Do local tailors in the US actually do bespoke?
I hear the term thrown around a lot. I thought I'd ask here, purely out of curiosity. I hear people recommend things like "just visit your local tailor. you can get a bespoke suit for $700 in whatever material you want." And apparently it's just one visit for measurements. But isn't that just Made-to-Measure? I know they're both in the realm of "custom", but I thought with bespoke tailors create their own patterns and you go in for multiple measurements over a couple months. And that the prices are in the thousands of $$$ (although that's based on what old StyleForum threads say about Saville Row/ Italy).
How common is true bespoke in the US? Would places like Tuscon, AZ and Kansas City, MO really have these tailor shops?
27 Replies
You are correct, though MTM will also cost more than $700 (and is a bad decision 90% of the time). True bespoke is rare and expensive.
Is the word "bespoke" generally misused today?
Yes.
it's also overkill for 99% of people
I wouldn’t call anything bespoke that doesn’t include multiple fittings. Either of the specific garment being made or a test garment and then fittings for the final one.
You could have a bespoke jacket made for cheaper than the high-end tailoring houses but it’s difficult and you will likely end up overspending on a jacket that’s made out of a poor fabric or is just missing other details
this, and frankly so is MTM for most people
My impression is that unless you have extremely unusual measurements or you want a very particular fabric you are better off buying off the rack and getting it adjusted, but I’d love to hear other opinions.
unless you have unusual measurements or other needs in a jacket/pant (specific mobility requirements) you're probably good with an off the rack suit altered at a tailor
Yeah that makes sense. At least for me, the jackets almost fit and just needed small, easy adjustments
Now I'm starting to hear more people talk about going to Asia (particularly SE Asia) to get "bespoke suits" where they "make them in 3 days" for "$200 each" or something crazy. I had a suspicion that this was just MTM, but I didn't want to start an argument. What do you think?
Well I guess I already know the answer to that question. It just goes against everything you hear from people who travel. And everything you read online.
I’m sure you can get cheap MTM or even bespoke in some low cost of labor countries I’m just skeptical of the quality.
Spier and Mackay, and J Crew are also manufacturing in Asia and they have huge economies of scale. I don’t see how you can do it for the half that cost without some big sacrifices on quality.
That’s true I didn’t think of that.
SE Asia is huge, there are good tailors but they are probably not $200
part of the appeal of mtm/bespoke is picking nice fabrics, and that alone can get expensive
It’s simply not as easy as it sounds and the real benefit is being able to be very specific. But the risks are high and if you don’t know exactly what you want it almost certainly won’t turn out right
Yeah no doubt that SE Asia has good tailors and probably bespoke ones. But the “suit tourism” makes me suspicious. Maybe part of it is just hearing how it goes through a salesperson who translates all the details. In theory, it works the same as a regular tailor shop but cheaper. But maybe the nuance of MTM vs Bespoke isn’t carried through.
I’d say don’t consider things like “bespoke” or “custom” to mean better. They are only better if you are extremely discerning and people get paid a lot of money and spend a lot of time to design and create RTW tailoring which already has a ton of options
I’ve seen far more people (including myself) make mistakes with custom/bespoke/MTM tailoring than successes in all honesty.
You likely don’t want to be deciding between two dozen different shades of navy in 4 different fabric compositions and weaves and button material and lining and lapel size and whether the trousers should have pleats and cuffs and whether you want belt loops or side tabs and Milanese button holes and double or single vent and open or closed quarters and natural or structured shoulders
You probably just want a navy suit that fits you well
Which is much easier to do by buying OTR and going to a tailor
Most the really cheap MTM/"bespoke" tailors in Bangkok/Hong Kong that redditors talk about are selling fused suits, as far as I know. You can probably find some tailors charging rates lower than what people in London/NYC charge, but quality for quality I don't see you saving money when you factor in multiple flights for fittings.
They also don't speak english
so hope you can speak fluent chinese
or whatever the local language is
I’ve never actually tried MTM for a suit but I can see it. I’m sure some people want to “feature-max” their suit. Most luxurious fabric and whatever.
Yeah from what I read, you are just talking with a salesperson if you are an English speaker. And they take your measurements once and that’s it. So basically just SuitSupply but cheaper and riskier. I’m surprised no one talks about this, but I guess the businesses don’t want to lose business.
everyone talks about all of these things, i legit don't know who is recommending this shit in 2024 tbh
and what sphere of the internet you are in
everyone knows "bespoke" is overused, everyone will tell you to avoid MTM/Bespoke (its a "if you have to ask" situation), everyone will advise you against trying to do suit tourism
IMO it’s not really about that. It’s simply difficult to make all of those decisions in a 1.5hr meeting/fitting and then be totally happy with them for the next decade. I tried to do a simple navy suit for S/S and I picked a shade of navy that’s too light imo now
That’s actually interesting. I probably live in a city that’s pretty behind on these things. It’s just people i know who have traveled. And the internet which is not always a wellspring of good advice. Reddit is the worst it’s ever been. YouTube is full of shills. It’s tough out here. But yeah it’s probably just where I live.
Oof. I guess I never thought of shades of navy. Hopefully it’s still useable even if it’s medium blue or whatever
maybe im overstating it but i feel like this is known. Pretty much if you have to ask about MTM/Bespoke, you almost certainly don't know enough to even have a successful experience
And thats with a tailor who speaks your language and understands somewhat what you want, let alone flying across the world to hire a tailor who doesn't speak your language
It’s a perfectly good suit! I just wish I had gone with a darker shade
If you haven’t looked at a fabric book ever it’s overwhelming and tailors that make suits will have tons of them.
Yeah I agree it’s probably common sense.
Though I’m gonna be honest. I didn’t even know MTM and Bespoke weren’t recommended until I started lurking here. The internet is not helpful for that sort of thing.
Not arguing. Just sharing my personal experience
Okay I actually did find some bad reviews. https://www.reddit.com/r/Bangkok/comments/1ccolju/another_sucker_for_a_suit/
TLDR: guy buys suit based on YT review videos and google reviews and the fabric is switched out to poly
I got shirt made when I was in Vietnam a few years ago, three fittings, worked out around 40 gbp each, and that was one of the more expensive stores that did everything on site
Would I do it again? No, honestly overkill
Nice. How did you find the place?
I have a friend who is Indian and he goes to visit family once a year and gets custom tailored things. But the tailor is their families tailor and they have a relationship. I, a random dude, would not be able to get the same quality.