Lesney started producing toys from Hackney (London) after World War II. They were able to market 75 different cars at a rapid pace. The series was labeled 1-75 series. Even if a new model came, it got a new number within the range from 1-75. Due to a production error, higher numbers were also made for a very short period. These are very rare and precious. In the early 1970s, a new series was started under the name “Superfast” and the cars got new wheels. In response to the introduction of “Hot Wheels” by US competitor Mattel. These cars apparently drove faster than the metal and plastic wheels of Matchbox. The beautiful catalogs which Lesney had started to publish from 1957 were particularly popular. In which every child could mark his favorite car as a gift. Matchbox has produced cars in various scales, but the most popular were the cars in the well-known "matchbox". But they have also produced construction sets, garages, racing tracks and even dolls. In this group Matchbox you will mainly encounter the larger scale 1:43. With label names such as: Lesney / Matchbox King Size, Super Kings, Speed ​​Kings and Battle Kings. Matchbox also took over competitor Dinky Toys. And has launched another series with that brand name. But in 1982 Lesney went bankrupt. And after various changes, Mattel now also owns the Matchbox brand name.