My experience with a tailor in India

[power86]

Hey guys, I'm a newbie here at SF and I did some research about a month or two ago on suit-making in India since I was going there over New Years. I went to Chennai so the name that stood out from SF was Syed Bawkher. Everyone that I talked to recommended SB for high-quality designer suits, so that was a good thing. Unfortunately the prices were not that so much of a good thing. Called and found out that a suit usually costs around 40,000 Rs (~$800). So I went back to SF and found another name -- Kachins. These guys also seemed to be well known (apparently one of the Ambani brothers gets his suits done here). They were reasonable in price -- I scored a Versace three-piece suit for $275. A suit made with Hugo Boss fabric costs around the same. They didn't have any Zegna in stock though. My experience with them was not bad. Obviously for the price I got the suit, there were some sacrifices made -- customer service is not like America and I had to make sure I tell them every detail on the suit b/c they are not the most up-to-date when it comes to fashion. It helps to carry pictures or a magazine with pictures of suits/fittings that you'd like to see. I got a 2-button charcoal suit. Here are some pictures. Note I am missing my vest because they used the inner-suit material (not sure what the proper word for that soft material is) on the back of my vest. I told them to re-do with it the standard suit fabric so it's still in the works.

Please post any suggestions. I personally think the pants look a little big on me when you look from the front. I'm not sure if I can alter anything now but if you think so, please suggest. Thanks! Edit: Let's try this again. I took some better pictures. The thing is, I did get the vest and the pants altered here since I thought they could be taken in a little bit more. I'm wondering if this is enough or if I should go back and take them in to make skinnier pants and a tighter vest. Thanks!

 

[randallr]

Those pictures are too blurry. We cant see any lines.

 

[acidboy]

I suggest you change your camera settings

 

[power86]

posted new pics.. not sure if a polite bump is allowed in SF, couldnt find the rules.

thanks

 

[dragon8]

I think the pants are ok but the jacket looks big.

 

[GBR]

You really should wear shoes before the fit of the suit can be judged. Without your whole body is at an odd angle.

Can you also add front and rear views without the coat and the full inside of the coat to enable a full judgement.

Opportunities to judge Indian garments are rare so this thread is a good contribution to SF - thanks.

 

[Zenny]

The suit looks a little stiff.

 

[kulata]

The fabric doesn't really drape well. The jacket is slightly big especially in the sleeves.

 

[SuitMyself]

Originally Posted by power86

Hey guys,

I'm a newbie here at SF and I did some research about a month or two ago on suit-making in India since I was going there over New Years. I went to Chennai so the name that stood out from SF was Syed Bawkher. Everyone that I talked to recommended SB for high-quality designer suits, so that was a good thing.

Unfortunately the prices were not that so much of a good thing. Called and found out that a suit usually costs around 40,000 Rs (~$800). So I went back to SF and found another name -- Kachins. These guys also seemed to be well known (apparently one of the Ambani brothers gets his suits done here). They were reasonable in price -- I scored a Versace three-piece suit for $275. A suit made with Hugo Boss fabric costs around the same. They didn't have any Zegna in stock though.

My experience with them was not bad. Obviously for the price I got the suit, there were some sacrifices made -- customer service is not like America and I had to make sure I tell them every detail on the suit b/c they are not the most up-to-date when it comes to fashion. It helps to carry pictures or a magazine with pictures of suits/fittings that you'd like to see.

I got a 2-button charcoal suit. Here are some pictures. Note I am missing my vest because they used the inner-suit material (not sure what the proper word for that soft material is) on the back of my vest. I told them to re-do with it the standard suit fabric so it's still in the works.


1.) Why on earth would ANYONE want to get a suit made in India or Taiwan or Thailand? I've seen and herd horror stories about all these tailors stocking only polyester fabrics and their tailoring standards are fourth rate (OUCH!!!) and their sense of fashion is anything but sartorial. Avoid these tailors even if they were the last ones on earth.

2.) Why would you want the back of your vest to be a self-faced fabric and not a lining material?!?!?!?!?!?!?

3.) See #1

 

[MikeF]

You do realize there's no such thing as "Versace" or "Hugo Boss" fabric, right?

 

[penguin vic]

If you're asking for a critique on fit, having your hands in your pocket is as bad as having blurry photos. From the side photos, the balance is off.

What's Hugo Boss fabric ...?

EDIT: ^ MikeF beat me to it. Seems odd to me that you would go somewhere where you need to specify every detail when you appear not to know a lot about suits (e.g. the 'soft inner suit material' is called lining).

 

[lynchpatrickj]

I don't care for how large/baggy the pants look, but that may just be the photos. The jacket arms look a bit short to me, also. Thanks for sharing this!

 

[globetrotter]

I've had about 20 suits made in the 3rd world. If you know what you are doing, you can get great work for great prices.I think the average price for a 3 piece suit with 2 pants has been around 500 bucks, with fabric. I've had 11 suits made at kachins, I have been very happy with what I got.

There seem to be 3 differnt concepts of how to dressd

Buy really expensive off the rack stuf, either at retail or finding ways to pay less

Celebraty tailors who charge a fortune but do fantastic work, with whom you can't really have a relationship

Get a good tailor who can make good clothes at a reasonable price and have a good relationship with him

I've gone with the latter

 

[calvinloke]

You might want to check your shirt sleeves first. They seem too long

 

[JLibourel]

Originally Posted by SuitMyself

1.) Why on earth would ANYONE want to get a suit made in India or Taiwan or Thailand? I've seen and herd horror stories about all these tailors stocking only polyester fabrics and their tailoring standards are fourth rate (OUCH!!!) and their sense of fashion is anything but sartorial. Avoid these tailors even if they were the last ones on earth.

I've heard there are some very good tailors in Thailand, but their prices are about the same as W.W. Chan's.