James William Middleton (born 15 April 1987)[1][2] is an English businessman and member of the Middleton family. Bakeries run by his Cake Kit Company make themed cakes and cake-making kits for birthdays and other occasions. He is the brother of Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge and read the lesson at her wedding to Prince William, Duke of Cambridge.
James was born in 1987, the youngest child and only son of Michael Middleton (b. 23 June 1949) who was then a British Airways flight dispatcher,[3] and Carole Goldsmith (b. 31 January 1955), a former flight attendant.[4][5][6] His father came from a long line of solicitors who resided in Leeds, in Yorkshire, and one of his great-grandmothers, Olive Lupton, belonged to a business family active in Leeds for generations.[7] Carole Middleton's mother's family were labourers and miners from County Durham.[8][9][6][10] His elder sisters areCatherine Elizabeth (born 1982) and Philippa Charlotte (born 1983).[11]
Prior to James' birth, his parents were based in Amman, Jordan, working for British Airways from May 1984, to September 1986, where eldest sister Catherine went to an English language nursery school,[12] before the family returned to their home in Bucklebury, Berkshire.[13] After the birth of her third child (James) in 1987, Carole set up 'Party Pieces', a company which began by making party bags and which now sells party supplies and decorations by mail order.[14] By 1995 the firm, run by both parents, was so successful that it moved into a range of farm buildings at Ashampstead Common.[14]
James was educated at St Andrew's School, Pangbourne, followed by Marlborough College. He started a degree in Environmental Resources Management at Edinburgh Universityin 2006 but left after one year to start his business.[15][16]
Middleton's cake-making business was inspired by reading that a mother’s baking is a highly evocative childhood memory – he wanted to supply baking kits so home bakers would be able to get all the ingredients in one place for adventurous creations such as "football cakes". He started baking himself, using the family kitchen, then expanded into a freight container and his business now bakes in converted barns. Themed cakes are baked for companies such as Jigsaw, 3 and Ralph Lauren.[15] "The entrepreneur was said to have caused 'shudders' at Buckingham Palace" after taking part in the Hello photoshoot and making 21 different cakes for them. "Each was iced with one of the magazine's memorable front pages, several of them depicting members of the Royal family, including, Diana, Princess of Wales".[17] Birthday cake baking kits are created for the domestic market with themes such as dinosaurs and football, which are then distributed through his parents' company, Party Pieces.[15][18]
Middleton's Cake Kit Company business has been nominated for several awards and won Smarta 100 and Haines Watts Young Entrepreneur awards. In April 2011 he registered three more businesses: Nice Cakes, Nice Wine and Nice Group London and has indicated that he plans to further expand the Cake Kit Company.[15][17]
The Daily Telegraph describes Middleton as a "young entrepreneur" who regularly puts in 14-hour days.[19]
As well as Cake Kit, he launched three other ventures – Nice Cakes, Nice Wine and Nice Group London.
As the only brother of the Duchess of Cambridge, Middleton attracts significant media attention in the UK and worldwide. He has stated his intention not to cash in on his royal connections in an interview with the Sunday Times, "I've won awards for my own efforts because I am young and good in my own right. It's not just because of my family that I've been getting attention. I want to be known for my own contribution, not for being a 'relative of' - that's boring".
Middleton read the lesson at the wedding of his sister Catherine to Prince William. This was the Romans chapter 12, verses 1–2 and 9–18. The reading was from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible rather than the traditional Authorized Version of King James.[20] Due to his dyslexia, he had to learn the lection off by heart, in order to not mix up the words.
He appeared with the bridal party, the Royal Family and the rest of the Middletons on the balcony of Buckingham Palace after the wedding ceremony.
James shares ancestors with his brother in law, Prince William; the closest relationship is via Prince William's mother and James' father through a common descent from Sir Thomas Fairfax and his wife Agnes (or Anne) Gascoigne[better source needed], daughter of Sir William Gascoigne and his wife, née Lady Margaret Percy.[22] This makes James and Prince William fifteenth cousins.[23] Sir Thomas Fairfax and Agnes Gascoigne are through Catherine's great-grandmother Olive Lupton, daughter of a Leeds cloth merchant Francis Lupton and his wife Harriet (née Davis) – Fairfax being an ancestor of Lupton. In turn Lady Margaret Percy[better source needed] is descended from Edward III.
No comments:
Post a Comment