Our story — MATOU

Vintage Japanese kimono and haori, selected in Japan.

A black haori with red flower motifs — A vintage haori from the MATOU collection.

It began with 23 garments.

MATOU began with 23 vintage kimono and haori brought from Japan to New York.

Each piece was selected in Japan. The aim was to find new wearers for existing garments, and to share the history held in their cloth.

Red brick New York apartment buildings and iron fire escapes — New York, in brick and iron. Photograph by Brett A.

Silk and handwork.

Close detail of the black cloth and red flower motifs on the MATOU haori — A closer look at the MATOU haori shown above.

Our selection includes 100% silk haori and pieces from the Taishō era (1912–1926). Traditional kimono making can involve months of handwork, from dyeing and embroidery to sewing.

We look at the fabric, construction and condition of each garment. A date or technique belongs to a particular piece; we share it where it can be identified.

A pattern has a history.

Detail of a heron and reeds on a late nineteenth-century Japanese silk gauze kimono in the Met collection — Summer kimono with heron and reeds, late 19th century. Silk gauze. The Met, 2006.73.1. A museum reference, separate from the MATOU collection.

A wave and a flower bud are not simply “Japanese patterns.” Each can carry a different meaning, season or expression.

The alternating check now called ichimatsu has a much older history. A Saitama excavation report identifies possible checks on late-Kofun haniwa clothing. An eighth-century Shōsōin textile also has a checked ground. The pattern has a visual history of more than 1,000 years; the name came later.

Pattern references: Saitama excavation report; Kyushu National Museum catalogue.

Where it came from matters.

Shapes and patterns are easy to reproduce. A garment’s provenance—where it came from, how it was made and what can be documented—cannot be copied with its pattern.

This is the basis of MATOU. We handle the garment and its history together, including the details we can establish and the questions that remain.

A haori in New York.

Imagine a hundred-year-old haori over jeans and a T-shirt, out for coffee in New York. It can be part of an ordinary day, with its age and character still visible.

A perfume can bring another place to mind in a moment. Learning the background of a garment can offer a small journey too—through the cloth you choose to wear.

An espresso and a cappuccino on a wooden café table — A coffee break. Photograph by Olena Bohovyk.

Wholesale &
stockist inquiries.

For current availability, garment details or a conversation about carrying MATOU in your store, contact MATOU.

Message @matou_japan

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