Would you leave WW Chan for another tailor

[poorsod]

Ok, so being that GBP is at about $1.38, I've been thinking of trying someone from Savile Row. Instead of being 4x more expensive than than they are only 2-3x more expensive. I've been thinking of trying Huntsman/Richard Anderson but I think Chan can mimick that structured look pretty well. If you Channites were to try Savile Row, would you try something less structured like Anderson Sheppard?

 

[Ataturk]

Nah. Why mess with a good thing?

I might do it if I had occasion to visit London a couple times in the next few months.

 

[DocHolliday]

I am not a Channite, but I would get what appealed to me, and not opt for another style just because.

 

[JLibourel]

Okay, I was reading on Fr. Bown's blogsite today how he had Henry Poole make him a suit from a Porter & Harding Glorious Twelfth fabric for GBP 3,000. Chan's price for a two-piece from that fabric would be $1,500 or a little less. Yes, Poole is a better buy at $4,000 than $6,000, when the GBP was 2-1 against the $, but still $2,500 is very significant sum to a poor boy like me. I'd stick with my buddies in Kowloon. With the difference, I could buy another suit and a very nice sport coat from them.

 

[SirSuturesALot]

Originally Posted by JLibourel

Okay, I was reading on Fr. Bown's blogsite today how he had Henry Poole make him a suit from a Porter & Harding Glorious Twelfth fabric for GBP 3,000. Chan's price for a two-piece from that fabric would be $1,500 or a little less. Yes, Poole is a better buy at $4,000 than $6,000, when the GBP was 2-1 against the $, but still $2,500 is very significant sum to a poor boy like me. I'd stick with my buddies in Kowloon. With the difference, I could buy another suit and a very nice sport coat from them.

Did he post his thoughts on the differences between the two?

 

[JLibourel]

I guess I didn't make myself clear. Fr. Bown had nothing to do with Chan. I was just using him as a source for Henry Poole's pricing for a suit made from the Porter & Harding Glorious Twelfth fabric. Since Chan made me a jacket from that fabric in 2008, I had a good idea of what Chan's price would be for equivalent work.

In other words, instead of being 25% of what an eminent Savile Row firm would charge for the same work, Chan is now maybe 33% of SR. That's still a big savings. As for quality differences, I can't comment from experience, but one correspondent of mine did rate Chan's work ahead of his A&S garments.

 

[Vintage Gent]

I did leave Chan for a brief time last year. After a quality control issue with an order, I decided to try local options for both suits/jackets and shirts. For suits I went with Nick Lopez, a bespoke tailor in Houston. http://www.styleforum.net/showthread.php?t=49708 The results were OK, but certainly a notch below Chan. Since then, I've ordered two jackets from Chan. A suit is on the way. For shirts, I went with Hamilton, also in Houston. I haven't ordered a shirt from Chan since. Even though Hamilton (at $300) is substantially more than Chan, the workmanship and fabrics are that much better. Unless something drastic happens with Hamilton, I don't anticipate returning to Chan for shirts.

 

[JLibourel]

Originally Posted by Vintage Gent

For shirts, I went with Hamilton, also in Houston. I haven't ordered a shirt from Chan since. Even though Hamilton (at $300) is substantially more than Chan, the workmanship and fabrics are that much better. Unless something drastic happens with Hamilton, I don't anticipate returning to Chan for shirts.

I think other posters have commented that Chan's shirts, which I believe are outsourced by them, are not the equals in quality and value to the tailored garments. Back when Chan had shirts on special for $79 a few years ago, I bought five of them. I thought they were good shirts at the price, and if that price had held, I might have bought some more. Nowadays, I think most of their shirts are about $150.

Spending $300 for a shirt seems awfully steep to me, but then I am not much of a shirt connoisseur. I am quite happy pairing a $15 Costco BD with a Chan tweed jacket, as I am doing at the moment.

 

[TC (Houston)]

Originally Posted by Vintage Gent

For shirts, I went with Hamilton, also in Houston. I haven't ordered a shirt from Chan since. Even though Hamilton (at $300) is substantially more than Chan, the workmanship and fabrics are that much better. Unless something drastic happens with Hamilton, I don't anticipate returning to Chan for shirts.

Is that the price for bespoke? I was under the impression that they were more expensive than that. At that price I may give them a try.

 

[GBR]

Not unless I had hada fall out.

 

[Vintage Gent]

Originally Posted by TC (Houston)

Is that the price for bespoke? I was under the impression that they were more expensive than that. At that price I may give them a try.

That is. Or at least was the last time I used them, which was about eight months ago.

 

[wmb]

a bit off topic but I am going to chan on next nyc visit... what is the process while you are in the hotel suite? Obviously there is no follow up fitting... Are the items made off of one set of measurements? Sorry in advance for my novice questions...

 

[The Louche]

I've been curious about Chan for sometime. I have a MTM program that I'm relatively pleased with right now - they are 1 hour from my home and charge about $8-900 for a two piece, full canvass suit. The suits fit well enough but the house cut is distinctly American (I mitigate it with the fit and detailing as much as possible - pleasing, if not astounding, results).

It'll be a few months before I drop any meaningful loot on a new suit and I'm tempted to explore. My thoughts now are focused on either Chan or Martin Greenfield (provided I can finagle an appointment at his factory). I simply can not spend a touch over $1300 - Ideally I'd like to keep it around $1k. My main concern with Chan is the difficulty in getting a great fit from 8,000 miles away when I already have a good fit dialed in with my current operation.

Any thoughts/hints/suggestions?

 

[plhoang]

In a word, no.

The price difference is only one obstacle for me - the second is that Chan has already demonstrated for me the ability to dial in a suit very well on the first go. Presumably, the results will only improve from here.

While I am intrigued by the possibility of a Huntsman, the price differential remains substantial, especially given the risk that the first ("test") garment I'd get might be a step backwards from what I have already got with Chan despite the remaining premium. That's not an impossible outcome, given the very so-so first garments I've gotten from other suitmakers in Chan's price range in the New York area, some of whom have first-rate reputations and recommendations on this and other forums.

Like some of the others here, I believe I'll be a Chan customer for the foreseeable future unless (heaven forbid) something bad happens.

 

[plhoang]

Originally Posted by The Louche

I've been curious about Chan for sometime. I have a MTM program that I'm relatively pleased with right now - they are 1 hour from my home and charge about $8-900 for a two piece, full canvass suit. The suits fit well enough but the house cut is distinctly American (I mitigate it with the fit and detailing as much as possible - pleasing, if not astounding, results).

It'll be a few months before I drop any meaningful loot on a new suit and I'm tempted to explore. My thoughts now are focused on either Chan or Martin Greenfield (provided I can finagle an appointment at his factory). I simply can not spend a touch over $1300 - Ideally I'd like to keep it around $1k. My main concern with Chan is the difficulty in getting a great fit from 8,000 miles away when I already have a good fit dialed in with my current operation.

Any thoughts/hints/suggestions?

I believe that Chan will fix any major problems you have as long as you are willing to bear the cost of shipping the garment back to them. Alternatively, I thought that I heard that they will do multiple fittings if you pay for the incremental shipping and can bear the delay of waiting between visits (I admit I wouldn't have the patience for it).