The Hong Kong Tailors Thread

[extremepc]

I don't want to disparage AC here. Despite the very poor fit of the fourth remake, they issued me a full refund of all of my shirts after the third remake before sending me my fourth remake. We agreed that we would figure out a fair price once the fit has been perfected. I am not happy with how the fitting process has been, but at this point I can't ask for much better service given that I have essentially paid for nothing. If we get the fit right, I will be happy to pay what is owed.

I sent the pictures above to AC and am waiting back to see what they suggest. I wouldn't be surprised, but I would be disappointed, if they gave up. Two initial fittings + four remakes (including a visit to the NYC store and a visit from the HK trunk show) is a lot to get a fit right. I don't understand why this has been such a failure. Perhaps it is me?

As an update to this thread, I sent the pictures of the latest shirt remake to Ascot Chang. They got back to me a couple of days ago essentially saying that they don't know what else can be done. They already issued a full refund.

"At this point, I do have to admit I don’t have much confidence on getting this right for you going forward. I’m very sorry for all the time and energy we’ve taken up, and you can feel free to keep the shirt and polo as our token of apology for your time wasted. Perhaps you can wear it as a casual, rough wear shirt? If you are every in HK, and would like to give this another go, I’d be more than happy to welcome you to one of our stores to take a look at this again in person. Maybe there’s something that isn’t coming across in the photos?"

I get it, but it is disappointing. I've wanted AC shirts for years, and after finally going for it, I'm walking away empty-handed over nearly 9 months later (my first fitting was in July 2018).

I recently commissioned a MTM shirt from Drinkwater's in Boston (who uses Individualized Shirt Company). Perhaps using a local tailor was a smarter idea to begin with, rather than only being able to see Ascot Chang when I am in HK (I found their NY store to be run separately enough from HK that I don't count it). We shall see...

 

[RectoVerso]

I tried Ascot Chang for shirts and have been very happy with their product so far - well fitting, well finished, nice fabric.

AC is a tad expensive given that it's not "truly" bespoke but that's not beyond reasonable, I paid something like 2k HKD for a shirt.

And just to react to the post quoting the parisiangentleman article bashing HK tailoring, I would tend to disagree -- or actually, I find it completely ludicrous. In my experience (WW Chan, H. Baromon, AC) I have been quite well served in HK, for frankly decent prices. HK has the WIDEST range of tailors in the world, from the worst quality at the lowest prices to world-class tailors offering excellent quality of service.

There are horror stories like those listed on this topic, but these happen everywhere in the world. Forums are full of these - people tend to be more vocal about their bad experiences than the good ones.

But overall, HK tailors are excellent value for money, and for a customer who knows what they want, they are very accommodating. As stressed before, quality of tailor advice may vary from person to person in a same establishment, but that is true everywhere. Same comment applies for quality of the fitting -- some people have hard bodies to fit!

Where HK is good is quality of finishing, value for money, and customer service. They are unbeatable at this. So for the discerning customer I would say that it is actually THE best market in Asia: most diverse, best value-for-money, and reactive. Let Ronald Ta yell what he wants.

 

[RickyTakhar]

Prologue Hong Kong first fitting:
Navy Sportcoat in 13oz Holland and Sherry Hopsack

 

[galileo]

My old wedding suit from Dream Bespoke 3yrs ago - some are wont fit well now, and pants is new as I ruin the old one ...

 

[once a day]

Prologue Hong Kong first fitting:
Navy Sportcoat in 13oz Holland and Sherry Hopsack

View attachment 1131625

Looking promising - keep us updated! How much is it going for?

 

[RickyTakhar]

Looking promising - keep us updated! How much is it going for?

Price? I'm from the UK so not sure if trunk show prices are different but they are under 1000 GBP. Which I'd say it very good value

 

[Hifilover]

Price? I'm from the UK so not sure if trunk show prices are different but they are under 1000 GBP. Which I'd say it very good value

Bespoke or MTM ?

 

[once a day]

Price? I'm from the UK so not sure if trunk show prices are different but they are under 1000 GBP. Which I'd say it very good value

I'd say so too, especially considering the fabric. Keep us up dated - looks great thus far!

 

[hyho]

Prologue in MTM iirc

 

[discerningneedle]

First double breasted attempt from Dream Bespoke
CMT from Harrisons flannel book (14oz) - drapes really well
I asked for unpadded natural shoulders with no roping and used their RJW canvas option (which I like better than their default Japanese canvas which feels stiffer and heavier).

Really happy with the result. I asked Ricky to move the buttons closer together after the first fitting to make the double breasted silhouette less bulky. Also asked for a slightly curved lapel belly. Subtle details that I think made a huge difference.

 

[Hifilover]

First double breasted attempt from Dream Bespoke
CMT from Harrisons flannel book (14oz) - drapes really well
I asked for unpadded natural shoulders with no roping and used their RJW canvas option (which I like better than their default Japanese canvas which feels stiffer and heavier).

Really happy with the result. I asked Ricky to move the buttons closer together after the first fitting which I think made a huge difference in terms of making the double breasted silhouette less bulky. View attachment 1132534 View attachment 1132535 View attachment 1132536

Look very nice. What is CMT cost ?

 

[RickyTakhar]

Bespoke or MTM ?

They call it semi bespoke

 

[Hifilover]

They call it semi bespoke

Can you describe their process ?

 

[discerningneedle]

Look very nice. What is CMT cost ?

I think the tailoring cost was around HKD$5000.

To those interested in doing CMT using cloth under the Harrisons umbrella, note that certain distributor(s) charge almost double the price per meter of cloth for exactly the same product to non-tailor, private customers.

 

[RickyTakhar]

Can you describe their process ?

You have an initial appointment in which you choose your fabric, get measured and talk about the style of jacket/suit. There house style is shirt shoulder, 3 roll 2, wide sweeping lapels with a lower gorge, lower buttoning point and a slightly longer length.

The next stage is a first fitting, the garment is still in it's early so ages of development and a lot of changes can still be made here. I am having the length increased, armhole reduced. Back let out at the centre seam etc things which can't be done on standard MTM fittings.

The garment should be pretty much complete at the next fitting with only very minor final alterations.

They call this semi bespoke as they are still using a standard block pattern.