Oh my goodness, it was incredible! My absolute favorite moment every year is watching my husband reveal all the gifts – this year there were twenty-four, all beautifully wrapped – under the enormous Christmas tree we have in our living room. We’re so lucky to have a bit of space here in Oxfordshire to really go all out with the decorations, and honestly, I just squealed with happiness when I saw it all!
He showed her a large collection of gifts and said, ‘I got you an advent calendar—a present for each day leading up to Christmas!’
‘How on earth have I not seen this?’ Leonora replied, acting totally surprised.
She opened the first gift: a £695 Aspinal handbag and a £150 silk scarf. “This is unbelievable!” she said. “I can’t believe we’re going to get to do this every day.”
The video has gained almost nine million views, quickly making Leonora, who used to be a smaller influencer focused on luxury goods, one of the most popular creators on TikTok.
What appears to be a deeply romantic act is actually a remarkably successful marketing campaign by a luxury brand, and one of the best influencer collaborations of the year.
And, as it turns out, very little about it was accidental.
Leonora, age 30, shares a glamorous countryside lifestyle with her nearly 300,000 Instagram followers, focusing on elegance and tradition. A former professional showjumper, she turned to brand consulting after an injury, launching ‘Luxury by Leonora’ to help upscale companies. Because of her background, she deeply understands what inspires people and how to effectively market that inspiration.
I’m hearing that TV producers once considered creating a reality show about her life, but it never happened. However, with the recent buzz around Leonora – sparked by her advent calendar – that could potentially change.
Actually, the idea for everything wasn’t Mark Cosgrove-Smith’s – it came from Leonora’s social media team! Anna and Anoushka, who handle all her online content – filming, editing, and planning – came up with the concept last year after seeing a similar series become popular.
In a video posted to Leonora’s YouTube channel last November, Anna and Anoushka explained they’d seen a similar idea on TikTok from a creator named Isobel Lorna – someone Leonora really likes. Leonora had mentioned taking a break, letting Anna and Anoushka create the 37-minute video. In the video, they admitted to buying all the gifts for an advent calendar and then filmed themselves wrapping them.
Just three days into last year’s advent calendar event, Isobel, who wasn’t well-known at the time, had already gained 30,000 followers. Her Christmas Eve gift was a £3,000 Van Cleef necklace, and on Christmas Day, she received a Porsche filled with presents. She said her boyfriend bought them for her, but he remains unidentified to her now-large following of 540,000 people.
‘The idea was to turn [the concept] into a daily series for Leonora,’ said her social media team.
This month has been filled with incredible gifts! So far, she’s received an Aspinal handbag and scarf, plus luxury items like £695 Louboutin heels, £500 lingerie from Agent Provocateur, £300 of Eve Lom skincare, a £395 Nadine Merabi dress, £195 Cornelia James gloves, and a £2,000 Paloma diamond necklace. The gifts also include Hermes accessories and even a £2,000 weekend getaway to Paris, complete with a stay at the Mandarin Oriental.
At the time of writing, on day 17, the total cost of the gifts tops £10,000.
It would be easy to assume her husband personally bought and wrapped all the gifts.
One person commented, ‘I hope I find a love like that,’ while another simply enjoyed watching videos about wealthy people.
Leonora’s popularity has exploded, with her fanbase now reaching 109,000. Experts estimate she’s earning at least £300 per video, which typically last around two minutes. With a week until Christmas, she still has a great opportunity to increase her earnings even further.
One thing’s certain: every morning, Leonora will pretend to be surprised when she opens her present.
Her upbringing embodies classic British privilege. She grew up wealthy, with part of her childhood spent in the United States, specifically in a luxurious, planned community in Lake Nona, Florida – a place known for its large houses and perfectly maintained landscapes.
When she was six, her family moved back to the UK, settling near Henley-on-Thames.
When Leonora was fourteen, she began training with the renowned Eric van der Vleuten stables in the Netherlands. She described it as a challenging but necessary immersion into the world of competitive riding.
I’ve been following her career for years, and it was amazing to see how quickly things took off! By the time she was twenty, she’d already moved to Belgium to really focus on showjumping, living just outside Brussels for a couple of years. Then, she spent another three years based in Germany, continuing to build her incredible skills and compete at the highest level. It was so exciting to watch her progress!
