Carole Middleton is no longer in the party goods business. Kate Middleton's mom has sold her company Party Pieces, the BBC reported today. Entrepreneur James Sinclair purchased Party Pieces for an undisclosed sum, and the company's 12 employees will remain on under the new ownership.
Carole launched Party Pieces, a mail order party supply and decoration company, in 1987.
"In January 1987, when I was 6 months pregnant, I decided to take myself off to the Spring Fair in Birmingham where I found a good selection of suppliers," Carole previously wrote of her company. "From there the idea evolved. I produced a little flyer which I circulated in local playgroups and very soon I was using our garden shed as a picking/packing room and office." She initially ran Party Pieces from the Middleton family's home in Bradfield, Berkshire.
Yet recently, after running into financial difficulties, the company was put into administration—meaning to "rescue a viable business that is insolvent due to cashflow problems"—and promptly sold. The Telegraph reported that "in an attempt to expand into America, the company struck a deal with the US supermarket chain Saker ShopRite under which it would sell Party Pieces-branded goods. But the move failed to turn around the firm’s fortunes, and two of its three investors resigned as directors earlier this year. The Middletons then hired [administrators] Interpath in March."
Administrators Interpath Advisory told the BBC that Party Pieces's business had been significantly impacted by the pandemic. "Party Pieces is a well-established brand with a proud British heritage, but like many other companies across the retail space had been impacted profoundly by the restrictions on social gatherings," Will Wright from Interpath said.
Sinclair, the new owner, is the founder and chief executive of the Partyman Group of companies. The Middletons have not commented on the sale.
Emily Burack (she/her) is the Senior News Editor for Town & Country, where she covers entertainment, culture, the royals, and a range of other subjects. Before joining T&C, she was the deputy managing editor at Hey Alma, a Jewish culture site. Follow her @emburack on Twitter and Instagram.
