The Hong Kong Tailors Thread

[GBR]



Have you tried H Baramon and William Yu? Any comments ? Do you know they have their own workshop or not?

I haven't!

Chance had it that when I first went to Hong Kong in 1995 I happened upon Ascot Chiang when I was looking for shirts and for some reason was in the Peninsula shopping gallery and ordered four I think. Separately I went to Chan for two suits, really by following the writings in Guide books (no internet then). Neither the suits nor the experience at Chan impressed me at all, I felt as if I was a nuisance wanting to trouble them and, as I had, they wanted to dictate what I could have.. As a seasoned buyer of bespoke suits in the UK getting them to follow my requirements was the devil's own job, nothing outlandish, detailing and inside pockets in the coat. Even their linings were limited, 'that is what we use' approach. No thanks you especially as the suits were just about OK and no more. I think that they were playing to the tourist gallery given that there was a good chance that victims would be rushing back to Kaitak and would never be seen again, Foolish - and don't be misled by my shorts and jeans, I am on leave and so relaxed dress rules. I can see quality and will pay for it, never judge a book by its covers.

The next time I was there, I asked the guy at Ascot C if they could recommend a decent tailor to their own standards exemplified by their shirts and was recommended to Gordon Yao. Again no internet and so the then tie up between AA and GY was an unknown.

My limited other experience saw me a buy a couple of shirts and a pair of trousers from a shop on Canton Road in 1995. The existence of the Shenzhen workshops was another unknown and these were all crap. I stay in a hotel in TST near Star Ferry and overlooking the Harbour and so Kowloonside became better known to me, I even looked at Sams, fortunately did not like what I saw and hurried on by! The bright lights of Canton Road, Nathan, Yau Ma Tei and Mong Kok are a draw for novices as I then was.


The naiveties of a novice in Hong Kong prevailed and though Y William Yu was certainly mentioned in the writings and I did look at them but having been bitten on Canton Road, the AC recommendation carried a lot of weight. GY's workmanship met my needs very well and so I saw no point is trying others and getting caught again, With internet and resources like the experiences recounted in the this thread by regular customers of the various tailors etc my choices might well have been different and that is the advice I always relate in this thread. YWY might well have figured in other circumstances but Barrowman is someone I have learned from this Board, difficult to pick the good from the bad simply by looking at the shops and even some of the finished suits inside. I suspect YWY has a workshop of some sort for its top end commissions and wealthy natives of HK but the tourist would need to earn his place by repeat orders. Barrowman, I doubt but am not likely to patronise them.

I had two satisfactory suppliers and, as I had, no need to review others I remained loyal. Now I know one or two people in Hong Kong including one very discerning young man, I became a very willing listener and took his advice and have commissioned suits from AHMC and GT. Both are excellent although GT has the edge given its overheads are much lower and thus the price/quality ratio is much more favourable and Mr Hui very flexible. As he sells from his work room, his staff have first hand experience of figuration etc which does give them an edge. I will settle on GT now, all things being otherwise equal, but with the odd suit from AHMC to give variety in my wardrobe. AHMC is very good both in quality and service and well worth using, so no one should see them as other than a good choice. Similarly Nelson Chin at the Peninsular branch of AC is excellent and I have no cause to change my shirt maker at all.

The anatomy of my buying is actually interesting to me and this is the first time that I have written it down, thanks for prodding me Hifilover.

 

[Hifilover]



I haven't!

Chance had it that when I first went to Hong Kong in 1995 I happened upon Ascot Chiang when I was looking for shirts and for some reason was in the Peninsula shopping gallery and ordered four I think. Separately I went to Chan for two suits, really by following the writings in Guide books (no internet then). Neither the suits nor the experience at Chan impressed me at all, I felt as if I was a nuisance wanting to trouble them and, as I had, they wanted to dictate what I could have.. As a seasoned buyer of bespoke suits in the UK getting them to follow my requirements was the devil's own job, nothing outlandish, detailing and inside pockets in the coat. Even their linings were limited, 'that is what we use' approach. No thanks you especially as the suits were just about OK and no more. I think that they were playing to the tourist gallery given that there was a good chance that victims would be rushing back to Kaitak and would never be seen again, Foolish and don't be misled by my shorts and jeans, I am on leave and so relaxed dress rules. I can see quality and will pay for it, never judge a book by its covers.