I had a really amazing childhood, despite being a terrible kid! From ages two to eleven, I was constantly getting into trouble. I used to throw things out of windows and even run off when we visited theme parks. I was a climber too – I’d swing from the chandelier and hang from it whenever I could.
Leonora grew up in a household with domestic staff and attended the prestigious St George’s School in Ascot, where tuition costs up to £18,000 each term. She’s a trained opera singer, which complements the sophisticated, upper-class image she presents on social media.
Leonora met Mark, now 42, at a horse show in England when she was aged just 16.
‘I thought: “Who is that old man?”‘ she has joked.
Mark, originally from Glasgow, was immediately attracted to Leonora, but he hesitated when he discovered she was older than he initially thought. Two years later, they ran into each other again at a horse show in St. Tropez. Mark, a successful asset manager, was there working for a friend of both of them.
Leonora explained that she quickly fell in love with him. They met while she was on a twelve-week summer tour, and he joined her, traveling with her the entire time.
Mark and his wife have been together ever since they met, and they got married in August 2021. Mark now owns and manages Smith Equestrian Ltd, continuing his career in the competitive horse industry where they first connected.
Leonora began her career focusing on show jumping competitions, and she achieved a major victory by winning the 2017 Monaco Grand Prix.
But a serious riding accident changed everything.
She explained that the horse struck a pole, causing it to spin around. It then fell on top of her, resulting in a shattered collarbone and severe damage to the muscles and tissues from her neck to her shoulder.
It absolutely killed me when Leonora had to stop competing – she was just incredible to watch! But honestly, being at the shows and seeing other riders on her horses? I couldn’t handle it. It was too heartbreaking. Thankfully, she’s amazing and used all the connections she made through riding – and her family, of course – to launch herself into the luxury world. She’s thriving, and it’s so good to see her doing well, even if it’s not in the arena anymore. I’m following her new ventures closely, and she’s a natural!
She started by planning events for Cartier, but eventually decided she’d be more fulfilled as her own boss. So, she launched her own consulting business.
She’s currently a full-time social media influencer, but also works in social media marketing and represents brands professionally. She’s partnered with well-known companies like Rolls-Royce, Cartier, and Jo Malone.
Leonora and Mark live on Leonora’s family’s farm near Henley-on-Thames. Their family also owns other properties in Britain and Majorca.
The Henley family’s estate, Crazies Hall, is estimated to be worth £20 million. It includes a large property spanning 80 acres, with ten bedrooms, ten bathrooms, and five living areas. They also own a beautiful manor house in Majorca, complete with eight acres of carefully maintained gardens. Leonora’s social media posts reveal the family frequently travels by private jet, including a recent extravagant safari trip to South Africa.
She mentioned that they plan to have children eventually, but they’re focused on their careers and goals right now.
Leonora’s father, Roger Smee, is a 77-year-old businessman who’s made a name for himself in property and sports. He owns seven companies and received an MBE in 2013 for his community work with young people in Berkshire.
Roger played for Reading FC in the late 1960s and later became the club’s chairman. He’s well-known for preventing a merger between Reading and Oxford United, successfully opposing a plan by Robert Maxwell.
In 1990, he left his position to concentrate on his real estate holdings, which have grown to include international projects like Pacific India, a large shopping center in Delhi.
Roger recently tried to purchase Reading Football Club for around £25 million, but his offer was not accepted.
Leonora has even admitted that her father supports her ‘almost too much’.
Her brother, Cameron, works in finance. Meanwhile, her mother, Karen, is gaining a following on Instagram by sharing posts about a comfortable, country lifestyle.
She often shows up in Leonora’s videos, like a December advent calendar video where she playfully gives her daughter a ‘bag of coal’ as a reminder of Leonora’s own mischievous childhood.
And Leonora, for her part, played the astonished ingenue to perfection.
She expressed her amazement on the second day, saying, ‘We’re overwhelmed by how many people have watched our video! Thank you so much for all the love and support – I’m truly shocked.’
Leonora perfectly represents a growing trend among British influencers: she embodies a classic, wealthy style while also expertly leveraging that image to earn money and inspire her audience.
Her advent calendar isn’t just a holiday tradition—it’s a brilliant example of personal branding. It presents a carefully crafted image of luxury, giving people a glimpse into a life of wealth, private travel, and lavish gifts.
How people interpret her actions – as a fun distraction or a show of arrogance – often depends on their perspective.
Either way, it appears Leonora Smee has done exactly what she set out to do.
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2025-12-17 20:23