It’s been just over eight years since Prince Harry confirmed that he was dating the actor Meghan Markle, transforming the Suits star into a household name nearly overnight. Though Meghan’s official title and career ambitions have changed a few times during that period, one thing has remained constant: she continues to showcase her personal style, and when she wears an article of clothing, it will probably sell out. This year, Meghan discussed how the phenomenon—often called “The Meghan Effect”—has shaped her own approach to dressing for the first time ever.

In an August interview with The New York Times, the duchess revealed that she had become an investor in Cesta Collective, a bag brand with a social mission, which has been a staple of her wardrobe since at least 2023. “I support designers that I have really great friendships with, and smaller, up-and-coming brands that haven’t gotten the attention that they should be getting,” she told the newspaper. “That’s one of the most powerful things that I’m able to do, and that’s simply wearing, like, an earring.”

In addition to her forthcoming lifestyle brand, Meghan reportedly has between five and ten companies in her portfolio, including Cesta Collective. Her investments also include Clevr, an innovative beverage company, PR firm Three Gate Strategies, founded by her friend and employee, and Highbrow Hippie, a haircare line founded by her colorist Kadi Lee, but at this point it is unknown whether she has investments in any the other brands she often wears.

Alongside her new role as a lifestyle entrepreneur, Meghan and Harry recommitted themselves to the type of public philanthropic work that makes international travel a necessity in 2024. On their technically-not-royal tours to Nigeria in May and Colombia in August, the duchess melded those two aims through her wardrobe. With fashion diplomacy in mind, she wore brands with deep ties to the locations she visited, while keeping an overall emphasis on women-owned brands.

On August 17, her two-track approach came together effortlessly. On a trip to a drum school in Cartagena, Meghan wore a patterned tank top with matching slacks by Johanna Ortiz, a Colombia-born designer who studied fashion in Miami. She accessorized with a Cartier Juste Un Clou necklace, earrings and a pendant by Ariel Gordon, brown suede sandals from longtime favorite Aquazzura, and a tan bag from Cesta Collective. (She actually owns two of the same style in different colors, having premiered the tan version at last year’s Invictus Games in Düsseldorf.)

Meghan also incorporated pieces by Heidi Merrick, a Los Angeles-based designer, into her wardrobe all year, most notably during an April trip to Miami for the annual Sentebale Royal Salute polo tournament. She also wore a blush-colored dress by the brand on a school visit on the first day in Nigeria. An array of brands founded by women, including Staud, Victoria Beckham, Misha Nonoo, Veronica Beard, Gabriela Hearst, Logan Hollowell Jewelry, and Leset, rounded out her looks this year.

For red carpet nights, however, Meghan returned to some of her most loved brands from her royal days. She wore a reworked version of a familiar Carolina Herrera dress to pose with friend Kelly McKee Zajfen at a fundraiser for the Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles on October 5. When she joined Tyler Perry at the Paley Gala on December 4, she wore a strapless Oscar De La Renta gown with a slit up the side and coquettish sweetheart neckline. After a few years where utility and quiet luxury reigned supreme in the duchess and mother-of-two’s wardrobe, Meghan still has a closet that is ready for showstopping moments.