Kate Hudson spent 17 years looking for her missing wedding coat. A man found it in a storage unit.
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- Kate Hudson's couture Vera Wang wedding coat has been missing since 2006.
- She wore the one-of-a-kind ensemble during her 2000 wedding to Chris Robinson.
- Chris Damon found the coat after buying a storage unit. Now he's returning it to Hudson.
After 17 years of searching, Kate Hudson will finally be reunited with her long-lost wedding coat.
Chris Damon said he discovered the couture Vera Wang garment after buying a storage unit at an auction in New York.
Chris, who lives in New Windsor, told Insider he's been buying storage units for years as a hobby and side hustle. He documents his finds on his YouTube channel, The Storage Gambler.
"I thought it looked fun, went to my first live auction and was instantly hooked," he said. "It feels like a treasure hunt."
But Chris said he had no idea there was treasure waiting inside a garment bag that had come with the $2,000 unit he purchased — even when he saw the name "Kate Hudson" on the dry-cleaning tag.
Chris Damon
"It didn't even cross my mind," he told Insider. "I just assumed someone had the same name."
Chris said he found a fur coat inside the bag with a tag that read "Made to Order Vera Wang." He showed it to his cousin Lucille Damon, who runs the vintage clothing store Galipette Vintage in New York's Hudson Valley.
"It looked like a bridal piece, so I immediately Googled 'Kate Hudson wedding' and the photo of her and Chris Robinson popped up," Lucille told Insider.
The coat was an exact match to the one Hudson had worn during her 2000 wedding to The Black Crowes frontman. The celebrity couple, who wed in Aspen, split in 2007. Hudson is currently engaged to musician Danny Fujikawa, who she began dating in 2016.
Chris Damon
And when Chris looked up the address on the dry-cleaner tag, he realized it was Hudson's former street in New York City's Greenwich Village — which now shares the same name as her vodka brand.
"I couldn't believe it," Chris said. "Me and Lucille were beyond excited that we found something so unique and special."
Lucille said she had "all the feels" when she realized what her cousin had found.
"I was shocked, excited, amazed," she said. "As a vintage dealer, part of the absolute joy of my work is the hunt for the pieces."
"It is custom Vera Wang Couture, meaning there was only one made especially for Kate on her special day," she added. "It is made of the absolute softest fur I've ever felt and has a shawl collar and dramatic train."
Justin Goff\UK Press via Getty Images
Chris and Lucille said they located the coat a year ago, but hadn't been able to get in touch with Hudson until earlier this month.
"I reached out to quite a few people who could possibly get in touch with her to let her know I had her coat, but apparently the messages never reached her," Chris said.
They finally found success thanks to Cherie Federau, a vintage dress reseller who was able to get in touch with the actress.
"Turns out she has been searching for this coat since 2006, and she was very excited to get it back," Chris said of Hudson.
The dress coat was shipped back to Hudson on Wednesday, and Lucille told Insider she's proud to have helped facilitate the reunion.
"I'm honored to be a part of this full circle moment and return it to its rightful owner, Kate," she said. "I'm sure it'll be an emotional moment for her."
Representatives for Kate Hudson and Vera Wang Bridal did not respond to Insider's request for comment outside of regular business hours.