Standing on the stage at Claridge’s in Mayfair, Harper Beckham appeared paralysed with nerves. Dressed in a custom-made gown by Victoria’s VB label, she was there to present her mother with a prestigious award for entrepreneurship, on behalf of Harper’s Bazaar magazine at its annual Women of the Year event.
With the likes of Dame Jilly Cooper and actress Jodie Comer in the audience, the 13-year-old’s anxiety was understandable.
‘I’m so nervous,’ confessed Harper, to sympathetic cooing. ‘Especially as tonight’s a school night. Hopefully this isn’t going to get me in trouble,’ she added, before praising her mum as someone she’s ‘always looked up to’.
‘She’s built an incredible business from the ground up and has shown me the value of working hard. But above all, she’s taught me to always be kind and, even though she has a million things to do, she rarely misses school.’
And with that, 50-year-old Victoria – ‘my amazing mummy’ – stepped on to the stage and received her gong from her daughter.
Of course, Harper isn’t a total stranger to the limelight. She appears on the family Instagram accounts and is a permanent fixture on the front row of Posh’s fashion shows. She is also often seen cheering on her dad David’s Inter Miami CF football team in Florida.
But her appearance at the high-profile fashion event undoubtedly marks her debut as a celebrity in her own right.
Welcome to the Beckhams 2.0, where little Harper is set to make millions thanks to being the only daughter of Britain’s biggest celebrity brand. It won’t hurt that the moment was captured by a camera crew filming for Victoria’s forthcoming Netflix documentary, nor that big brother Romeo, 22, took to Instagram to congratulate Harper on her first bonafide solo outing.
In fact, Harper’s appearance mirrors that of her eldest brother Brooklyn in 2013. Then a nervous 14-year-old, he accompanied Victoria to the Glamour magazine awards, where, in David’s absence, she referred to him as her ‘date’ for the night.
Dressed in a smart black suit, but still baby-faced, Brooklyn looked similarly terrified as guests at the event made beelines for him. Today, he is a self-assured influencer, making millions from endorsement deals and married to the daughter of a billionaire.
He might have looked like a rabbit in the headlights back then, but now he clearly feels at ease in the world of fashion and celebrity.
Yesterday, one industry insider mused: ‘That’s when it all began for Brooklyn, and yes, there are some parallels between him and his little sister now.’ So will Harper, the Beckhams’ much longed for daughter, follow in her brother’s footsteps, or indeed in her mother’s?
It looks very likely. On one video shared by Posh last month to her 33million Instagram followers, Harper confirmed her desire to ‘create an amazing brand’ when she’s older.
That may be in the not too distant future, because Victoria has already incorporated a business called H7B Limited, matching the teenager’s full name, Harper Seven Beckham. H7B also has the former Spice Girl and a solicitor listed as directors,
and Victoria will almost certainly take charge of Harper’s social media when she begins using it.
While sources close to the Beckhams say any use of the business is ‘not imminent’, this week’s awards will no doubt make brands keen to work with her – I’m told some have already been in touch. Harper is, after all, among the most famous 13-year-olds in the country.
One insider said she would be ‘a dream’ for cosmetics firms popular with young girls her age, such as Drunk Elephant or Glossier. But Harper’s protective dad David, 49, who was notably absent from the awards, has never been as comfortable about his children being celebrities as their mother. Youngest son Cruz signed with Justin Bieber’s manager Scooter Braun to release a pop record in 2016, aged just 11.
Meanwhile Brooklyn, then 17, got a deal with Penguin Random House to release What I See – a book of his photography. And Romeo, who was 14 in 2016, had already modelled for Burberry. Victoria has in the past been mocked within their social circle for being a ‘momager’, the term coined for Kris Jenner, the mother of the Kardashian and Jenner sisters. So are the Beckhams aligned when it comes to their daughter?
Harper and David are said to be ‘very close’. He has always done the school run from their £31million mansion in Holland Park, west London. And I’m told that he does his best to shield her from the fame that at times irks him.
‘There has always been a fear that because Harper is the only girl, she will have a much bigger profile than her big brothers,’ says one associate of the Beckhams.
‘She’s a lovely girl and David just wants her to stay innocent for as long as she can. Basically, they just do not want her to turn into Paris Hilton,’ they add, referring to the socialite reality TV star and scion of the family that founded the Hilton hotel business.
Following Harper’s speech on Tuesday night, Victoria said: ‘Getting up on stage in front of a room full of people is scary and you did it with such poise and such elegance.
‘You teach me to see the world through fresh eyes. And as busy as I am, being a mum is the most important job to me.’
I’m told that while Victoria and Harper did contribute to their speeches, they were written by the fashionista’s publicity team.
What didn’t go unnoticed was that the event was hosted by a magazine bearing Harper’s name.
One source close to the Beckhams said: ‘Victoria is not stupid. You can see what she did there, and you can see why some still call her the momager.’ Whether she’s the best in the business, only time will tell.
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