Matches Is Making A Comeback—And The Fashion World Is Overjoyed

For those who keep abreast of fashion news, Christmas has come early this year. Matchesfashion—the luxury retailer with a famous bricks-and-mortar presence as well as an e-commerce platform set up by the Chapmans (Ruth and Tom)—is making its return having shuttered last year. Not only that, Raey, its much-loved in-house label that was mourned far and wide by editors, will also be resurrected.

According to the Business of Fashion, the intellectual property rights have been purchased by Hulcan, whose co-founders, Mario Maher and Joe Wilkinson, are dedicated to honouring the brand's past while ensuring its future success. In a statement, Maher said: "We’re committed to preserving the heritage of Matches while driving its digital transformation, and to shaping the next chapter of Raey with a clear and distinctive voice."

It's hard to underestimate how much this will mean not just to consumers but to an industry that has been rocked in recent years. It's been a tough climate at both the affordable and luxury ends of the retail spectrum. The rebirth of Matchesfashion, which will now be known simply as "Matches", signals that maybe there's hope yet, especially if the brand's new owners continue its ethos when it comes to pioneering new-gen brands, offering a truly diverse range of labels that might all be "luxury" but which have different perspectives of what that has to mean.

And what to say about Raey? My favourite pair of jeans—and perhaps the only pair in my entire wardrobe that fits properly—is by the brand, a flared, frayed style that has got better with age. I love these jeans so much that when a small hole on the right knee turned into a giant flap that exposed the entire length of my calf, I got them patchworked by Fanfare, giving them a new lease of life that always get compliments. As well as the best denim in the business—with puddle-hemmed jeans that famously preempted the baggy trend before Gen Z (yes, really)—it also made seriously delicious cashmere, another basic that makes people happy, genuinely happy, when they put it on.

Matches, welcome back—and thank you for making this Christmas, a time of comfort and joy, truly worthy of the word "magical". And if you think, perhaps, that's an overstatement, wait until you shop it next year.

Natalie Hammond is a writer, editor and author who’s contributed to publications including Marie Claire, Elle, Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, Who What Wear, The London Standard, CNN and The Times. She was most recently senior fashion news editor at Grazia, and previously worked on the fashion desk of The Times. Her first book was published in August 2024, Bowie: His Style Principles, which is part of an ongoing series about world-famous wardrobes. She writes the Substack How Much?, a newsletter examining the culture of shopping.