Kate Middleton inspired mum Carole to make this huge life change - and she won’t be stopping any time soon

Kate Middleton inspired her mother Carole Middleton to make a major life change and set up her business after experiencing a birthday disappointment. 

• Carole Middleton has opened up about the role her three children Kate, Pippa and James played in inspiring her to set up her flourishing party supplies business, Party Pieces.
• She revealed it was Kate's birthday that helped spark the idea for this successful venture and she has just launched a new collection. 
• This royal news comes as Prince William announces a brand new project featuring Sir David Attenborough.

Kate Middleton’s mother Carole Middleton has given fans a sweet insight into how her eldest daughter helped her make one of her biggest life decisions. The Duchess of Cambridge became a senior member of The Firm after she married Prince William back in April 2011. The Middletons and the Royal Family are said to have a lovely bond and Carole reportedly plays a key role in helping to raise Kate and William’s three children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis. Whilst Prince William is said to have helped Carole and Michael Middleton adjust to being parents of the future queen.

Businesswoman Carole is known for her party supplies company, Party Pieces, where the Duchess of Cambridge once worked. Now she has revealed that Kate, along with her younger siblings Pippa and James Middleton, who recently married Alizée Thevenet, inspired her to set up this successful business. 

Opening up to the Daily Mail, Carole explained, “My children inspired my business and have been involved from the start, and the success that we've had has helped us build the life we have currently. I feel incredibly fortunate to have found the professional fulfilment I always wanted.”

The Party Pieces founder then went on to share that it was Kate in particular who helped spark the idea to set up her own business after Carole was left disappointed whilst planning her fifth birthday party. 

“All I could find were basic clown plates,” she said. “I realised there was a gap in the market for party ware that wasn't too expensive and which looked good, so decided to design my own. I took some prototypes to various High Street retailers and was turned away.”

Despite this initial set-back, however, Carole wasn’t to be deterred. Instead, she made the huge decision to set up her own business from her Berkshire home, leaving leaflets at her daughter’s nursery school.

“Thirty-five years later, I'm launching the Party Pieces collection,” Carole disclosed. “I suppose some things are worth the wait! So rather than slowing down, this is an exciting new chapter for me. I think I'll always be interested in party trends."

The Party Pieces collection, which has now officially launched online, includes Unicorn Fairy Princess, Dino Explorer and Shooting Star ranges and it will soon be available at select worldwide distributors for the first time.

This exciting new launch comes just months after Carole revealed the fun activities she does with her grandchildren when they spend quality family time together.

“I want to run down the hills, climb the trees and go through the tunnel at the playground. As long as I am able to, that’s what I’ll be doing. I cook with them, I muck around dancing, we go on bike rides,” she explained.

And it seems likely that Carole Middleton is also on hand to provide expert advice whenever Kate Middleton plans a party for George, Charlotte and Louis!