The next time I was there, I asked the guy at Ascot C if they could recommend a decent tailor to their own standards exemplified by their shirts and was recommended to Gordon Yao. Again no internet and so the then tie up between AA and GY was an unknown.

My limited other experience saw me a buy a couple of shirts and a pair of trousers from a shop on Canton Road in 1995. The existence of the Shenzhen workshops was another unknown and these were crap. I stay in a hotel in TST near Star Ferry and overlooking the Harbour and so Kowloonside became better known to me, Canton Road and. I even looked at Sams, fortunately did not like what I saw and hurried on by! The bright lights of Nathan, Yau Ma Tei and Mong Kok are a draw for novices as I then was.


The naiveties of a novice in Hong Kong prevailed and though Y William Yu was certainly mentioned in the writings and I did look at them but having been bitten on Canton Road, the AC recommendation carried a lot of weight. GY's workmanship met my needs very well and so I saw no point is trying others and getting caught again, With internet and resources like the experiences recounted in the this thread by regular customers of the various tailors etc my choices might well have been different and that is the advice I always relate in this thread. YWY might well have figured in other circumstances but Barrowman is someone I have learned from this Board, difficult to pick the good from the bad simply by looking at the shops and even some of the finished suits inside. I suspect YWY has a workshop of some sort for its top end commissions and wealthy natives of HK but the tourist would need to earn his place by repeat orders. Barrowman, I doubt but am not likely to patronise them.

I had two satisfactory suppliers and, as I had, no need to review others I remained loyal. Now I know one or two people in Hong Kong including one very discerning young man, I became a very willing listener and took his advice and have commissioned suits from AHMC and GT. Both are excellent although GT has the edge given its overheads are much lower and thus the price/quality is much more favourable and Mr Hui very flexible. As he sells from his work room, his staff have first hand experience of figuration etc which does give them an edge. I will settle on GT now all things being otherwise equal but with the odd suit from AHMC to give variety in my wardrobe. AHMC is very good and well worth using, so no one should see them as other than a good choice. Similarly Nelson Chin at the Peninsular branch of AC is excellent and I have no cause to change at all.

The anatomy of my buying is actually interesting to me and this is the first time that I have written it down, thanks for prodding me Hifilover.

Mr. GBR , thank you so much for sharing us your experience.

 

[Hifilover]

Mr GBR , do you mind to share Grand Tailor pricing? It seems to be alternative cheaper choice for those who does not need luxury environment .

 

[add911_11]

Wow. There are some serious discussion happening in here! I applaud to GBR's great writing.

 

[chobochobo]

Jump in.

 

[Hifilover]



Wow. There are some serious discussion happening in here! I applaud to GBR's great writing.

Are you the young man whom Mr GBR mentioned?

 

[chobochobo]

No, I'm Spartacus.

 

[Hifilover]



No, I'm Spartacus.

Super .

 

[GBR]



Mr GBR , do you mind to share Grand Tailor pricing? It seems to be alternative cheaper choice for those who does not need luxury environment .

Difficult one off the top but certainly significant. I will look for the accounts to establish that difference but I must caveat that by saying that this merely reflected the cloth I had chosen and for a first commission there is a learning curve. It is the second and later commissions which are the best as both client and cutter get the measure (forgive the pun) of one another. This time I thus selected cloths which were readily available as opposed to something which might have had to come from the UK or which I might have brought to move to a CMT commission. Those cloths were boring as well, something which has now been driven out of my mind.

I now have the confidence in both to either tell them ahead of arrival what I require (which could well extend to a Zegna cloth or similar) else bring it myself in the sure knowledge that the product will justify that expense. My thinking on cloth is also changing now I have had the benefit of the undoubted wisdom of my friend and mentor.

Commissioning a bespoke suit is, to me at least, something which is to be enjoyed both from cloth selection through to delivery and then being worn. I am not the average visitor to Hong Kong who buys one or two suits almost as a bounden duty because they think that they might be cheap as this thread demonstrates in far too many cases. They probably are cheap, they are quite correct in their assertion but another word beginning with 'c' would be more accurate - 'crap'. It is quite impossible to approach the Star Ferry terminal, Kowloonside, without at least ten individuals soliciting custom for either a "cheap suit" or a "copy watch", notwithstanding the fact that I would be wearing a genuine Omega Constellation watch of which I have six!

