A fastening system for an article of apparel, advantageously a bra, including first and second coupling members attached to ends of a hemband. The coupling members are movable between an engaged or locked state when the bra is worn and a disengaged state to remove the bra. The coupling members are integrally molded and each includes a stitch plate and a plurality of locking members. The locking members on one coupling member are hooks while the other are loops. The coupling members have a flex groove formed therein between their locking members to make the coupling members more flexible. The flex groove may optimally extend across the stitch plates to further enhance flexibility. The ends of the hooks are angularly displaced from their stitch plates. This raises the interlocking locking portions away from the back of the wearer to increase comfort. Additionally, the hooks include opposed angled guide surfaces. The opposed angled guide surfaces each have a parallel guide surface on an adjacent hook.