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Hong Kong Tailor?

Hong Kong Tailor?

Old May 13, 2014, 4:35 am
  #361  
 
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Originally Posted by visualAd
Thanks mitwg, that is good to know. I don't know much about suits so think I might need to do a bit of research, reading this thread the advise seems to be Zenga material is best but not sure what you mean by canvassed?

I a looking forward to a better fitting suit, especially the trousers as a medical appliance I wear on my stomach means I normally have to buy a larger pair and use a belt which makes them quite baggy around the rear.
I don't want to go into too much detail because this topic is highly personal and subjective but I think in my opinion, there's 3 things that makes a suit. First is fit. Second is materials. Third is the construction.

IMO, fit is the most important because even if you have the perfectly made suit from the best materials, if it fits like a tent, you won't look good in it. So in this sense, any decent ($200 USD+) hong kong tailor suit does really well because any reputable store will give you a perfect fit down to the inch, albeit minor 'styling' differences.

I think materials is self-explanatory so I'll skip this. The better the fabric, you'll obviously have a better feeling/looking suit generally, although things like durability comes into play as well.

But the 'canvassing' is to do with the last point, which is construction. This is the part where you start worrying about whether your perfectly fitted suit will last you 3 years or 3 months. In saying this, even a cheap tailored suit these days will probably last you years but for me, I work in finance and I wear a suit to work everyday including when I travel so I want my suit to be well constructed and durable, when if I have to dry clean it regularly.

Canvas is a hard material that goes in the inside of a jacket which gives the jacket its structure and the quicker way to plant this in the jacket is just to glue it all together (canvas and the outer fabrics), which is a technique called fusing. I think a decent fused suit in HK will start around $2~300 and quality wise, big brands like Hugo Boss, Gucci, Z Zegna, Armani Collezioni all fuse their suits (i.e. they aren't worth much more than $300 if you look at the construction alone).

A more traditional way to imbed the canvas is by sewing the canvas with the fabrics, which is just referred to as being 'canvassed' or 'floating-canvas'. This is obviously a more time consuming technique thus any fully canvassed jacket will cost much more, and I think decent tailors in HK start pricing their canvassed suits at the $600-700 range. I view these as the equivalents of fully canvassed brands in terms of construction, like Ermenegildo Zegna, Canali or Raffaele Caruso.

I'm a strong believer that canvassed suits are naturally better constructed products (and they supposedly last longer but I've hugo boss suits that last me ages too!) so I try and buy a canvassed suit but as I hinted many times, I think this is becoming less and less of a issue these days as fusing techniques just keeps on improving.

I sort of see this as a parallel between Swiss automatic watches vs. Japanese battery watches. I have a Audemars Piguet which I love with a passion and I'm 100% sure it is a more 'carefully made' product then my Casio Edifice, which I also love, but my battery powered Casio never misses a beat whereas the Audemars is off by like a minute a week.
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Old May 15, 2014, 12:54 am
  #362  
 
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Not sure if he's still there (I'll find out in July when I head back) but I LOVE "New World Tailor" - 311 Hennessy Road Shop A1 . The guys name is/was Tony Tam. I really hope he is still there, and I'll post back once I know.

Anyhow, I got 2 suits and 2 custom shirts for ~$350USD in Jan 2009. He shipped them to me about 2 weeks later. Friend of mine got a 2 suits as well. We had no problems at all, except that I had to pay import taxes. Still have the suits, still love them.

Needless to say, I'm heading straight back to him when I land in HKG to get some new ones stitched together, assuming he still exists.




Cheers,

-SF

Last edited by SoulFlyer; May 15, 2014 at 1:18 am
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Old May 15, 2014, 7:54 am
  #363  
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Has anyone used New Famous Fashion within the past year?

I got a suit from them in 2006, and it's aging well.
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Old May 18, 2014, 5:40 am
  #364  
 
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I think we get what you pay for. If you want to look very nice and look awesome, just fork up the extra few hundred or whatever, get a suit from a brand company.

Next, I find all these recommendations hard to compare to what I am looking for since I have no idea what each reviewer wanted and what they consider "good or excellent" quality. And not to offend anyone but we have no iea what you look like.
I think reviews help best with actual pictures of your final product you received.
I for one, is looking for super 120+ with very modern slim fit suit, a particular color and style. After going to a lot of recommended tailors in hkg, mainland china or thailand, I'd rather go to Hugo Boss or any other brands I'm comfortable with instead of guessin and hoping everything will turn out ok.
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Old May 28, 2014, 4:11 pm
  #365  
 
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Thanks for all the suggestions here - definitely will get me started on the right foot when I return later this year.
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Old May 29, 2014, 3:10 am
  #366  
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Originally Posted by FAllWay
I think we get what you pay for. If you want to look very nice and look awesome, just fork up the extra few hundred or whatever, get a suit from a brand company.
Typically a fitted suit will look much better on you regardless of your size as it is customized exactly to you.

