BARNSLEY boxer Callum Simpson’s new clothing line officially launched on Friday and he admits it’s a ‘deeply personal’ way to cement his late sister’s legacy.
Lily-Rae travelled to Zante in August 2024 for what was meant to be a fun-filled girls’ holiday with her best friend, celebrating finishing her beauty studies at Barnsley College.
However, on their first day 19-year-old Lily-Rae was involved in a quad biking accident and suffered serious injuries no other vehicles were involved.
The teen was flown to Athens where she spent ten days in intensive care, however despite doctors’ best efforts she died on August 21.
Callum has since been fighting in her honour and has worn boxing gear with her name on.
His latest venture, Aurae, has been launched in memory of his sister and he says it’s a ‘deeply personal’ move for him.
He told the Chronicle: “The name comes from aura and then Ray because of her name.
“It’s like a tribute to her as well it’s not just a luxury menswear brand.
“It’s a personal tribute something to remember Lily by and just another way to honour her and keep her memory alive.
“It’s more than just a clothing brand for me.
“It’s a reflection of my journey, my family and everything that we’ve been through.
“It’s something that’s meaningful to us as a family.
“Even though some people that buy it might not understand the name, just seeing it is going to be special for us.
“When I do my fight I always try to put her name or initials on it.
“I always like tying to put it on there and a lot of people might not know it’s there but me and my family do.
“It’s something that means so much to me.”
Callum has launched the brand, which went on early release yesterday, with fellow Barnsley partners Ryan Eastwood and Olivia Hewlett.
He’s long had an interest in the fashion industry having worked in retail for a decade but he decided now was finally the time to launch the brand.
He added: “I worked part-time at Scotts Menswear in Meadowhall, then I was store manager at the same place in Bradford.
“I was a store manager at Tessuti in Bradford and then I was a store managed in Leeds.
“I’d had ten pro fights while I was a manager in Leeds and then when the contract with Boxxer and Sky came up that’s when I left.
“I’ve always worked around different luxury clothing brands and different fashion brands and it’s something that I’ve always thought I could do this I could do.
“Everything just kind of aligned and I feel now it feels like the right time.
“We’ve been working on it since 2014.
“Obviously we could have launched it last year but because it’s a tribute to Lily I didn’t want to rush anything I wanted to make sure everything’s perfect before we launch it and that’s why it’s taken two years to get it right.”
n Visit auraeuk.com to see Callum’s latest venture.
