Hong Kong Tailors

The Hong Kong Tailors are a well known attraction in Hong Kong.[1] Hong Kong is still home to several bespoke tailors.,[2] who claim to have stitched suits for politicians like Bill Clinton, George W Bush, Margaret Thatcher, Tony Blair and Bob Hawke and celebrities like Prince Charles, Kevin Spacey, Boris Becker, David Bowie, Richard Gere and Michael Jackson

R Daswani, a Hong Kong tailor, fitting a customer. Some Hong Kong tailors now use 3D body scanners[3]
Left to right - Sam, George Bush Senior, Manu and Roshan inside the Sam's Taylor store

Some of the tailors are famous for the “24-hour suit,” for rushed travellers, although most suits involves 2-3 fittings, each a day apart. Many of the Hong Kong tailors visit USA and UK to take measurements [4] and show fabric samples, with the final suit delivered by parcel.

Western tailoring for the upper class in Hong Kong goes back to 1920s where there were about 600 people engaged in the business.[5] During 1960 there were as many as 15,000 tailors. In 1966, the South China Morning Post ran a headline declaring that London’s Savile Row, until then the undisputed international center of bespoke tailoring, had been replaced by Hong Kong. In 1970s and 80s, the ready made suits became available cause a decline in the number of tailors.[6] Hong Kong remains a major location where traveller consider getting a suite.[7]

Hari Harilela, now a major Hong Kong financier, started clothing-cum-tailoring shop in Hong Kong during 1940s and 50s. He pioneered the idea of supplying custom-made suits by mail order. He realised in 1960 that the mail order boom is a temporary phase, so he diversified into real estate.[8] A number of Indians, mainly from Sindh, arrived in 1950, who are still in the tailoring business. Many tailors, who use European names, are ethnic Chinese.

Traveling tailors

Many Hong Kong tailors, travel to the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Australia and Japan.[9] Traveling tailors provide a more personal service to their customers and give the customers an opportunity to see the fabric samples and meet the tailor in person. Traveling tailors travel between cities and station in a local luxury hotel for a short period of time to meet and provide the same tailoring services they would provide in their local store. In the hotel, the customer will be able to select the fabric from samples and the tailor will take the measurements himself. The order then will be shipped to the customer within three to four weeks' time. Unlike local tailoring, if further alterations are required the garment must be shipped.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Top Attractions in Hong Kong, TripAdvisor
  2. ↑ World-Famous Sam's Tailor Suit Can Be Had For A Steal, Larry Olmsted, Forbes, APR 29, 2013
  3. ↑ Hong Kong tailor replaces tape measure with 3D scanner, Jan 5, 2016
  4. ↑ When in Hong Kong ... By KEITH BRADSHER, New York Times, FEB. 1, 2012
  5. ↑ International Marketing: Emerging Markets, By Shaoming Zou, Huifen Fu, Emerald Group Publishing, p. 80
  6. ↑ The rise and fall of the Hong Kong tailoring industry, , STUART HEAVER, South China Morning Post magazine, 19 AUG 2016
  7. ↑ Tailored tourism: Why getting a suit on vacation isn’t a far-fetched idea, ELLEN HIMELFARB, The Globe and Mail, Feb. 23, 2017
  8. ↑ Richest Indian in Hong Kong, Ramkiran Mehta, Tribune, July 8, 2007
  9. ↑ Bespoke on a budget: the fly-in tailors cutting cloth to fit, Georgina Mitchell, Sydney Morning herald, FEBRUARY 9 2013

Coordinates: 51°30′37″N 0°08′23″W / 51.5102°N 0.1397°W / 51.5102; -0.1397

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