08/23/2026
Before I opened the doors to Matter in 2003, I was getting to know the design community, both locally and internationally, and found a group of creatives hungry for access and a way to bring their ideas to market. Even before the craft paper came off the windows at 227 5th Avenue, I was receiving requests to become a manufacturer. My answer, of course, was absolutely not. I didn’t know where to start. It seemed implausible.
But as Matter grew over the next few years, so did my understanding of, and interest in, product development. I saw so much untapped talent and an opportunity to highlight work that might otherwise get lost in an increasingly predictable design world.
So in 2009, I began the process of developing Collection One with a group of American designers and domestic production partners. The collection was inspired by American craft, with many of the designers directly referencing America’s rich craft history. It was well received, and what began as a single collection became an ongoing and ever-evolving body of work. Of course, what Matter Made was at the beginning and what it eventually became were very different ideas, but there was always one consistent throughline: to produce work that would survive generations.
As the doors close on this chapter, I know that the many chairs, stools, tables, objects and lights that were part of the Matter Made story will continue to move through the landscapes of other people’s homes and spaces. And I suppose that was the whole point.
So to all of the collaborators and creatives, the press and production partners, dealers and distributors, and everyone who has been part of the Matter Made team, thank you from the bottom of my heart for your trust and for the many accolades, awards, projects and partnerships over the past seventeen years.
With much gratitude,
Jamie
