Harry and Meghan spend more than two hours in Ilapothecary herbal ‘wellness’ boutique loved by Natalia Portman and Gwyneth Paltrow that uses healing chants and practises ancient belief of ‘Numerology’
- Duke and Duchess of Sussex spotted at the centre in Notting Hill, west London
- Its 45-minute Happy Hormone Equilibrium claims to aid in post-birth recovery
- Harry and Meghan spent more than two hours at the store in Kensington
Harry and Meghan (pictured on their recent visit to New Zealand) were spotted at Ilapothecary in Notting Hill
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex visited a wellbeing centre that offers homeopathic treatments and promotes numerology with just weeks until Meghan gives birth.
The royal couple spent two-and-a-half hours at the flagship Ilapothecary store in Kensington, west London, on Friday.
Numerology – a belief in the mystical nature of numbers in relation to events that others may consider coincidental – is one of services offered at the centre.
Other treatments at the Notting Hill venue include 432 Re-Balancing Reflexology, which uses vibrational sound healing in a bid to attune the body ‘with the natural frequency of the universe’ to calm the brain.
Its Happy Hormone Equilibrium package – which costs £65 for 45 minutes – claims to assist recovery from childbirth by using an ‘adaptogenic Castor Oil packing system to support the reproductive system’.
Harry and Meghan were seen leaving the shop, which also promises customers ‘energy healing’, after more than two hours inside.
Natalie Portman, Gwyneth Paltrow and Donna Karan are customers at the store, according to the shop’s website.
The site refers to founder Denise Leicester as a ‘world visionary’ who ‘has spent a lifetime exploring the dynamics of natural healing’.
Pictured: The Ilapothecary store in Notting Hill, Kensington, that Harry and Meghan spent more than two hours in on Friday
The store also offers this SOS Body Balm (left) and Keep Calm Hand and Boy Lotion (pictured, right)
A former nurse, she has also held positions as a sound healer, holistic body worker, ‘spiritual philosopher’.
According to the site, her first brand Ila was named after the Hindu goddess of truth, despite the Ila deity being primarily known for sex changes.
The androgyne deity was also thought to represent speech, but not necessarily the concept of truth.
Leicester merged her first venture’s name with the medical term apothecary to name her shop Ilapothecary.
Stella McCartney and May Lindstrom also reportedly use Leicester’s products.
The royal couple’s visit to the store comes after it was revealed that the duchess has also been working with a doula ahead of the birth, which is expected in late April.
With just weeks to go until the due date, the doula has been providing emotional support.
Although doulas offer advice on births, they are not medical professionals. A source told Us Weekly that Meghan is focusing on ‘calm and positive’ energy around the birth.
Who is founder Denise Leicester?
Dubbed the ‘alchemist’ of Ilapothecary on the company’s site, Denise Leicester (pictured, right) is a former nurse and midwife at Middlesex Hospital in the 70s.
According to a Telegraph profile, she moved to Tehran to be with an Iranian man but was airlifted out with other Brits when the revolution hit in 1979.
In 1983 she turned her back on western medicine after she had to adapt her methods while caring for patients in Dubai.
She cared for the royal family while there, according to Healing Holidays.
Six years later she took her first trip to India and immersed her self in mindfulness meditation.
She founded Ila in 2007, offering a range of spa products and treatments specialising in skincare. In its first year, Leicester’s company saw sales of more than £250,000.
By 2012 was selling her goods to 70 spas in 32 countries. Her flagship store is located in Notting Hill, Kensington, west London.