My interest in bespoke extends far beyond simply workmanship etc. but in sticking with Gordon Yao the quality was right enough, style and cloth unadventurous but merely sufficient unto the day: However, my lethargy was not and my interest has now been rekindled in a big way. For someone who had his first bespoke suit at age 16 at my late father's tailor this is no bad thing and the advice I now have received excellent in all ways. I now intend to enjoy this once again and fully intend to clear out a number of Yao suits from my wardrobe - prematurely over the next couple of years, probably at a rate of six per year. Had I been able to get to Hong Kong this autumn (the demands of being a Chairman/MD of a substantial and growing business prevented me) I would certainly have commissioned some very different suits in both style and cloth under an expert eye working with both the advice I now have and having seen the quality offered by GT. Some of this will be extended to AHMC.

I am also planning to try a local UK tailor on the same basis, not for regular use but to introduce the variety I spoke of earlier: He too will be required to meet my new aspirations for style etc and this will probably either be CMT or will certainly use a cloth I have instructed him to buy in advance. This therefore takes away any danger of a quick decision in a shop which even to an experienced eye is far from ideal.

 

[Hifilover]

Impressive .

 

[GBR]

Good afternoon Mr Hifilover

Sorry to say I don't have the accounts immediately to hand but quickly checking the cloths involved against the UK prices the GT suits whilst made of Vitale Barberis Canonico cloth are from the cheaper end of the price spectrum and therefore I would not want to use those as a yardstick.

However, there is a (reasonable) price difference but, as I note above, I am unable to compare like with like. I may well take better notice next year if I select two cloths from the same bunch but this year was as much about workmanship, the experience rather than price. The experience is important and again GT has an edge but AHMC did produce the tailor at both baste and forward fittings and, together with other shop staff and Mr Poon did bring considerable experience to those fittings. That is good for a first commission by someone they might never have seen again. They will!

GT again very attentive at both fittings with tailors each looking at different aspects, coat maker and trouser maker (?) with Mr Hui seemingly putting those thoughts into one pattern. It is that first hand ability to see figuration etc. which, to my long experienced mind, gives them the edge. That does not denigrate Mr Poon's staff who clearly know how to cut and tailor a suit.

The interesting comparator here is that my Father's tailor sold from his work room and again there was that personal contact between tailor and client which has left a lasting wish to repeat this. With the two commissions I enjoyed (at my Father's expense) some of the styling and detailing still strike a chord with me. As a young man stepping out into a changing world, post-Vietnam, when the ways of the pre- Vietnam were firmly rejected I too wanted to change alongside my friends and not be the odd man out and discarded this firm. Whether this was correct is a moot point but no one wants to wear a yellow suit when all others are wearing pink which was then a very important consideration! To do otherwise would have been very concerning to a prospective employer. That is something I always impress upon young graduates when interviewing them - I expect to see photographs of them whilst drunk on Facebook, if not they have failed to enjoy University life to the full in my book..

Many aspects of this era have stayed with me and always will, totally casual dress without exception when 'off duty' long hair and fine suits shorts etc. What I now want to do is re-establish some of the features of my suits from those days and with guidance most will be returning in the coming months. Fashion is largely irrelevant but in any life no one (other than members of the British Royal family) can afford to wear a suit/clothes whose styling is too wayward. For the likes of His Royal Highness, The Prince of Wales it is seen as both a gesture towards frugality alongside his personal .style' of very mild eccentricity. All those suits are however of exceptionally high quality.

Cutters and car salesmen please take note, I was treated with disdain by Chan and thrown out of a car showroom when I wanted to look at a top of the range car in my late twenties. It gave me great please to go back with that self same car bought from another dealer, have a friend go in and bring the man to the window so that I could wave to him..... Chan would have done well to think about that seventy + suits ago in 1995...

 

[Hifilover]

Salesman need to be humble , patience and honest to win business .

 

[chobochobo]

I was ignored during my trip to Chan about 14 years ago, never been back.

 

[Hifilover]

Pherphaps , Chan should trained their salesman attudite to customers .

 

[BigbigJohnny]

You should go there again.

I was ignored during my trip to Chan about 14 years ago, never been back.