If you want a specific fabric- then of course you can get Zegna, Loro Piana, or any other brand that actually produces tessuti (textiles).

In any case- whatever suit you choose it is important (in my opinion) to verify the quality of the fabric, and also that glue has not been used in the construction. From there- whatever you feel best with.

Lane Crawford now does have scheduled fitting sessions with a few different designers- so if you want to go that route you can set an appointment, get measured, and then they will send you on the products from the tailors in Italy if you prefer that- it is quite a different price however.

In closing- I think you can still get very good suits in many cities- Hong Kong being one of them- but it is very much a "buyer beware" situation.
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Old Jun 7, 2014, 2:54 pm
  #367  
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I had three shirts from Jantzen Tailors made back in March and am quite happy with the quality/fit. They ran me HKD$360/each and had them ready in 48 hours.
Cheers
Howie
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Old Jun 10, 2014, 10:32 pm
  #368  
 
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Originally Posted by SoulFlyer
Not sure if he's still there (I'll find out in July when I head back) but I LOVE "New World Tailor" - 311 Hennessy Road Shop A1 . The guys name is/was Tony Tam. I really hope he is still there, and I'll post back once I know.

Anyhow, I got 2 suits and 2 custom shirts for ~$350USD in Jan 2009. He shipped them to me about 2 weeks later. Friend of mine got a 2 suits as well. We had no problems at all, except that I had to pay import taxes. Still have the suits, still love them.

Needless to say, I'm heading straight back to him when I land in HKG to get some new ones stitched together, assuming he still exists.



Cheers,

-SF
This is opposite my office. The tailor is no longer there.
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Old Jun 11, 2014, 9:58 pm
  #369  
 
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Just to come back to this thread. A couple of years ago I got a recommendation from TCNY at Wellington St, Central (www.tcny.com.hk) from this thread and ended up using them, over the past couple of years, for about 20 shirts.

The shirts by and large have held up quite well. The higher-priced stuff (HKD700-1000) have held up better than the lower-end stuff (HKD500-600) - I'm sure that was to be expected anyway.

They also make great slim-cut chinos - they've held up very well too. Priced at about HKD800-1000. The beige pair I've worn regularly over the past 2 years, great bang for buck.

Friendly shop, look for Susanna. Definitely recommended. I haven't gotten around to making any suits there as I'm generally able to do well with OTR suits and sportscoats.
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Old Jun 11, 2014, 9:59 pm
  #370  
 
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On a separate note - does anyone know anyone in HK who can do a good job at slimming ties? I've got a few very solid ties that are 4" wide and I would like to slim them to 3" if possible, otherwise I'll have to sell them which is a shame. Thanks!
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Old Jul 17, 2014, 11:14 am
  #371  
 
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Hi All-

I'm visiting HKG in Sept and want to get a custom suit. I rarely wear suits, and am poorly educated on the subject so I am a perfect client for the 'tourist trap' tailors. Trying to avoid that through research.

My goal is a quality mid-priced suit (somewhere around $600-800 USD would be nice), I have an awards ceremony to attend in late Sept so it gives me a good reason to do this now.

I first found Sam's Tailor and saw many good reviews and press on this establishment. But certainly mixed reviews as well. I am a sucker for the 'small-time' story and it seems more fun than a flashy place, but I want a good suit and a good value too. So I feel like I should look elsewhere. However, any recent experience at Sam's?

Empire Tailors (www.empiretailors.com) seems to have good reviews and a reputation higher than Sam's. However the establishments that fly around the world tailoring (and there are a few) seem somehow less appealing to me, is their best tailor travelling? Do they travel because of demand or because they need to create demand?

Looking for advice on a mid-tier location in HKG that can turn a suit around in 4 days... thank you. And off-topic, but any good resources to learn about what makes a quality suit would be helpful!

Cheers

Last edited by CPMaverick; Jul 17, 2014 at 11:21 am
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Old Jul 17, 2014, 11:42 am
  #372  
 
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check out Bonham Strand if u r socially conscious
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Old Jul 17, 2014, 1:36 pm
  #373  
 
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Originally Posted by no more lurking
check out Bonham Strand if u r socially conscious
Thanks, looks very interesting. I definitely like their approach and the level of detail on their site. The prices don't look too bad either, definitely within my range.
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Old Jul 18, 2014, 12:19 am
  #374  
 
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Stay away form Bonham Strand especially if you are only in HK for holiday.
They don't follow the timetable they give you.

I use TCNY and would recommend them.
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Old Jul 18, 2014, 11:58 am
  #375  
 
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Thank you. Turnaround time is important; I want to use the suit 2 weeks after I return. So if I can't carry it back with me I fear it won't arrive in that timetable.

So you believe TCNY could give me a reliable turnaround time? Do you have an idea of their price point? So hard to tell from the websites what the pricing levels are.
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