Lauren SamsFin editor, deputy editor AFR Magazine and fashion editorAug 25, 2026 – 5.00am“This has always been the north star,” says M.J. Bale founder Matt Jensen. “To use a sporting analogy, London is the Premier League.” And if London is the Premier League, then Savile Row in Mayfair – home of tailors such as Drake’s and Huntsman & Sons – is top of the ladder. Nipping at its heels is Jermyn Street, where Charles Tyrwhitt, Hackett, Thomas Pink and others lay claim. Soon, Jensen’s own store will make its debut at the nexus of Jermyn and Duke streets, across the road from Fortnum & Mason, a few doors from Piccadilly Arcade. “It’s arguably the best site on Jermyn Street,” says Jensen with typical chutzpah.But right now, M.J. Bale London is a mere spectre in Jensen’s imagination. As we speak in late July over the phone, he is walking the stifling streets of Marylebone in yet another heatwave. Jensen doesn’t yet have the keys. The opening, slated for November, depends on the fitout being completed in time. There’s also stock to arrive from the other side of the world, and staff, too; Jensen is keen to have his Australian store assistants train the locals. It’s all predicated on a big question: can M.J. Bale compete in the Premier League? Jensen laughs affably. “It’s competitive,” he says. “But we’ve earned the right to participate in the market. We’re coming in confident, not arrogant.”Subscribe to gift this articleGift 5 articles to anyone you choose each month when you subscribe.Subscribe nowAlready a subscriber? Lauren SamsFin editor, deputy editor AFR Magazine and fashion editorLauren Sams is the editor of Fin Magazine, The Australian Financial Review’s luxury quarterly edition. She is also the deputy editor at The Australian Financial Review Magazine and the fashion editor. She writes about the business of fashion and beauty.Fetching latest articles