Bespoke Tailors Trunkshows question

[AmayaTaiyou]

Hi all,

I've recently been getting myself into classic menswear, specifically bespoke tailoring. After some research and looking around, I've found some wonderful bespoke tailors that I would love to try out. However, most of them are only available in my country through their trunk tours.

I wanted to ask how a bespoke trunk show works, as from my knowledge, obviously bespoke tailoring requires multiple fittings. Do they just do one measurement and ship the finished product to you, or do they do various visits throughout a period of a few months.

Look forward to hearing from everyone!

 

[Mark from Plano]

It depends on the tailor I suppose. My general experience is has been that you measure/spec the commission on visit #1. Then they bring back the basted garment for a fitting on visit #2. If the tailor feels confident in the fitting, they’ll generally finish it up after that and mail the garment a few weeks later. If there are issues, they can be dealt with on visit 3 or subsequent visits.

If there are issues to resolve serious patience can be required. This will not be a quick process.

 

[dieworkwear]

Depends on the tailor, but it's generally:

1. Get measured and choose a fabric at the first meeting
2. Get fitted through a series of fittings, usually three. First is basted; second is a little further along (called the forward fitting); third is basically the garment finished, but can be adjusted like you'd have a rtw garment adjusted through an alterations tailor.

If pressed for time, you can have the third done by a competent local tailor, assuming the garment is in good shape. Sometimes the garment isn't really workable and needs bigger adjustments.

The process isn't any different from working with a local bespoke tailor except that it's stretched out in terms of time. Whereas you can get a garment finished in a month or two locally, it may take over a year to get something back from a traveling tailor depending on how often they visit.

IMO, your best bet is to choose a tailor whose work you admire. Don't base this on price or whether or not they travel. The key is to make sure they do work you admire, ideally for customers you know (who will give you a candid opinion). Even better if you've seen their stuff in person and not through filtered IG photos. Don't go with a bespoke tailor just because they have some storied name, or because you want a bespoke suit, or because they're affordable and custom. If the really good tailors you admire are out of your price range, you're probably much better off with rtw than compromised bespoke.