame the Middletons. Since being invented in the U.S. last year by father-of-two Cheong Choon Ng, Rainbow Looms have sold more than four million kits worldwide.

And it’s not just Kate Middleton wearing them. Rainbow Looms are Amazon bestsellers, and the simple and colorful rubber bands which are weaved together to make friendship bracelets have been worn by everyone from Miley Cyrus to Harry Styles and David Beckham,

Here’s the rub though. Since Kate Middleton and Prince William were seen wearing Rainbow Looms in New Zealand, the country’s largest craft retailer Hobbycraft have reported that sales have rocketed through the roof.

The Daily Mail reported that, Hobbycraft have said that sales of Rainbow Looms have risen by 331 percent since Kate was seen rocking the look.

Obviously Mr and Mrs Middleton know a good thing when they see it. When Kate was pregnant with Prince George the Middleton’s website made a point of selling miniature castles, ‘prince’ and ‘princess’ banners, balloons and a whole host of other royal baby-themed products at quite expensive prices.

The Party Pieces website which was founded by Carole Middleton in 1987 also made a point of selling a wealth of paraphernalia related to other royal occasions, such as the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and Kate and William’s wedding.

Now with the arrival of their Glitter Loom range priced at a rather substantial £2.99 a kit, and the Middleton’s pleas to “join the latest craze with this multicolored loom band pack”, it would appear that Kate Middleton could always ask her parents for a bit of extra money to add to the £4.5 million that the British tax-payer has already contributed to Kate Middleton and Prince William’s Kensington Palace flat refurbishment.

After all, at the end of every rainbow there’s a pot of gold.