How Barbies, posters, and a 2000s childhood shaped MATES’ new collection.

A first close look at MATES new winter 25 capsule collection

Tara Đukić

December 26, 2025

Hair clips in their hair. Posters on the walls. Barbies, with all their accompanying accessories, houses, and “personal” items, scattered across the floor. A room as a micro-universe for endless games, acrobatics, and fantasies; back then you do not yet know it, but you will carry that ability to fantasize with you through life like pink-tinted glasses, softening everyday reality. With their new Winter 2025 capsule collection, the MATES duo, Saša Stević and Marko Ilijev, takes us back to childhood in a nostalgic, witty, and warm way. Six stylings and around twenty pieces designed for mix-and-match play evoke memories, experiences, and the pop culture of the 2000s, all through striking color palettes, plush textures, and patterns characteristic of the brand’s signature. When we meet, my first question is for Saša, given that I know as much about his collector’s love for Barbies as I do about MATES. How long had he actually been wishing for a collection like this?

I would say that I have always wanted a collection like this, yet at the same time, that Barbie atmosphere has been present from the very beginning, like some interwoven thread running from collection to collection through texture, sometimes through color or cut. I think Barbies had a huge influence on me, and in a way, they were also one of my first encounters with fashion, considering the names who designed clothes for Barbies or served as inspiration for them. It was Marko’s idea that part of my Barbie collection should become a segment of the campaign, and honestly, my heart skips a beat every time I look at those photographs.

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Our childhood rooms shaped what we would become more than we might think. I have a theory that those who knew how to play alone for hours and hours, directing all kinds of scenarios, talking to dolls, drawing, sewing, scribbling, are today working in creative industries. Do they remember what their childhood rooms looked like and what they might have foretold? I had a very small room covered in posters and, of course, a huge wardrobe full of clothes. Maybe that hinted at the path I would take, along with the fact that I was in charge of changing outfits and styling all my friends’ Barbies. And let us not forget the era when I got the internet and the Stardoll game, do you remember that? Marko tells me, and Saša adds on.

Even as an elementary school kid, I knew what I would do in life and there was no doubt about it, so my room reflected that too. I adored posters, and I remember that my favorites were the BRAVO magazine series where parts of a large poster were collected issue by issue. I had the life-size one of the cast of the series Charmed. Considering that VOGUE was not available in Bijeljina, it had to be bought in Belgrade, thank you, mom, endlessly, for that. Alongside fashion magazines, there were always sketches and materials in my room that my mom had not used for her costumes. I nod, because in my room, Charmed was replaced in my teenage years by Lady Gaga, along with countless runway pages torn from fashion magazines.

Although over the past few days you have had the chance to see the campaign on MATES’ channels, they are revealing the lookbook to us for the first time. In the leading role is model and Vogue Adria creative production director Milena Kitić. We wanted the lookbook to be told from a different angle compared to the very eclectic and playful campaign. With her attitude and energy, Milena Kitić tells a different story and shows how each piece has its own potential, both on its own and within an outfit. I love the moment of a capsule collection and the power of creating total looks in various ways, says Marko. I would say I am in love with Milena Kitić’s energy. During the shoot, we listened to Britney, the Pussycat Dolls, Lady Gaga, and Madonna. It was magical. Could someone reopen Apartman? I would love that very much, Saša adds with a smile.

The collection is also a kind of new chapter in their work. Until now, they always thought through the prism of a runway show, and now they have a frame from their newly opened showroom in front of them. This is their first collection available in their own space, which made it a special challenge to convey the idea through six or seven stylings that would essentially tell the story they had envisioned.

Toward the end, I cannot help but ask them about a guilty pleasure song or TV show from the 2000s, because I assume the answers will be more than expected. Oh, there is no end. For me, these are real treats and I enjoy exploring them, whether it is songs and interviews from Sunčane skale or some episodes of the show Jednostavan život, domestic and international. I do not know if it fits the definition of a guilty pleasure, but I am always up for lemonade, not just one glass but a whole pitcher, says Saša, and Marko continues.

If I think back to those days, there are definitely many. Off the top of my head, “Hoću da te gledam dok se ljubiš sa njom”. It is an understatement to say I was fascinated by that song, Ana Nikolić, and the art direction. The moment is etched in my memory, me in front of the TV while the video was playing. Then the series V.I.P. with Pamela Anderson. And of course, at that time, some current Latin American soap opera. Okay, I think they have said it all. Except where are they dancing on December 31? Maybe I will dance a bit during the day, but this year, pajamas and a fur coat if there is a need to dash to the kiosk, no plans, just spontaneity or deep sleep. Saša has a similar scenario: a sequin sweatshirt, Russian salad, my Dobi (the dog), and me in the company of Kevin McCallister.

May 2026 be gentler, even stronger, and more playful.