We were travelers that also happened to be product designers. Working in Silicon Valley, we had demanding careers designing tech for GoPro, Google, Nest, and other brands you probably know. We worked hard, but we traveled harder. Every chance we got, we’d cram ourselves into some cheap economy seats to fly somewhere new.

After a handful of travel gear failures and disappointments, it wasn’t long before we were making our own. A fully waterproof packable backpack was among the first, as was the cult-classic soap bar case.

These things simply didn’t exist then, so we made them. We invented, in a tiny spare room, with a Craigslist sewing machine, iron, and cheap 3D printer. All in the after-hours of our day-jobs. This is how Matador was born.

We've grown a lot since then but we’re still a team of travelers and designers. We continue to build everything from the ground up—no shortcuts, no outside investment, no crowdfunding, no compromises. Instead, we’re focused on building products for the travelers, the right way.

Chris + Jaime