Duchess Kate Stepped Out For Her First In-Person Engagement
After months of Zoom engagements, due to the lockdown, Duchess Kate has carried out her first in-person royal engagement.
On Thursday, June 18, the Duchess of Cambridge visited Fakenham Garden Centre, Mill Road, King’s Lynn, Norfolk. She dropped in to show her support for local businesses.
The Duchess, known for her love of gardening, wanted to encourage people to visit local businesses as they start to reopen.
At the garden center, Kate met the owners Martin and Jennie Turner and talked about the measures that they have had to take to enable the business to safely reopen.
The Duchess also revealed that she loves coming to garden centres with her three children, George, Charlotte and Louis.
“They love it,” she said with a smile. “It’s such a great space for children and families to come to garden centres.
She said:Â “I’ve been food shopping, but I have to say I haven’t been out a huge amount more but it’s good and so important, now as things start to ease, people know they can go out and particularly to places like this.”
She also said that she and husband William had found the social effects of the pandemic unsettling. “When we do our food shopping we notice that everyone keeps their head down and it’s hard for that social interaction.”
For the occasion, Duchess Kate wore a quilted Fjallraven hunting waistcoat, a pale blue shirt, brown skinny jeans and Superga khaki trainers.
Meanwhile, Prine William carried out his second engagement. He visited Smiths the Bakers in Kings Lynn, a local, family-run bakery, which has been in business for 50 years. They reopened on Monday after 11 weeks of closure.
He spoke the owners and members of staff about how the coronavirus restrictions have impacted them.
The royal couple’s engagements come after Prince William made his first public appearance on Tuesday, since March. He visited the Kings Lynn Ambulance station to thank ambulance workers who have been responding to the COVID-19 outbreak.
This is not the first time Kate has stopped at the Fakenham Garden Centre. Back in 2016, she visited it together with her son, Prince George. They were spotted enjoying a mother-son bonding day in the garden centre, which is just a 25-minute drive from their country home Amner Hall. Duchess Kate and Prince George were reportedly often spotted by locals around the area enjoying trips together.