Kate Middleton's mom 'desperately' trying to shield princess from family's $300K business debt: report
Carole and her husband, Michael Middleton, are in more than $300,000 debt, according to a new report from The Times UK, which claims they have been unable to pay off the money after their business went into administration last year.
The financial hardship comes amid the Princess of Wales’ announcement that she is currently undergoing a round of preventative chemotherapy.
“Carole is desperately trying to keep Catherine fully focused on her recovery,” a source told Us Weekly Thursday, after The Times of London reported the extent of the Middletons’ financial troubles.
“It’s a very worrying time for the family but they are not looking for any assistance from their children and don’t want them to worry,” the insider added, referencing Kate’s sister, Pippa and brother, James.
“Catherine and her parents are very close and they always check in with each other, but talk about the business is off limits as she needs to focus on her health.”
Earlier this week, The Times reported that Michael and Carole’s business, The Party Pieces Company, cannot come up with the “£260,000 (over $329,000) insolvency firm costs” they owe after falling into administration last June with over £2.5 million ($3.16 million) of debt.
Royal commentator Afua Hagan said Carole would be doing “all she can” to prevent the princess from “stressing” amid her highly publicized cancer battle.
“It’s a stressful time at the moment and she will be pulling out all the stops to shield her daughter from this,” Hagan told Us Weekly. “Party Pieces has collapsed and it’s been devastating for the family, but Carole will be most concerned about Kate’s well-being right now.”
In 2021, the Party Pieces Company launched a retail partnership in America.
“It’s very exciting to see our Party Pieces Collection expanding into the US starting with Saker ShopRites, a leading retailer in New Jersey and family-owned business with a long history of commitment to the customers and communities its stores serve,” Carole said at the time.
However, several key financial backers left the company shortly after the expansion, and Interpath Advisory was appointed to manage the business’ collapse.
Interpath’s restructuring professionals, who were charging an “average hourly rate of £566 ($716)” quickly racked up a bill of more than $329,000.
Meanwhile, Kate, 42, has been laying low with her husband, Prince William, and their children, Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, 8, and Prince Louis, 5, after telling the world her cancer diagnosis “came as a huge shock.”
“William and I have been doing everything we can to process and manage this privately for the sake of our young family,” she said in a video released by Kensington Palace last month, following a flurry of conspiracy theories about her prolonged absence from the public eye.
