'The Prince William effect' is the bizarre phenomenon nobody could have predicted

Ever since marrying into the monarchy all the way back in 2011, Kate Middleton has been somewhat hailed as a fashion icon - with high-street dupes of the Princess' royal garms often selling out fast.

And it looks as though her husband is finally attempting to catch up with her stylish ways, with one beautician claiming that others are now copying his rugged new look in a movement known as the 'Prince William effect'.

William now seems to be following in his wife's fashionable footsteps (Karwai Tang/WireImage)

As we say, the title of William's new influencing ways comes years after 'the Kate effect' hit headlines across the world - it even has its own Wikipedia page!

The trend describes the economic impact that the mother-of-three has had over the fashion industry in the last decade, with industry experts alleging that she boosts UK wealth by an estimated £1 million per year.

In the years since wedding William, countless of the high-fashion outfits she has worn out in public have sold out in record time.

Remember the Reiss 'Nanette' dress that she wore during her first royal tour? It cleared the shelves in a matter of a minutes, and is still being sold on eBay for double the price it originally went for.

There was a similar situation when she rocked a pair of Alicia Camilla Elphick pumps for a 2022 charity polo match, after which the designer claimed 'the phones didn't stop ringing all day' and that the shoes 'completely sold out'.

And while spectators previously believed her hubby was ceaselessly playing catch-up when it came to her head-turning get-ups, many now reckon that William's bearded new look has skyrocketed him into favour with fashion buffs.

William debuted his rugged new look earlier this summer (Justin Tallis - WPA Pool/Getty Images)

The 42-year-old future King debuted his shabby-chic look earlier this summer, with fans pleasantly surprised at how much it suits him.

So much so, that when his Instagram followers expressed their devastation when he later shaved it all off, he grew his beard straight back within a matter of weeks, and has kept it bushy ever since.

William's new appearance is now said to have inspired other blokes around the world to grow out their own facial hair - and even those who can't grow a beard are looking for alternative ways to do so.

Aesthetics clinic owner Murat Alsac - who co-found EsteNove in Istanbul, Turkey - told the Express this week that his staff have seen a staggering search in men enquiring about beard transplants, as part of what is being referred to as 'the William effect'.

"People are bringing in pictures of Prince William on their phones and saying, 'Make me look like that'", Alsac claimed.

"They think it looks rugged and masculine."

He went on to claim: "The number of transplants we are carrying out has increased by 200 percent."

William claimed Charlotte isn't thrilled with his beard (Samir Hussein/WireImage)

By the sounds of things, however, despite fashionistas across the globe heaping praise onto William, there's one person not too pleased with his hairy new look.

Speaking at an event in Cape Town last month, the Prince revealed that his and Kate's daughter implored with him to get rid of it.

According to People Magazine, William told spectators: "Well Charlotte didn't like it the first time. I got floods of tears, the first one I got tears, so I had to shave it off.

"Then I grew it back. I thought, hang on a second, and I convinced her it was going to be okay."