An article where Mary's stylist, Anja Alajdi talks a bit about working for Mary:
Marys stylist: - Jeg kalder aldrig kronprinsessen ved fornavn - De Kongelige
Translation of article in sn.dk
Marys stylist: Jeg kalder aldrig Kronprinsessen ved fornavn - Mary's stylist: I never adress the Crown Princess by her first name.
For nine years Anja Camilla Alajdi has been working as Crown Princess Mary's stylist, and through the years the close cooperation has developed into a friendship, where they also see each other a private occasions.
Despite a cooperation and friendship spanning many years, Anja Alajdi maintains her professional approach - for example she is not using informal you when addressing the Crown Princess, while working at Amalienborg, she tells in an interview with Pleasure, the lifestyle magazine of Børsen. (*)
- "I have my coffee in the staff lunch room (**), just like the rest of the staff. I am part of the staff, when at work and it may be that I'm a friend another day, but then it's a different invitation. I know my place and that, I believe, is my strength. You will never hear me address the Crown Princess by her first name either", says Anja Alajdi.
In 2002 (***) she was employed as a full-time stylist for Mary Donaldson, who at that time acutely needed advise for the wardrobe. Since then Mary Donaldson has become Crown Princess and a style icon world wide.
Nowadays Anja Camilla Alajdi only go to Amalienborg a couple of times a week, when the Crown Princess needs help finding clothes for official tasks.
Naturally Anja Alajdi also has other customers than the Crown Princess and together with the friend and goldsmith Marianne Dulong she has a jewelry company in the name of the friend.
She is aware that the cooperation with Crown Princess Mary has gotten her many more costumers, but she still get furious inside, when people ask too many intimate/personal questions:
- "You don't know what people can come up with in regards to asking questions. Is the Crown Princess paying for her clothes herself? Do you dress her every morning? And worse. People can be so indiscreet and there are things you just don't talk about, so I get that kind of questions shut down quickly", says Anja Alajdi.
(*) Børsen, a financial magazine. Equivalent to Financial Times.
(**) Actually kaffestue = coffee room. Another word for a room used by a small group of employees to have their lunch, a cup of coffee, a chat and sometimes meetings. Substitute with a word in your own language.
(***) No mistake. the article says 2002.
I've placed this article here because there isn't a staff and associate thread. Perhaps one should be created?