R&P is famous for its “bra fitting” service, whereby customers are assured of a perfect fit. The company is currently concentrated in London, including the flagship store in Knightsbridge. Van De Velde has expressed the desire to expand the franchise to the rest of the UK, and later abroad. R&P also serves A-list clients like Scarlett Johansson and Gwyneth Paltrow, not to mention Lady Gaga.

Van De Velde has taken 87% of the company, leaving 13% in the hands of current owner, June Kenton, who will continue to serve Her Majesty personally. “Royal Warrant holders in England have a personal relationship with the Palace, which is built up over a period of years,” explained Ignace Van Doorselaere, CEO of Van De Velde. “June Kenton has done excellent work for the royal household. We won’t be getting in the way of that.”

Kenton herself declines to give away any secrets of the royal dressing-room, but she has made plain her views on the Wonderbra and its famous cleavage. “You were born with two,” she told The Guardian. “And as far as Rigby & Peller are concerned, those two should be in the cups. They shouldn’t meet in the middle.”