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Tom Chapman (businessman)
Thomas Watson Chapman OBE (born June 1963) is a British entrepreneur and investor.
He co-founded luxury fashion online retailer Matchesfashion.com in 1987 and served as the company's co-CEO until 2015. In 2017, Matches was acquired by Apax Partners in a deal that valued the company at $1 billion.
Since 2017, he has been an early-stage investor with an investment portfolio that spans several industries including technology, healthcare, and fashion.
Born in Wimbledon, Chapman studied hotel and hospitality management before opening an independent fashion outlet.
In 1987, Chapman founded Matchesfasion.com as a single store in Wimbledon Village. At the age of 21, Chapman met Ruth Chapman and convinced her to join the business. By 2011 MATCHESFASHION.COM was the largest independent fashion retailer in London with 14 stores.
In 2007, the company was one of the first luxury brands to go online. Chapman led the company's digital strategy and turned the business into a multi-channel e-commerce retailer.
Chapman said the original motivation for launching the website was to provide a single view of the stock as well as build a customer database and was initially surprised by the success of the website as a sales tool. From the launch of the website, the business grew at up to 100 percent per year. As of 2018, the company stocks over 450 brands shipping to 176 countries, making 95 percent of sales online and 85 percent internationally.
In 2011, Chapman launched No. 23, a townhouse dedicated to private shopping to complement online retail. In 2012, the company raised £20 million in venture capital from SEP and Highland Capital Partners at a valuation of £76 million. In 2013, Chapman rebranded all Matches' physical stores MATCHESFASHION.COM to "unify" the brand.
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Tom Chapman (businessman)
Thomas Watson Chapman OBE (born June 1963) is a British entrepreneur and investor.
He co-founded luxury fashion online retailer Matchesfashion.com in 1987 and served as the company's co-CEO until 2015. In 2017, Matches was acquired by Apax Partners in a deal that valued the company at $1 billion.
Since 2017, he has been an early-stage investor with an investment portfolio that spans several industries including technology, healthcare, and fashion.
Born in Wimbledon, Chapman studied hotel and hospitality management before opening an independent fashion outlet.
In 1987, Chapman founded Matchesfasion.com as a single store in Wimbledon Village. At the age of 21, Chapman met Ruth Chapman and convinced her to join the business. By 2011 MATCHESFASHION.COM was the largest independent fashion retailer in London with 14 stores.
In 2007, the company was one of the first luxury brands to go online. Chapman led the company's digital strategy and turned the business into a multi-channel e-commerce retailer.
Chapman said the original motivation for launching the website was to provide a single view of the stock as well as build a customer database and was initially surprised by the success of the website as a sales tool. From the launch of the website, the business grew at up to 100 percent per year. As of 2018, the company stocks over 450 brands shipping to 176 countries, making 95 percent of sales online and 85 percent internationally.
In 2011, Chapman launched No. 23, a townhouse dedicated to private shopping to complement online retail. In 2012, the company raised £20 million in venture capital from SEP and Highland Capital Partners at a valuation of £76 million. In 2013, Chapman rebranded all Matches' physical stores MATCHESFASHION.COM to "unify" the brand.