WW Chan - Bespoke vs. MTM

Originally Posted by edmorel

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I think he is referring to people's comments (posted here previously) that Chan's preference seems to be one fitting and then delivery. Or at least, that seems to be the route the majority of people (who aren't in HK) take with him. I agree in the sense that it defeats the purpose and I think some people may be putting getting a "bespoke" suit ahead of getting a suit that fits.

I see. I saw Eustace Tilley's comments and thought he was quite off. I have never been "discouraged" to do more than one fitting by anyone at Chan. My requests have always been addressed with a smile - no issues whatsoever - Patrick seemed as interested as I was in getting us to the best possible fit.

If people decide to accelerate the process and forego fittings, they should accept the consequences of taking short cuts.

I'll get flak, but here goes. I am currently in HK on business. This is one fo the world's greatest cities. It is usually very warm. It is, in certain business circles, very well turned-out, both for ladies and guys. This town has several good tailors, including WW Chan and others.

I have colleagues that have used them (Chan & Sons), A-Man Hin Cheong, and Jimmy Chen in the Peninsula. I have a pair of trousers from Jimmy Chen that are bomb-proof. I however use mostly tailors in London, Argentina, and made to order at Oxxford. As an end-user, there is no difference from the traditional suppliers in London to more colonial offerings made in HK. This includes having that "snap" or X-factor many always seek to find. Bottom line, if you need to be well turned-out professionally, one could do worse than visiting any of the aforementioned tailors in HK.

Doesn't Chan charge an additional $120-$150 more for mailing the basted suit? After reviewing the basted suit with Chan on their next visit, the buyer then has to mail it back to HK(additional expense - $50? $60?). The total time involved from start to finish seems to be over 6 months. Is it worth the expense and long wait?

I wasn't charged anything for an additional basted fitting. But yes, you do need to ship it back and forth.

Originally Posted by gdl203

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I wasn't charged anything for an additional basted fitting. But yes, you do need to ship it back and forth.

I did hear that they charge an extra $100 per fitting, but have no first hand knowledge.

Originally Posted by Eustace Tilley

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What am I missing here? If Chan charges ~$1,800 for a suit, I am surprised at the number of members who patronize the firm.

I would also argue that Chan is more akin to MTM than bespoke - while a paper pattern is cut, the abbreviated fittings (which seem to be generally discouraged) are not in the sprit of bespoke tailoring.

To be clear, bespoke without several fittings means nothing - what makes bespoke superior is the fittings by a trained professional and not the mere fact that a paper pattern is drafted for each customer.

For the price, one could go to Ercole in NYC, or spend a few hundred dollars more and use Mina Adamo's bespoke service out of Naples.

As I said, what am I missing here?

This is laughable. You won't get that many fittings from any tailor unless they really screw up your order.

Originally Posted by edmorel

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I think he is referring to people's comments (posted here previously) that Chan's preference seems to be one fitting and then delivery.
My understanding is that Chan's preference is for no fittings on subsequent orders. They tweak your pattern based on the fittings done for the initial order and then, theoretically, can produce a perfect fit with no further measurements. Having said that, I'm sure they don't object to doing a couple of fittings, especially if you happen to be in HK and can go to the shop. It is tempting to be able to send off an e-mail with your specifications and have the finished suit arrive at your door in three or four weeks. The fit will probably even be OK. But I doubt seriously if it would be up to the AR standards of Style Forum. What if it had a divot? BTW, one plus of Chan's service is that, as I understand it, they provide free alterations for life. This is quite clever, when you think about it as, a) being bespoke, what alterations are likely to be necessary or even possible? b) how many of their international customers are likely to take them up on this offer even if they could think of something to alter? It's a nice thought, though.

Originally Posted by EnglishLapel

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You often seem to push the "people on the forum don't like Asian craftsmanship" and to me this really does not seem true. People tend to love yfyf's fits and other Asian contingent iGent's fits. You seem to have a chip on your shoulder about people not liking Asian work, but that isn't really apparent on the forVm...

you seem to have a remarkable amount of insight for someone who only joined the forum less than two months ago.

What are you, Asian?

Originally Posted by gdl203

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I wasn't charged anything for an additional basted fitting. But yes, you do need to ship it back and forth.

Originally Posted by taxgenius69

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I did hear that they charge an extra $100 per fitting, but have no first hand knowledge.

Any time I've requested an extra fitting, I've been charged $100. (A thread last month indicated that fee has gone up to $150 since March.) How Chan classifies that fee seems to vary. Some email confirms call it a fitting fee, while a confirm from May 2010 calls it Shipping and Handling to US. Whatever that fee is called, I have had to pay for the shipping of the basted jacket back to HK, an extra $50-$60 or so.

Originally Posted by Bounder

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TW, one plus of Chan's service is that, as I understand it, they provide free alterations for life. This is quite clever, when you think about it as, a) being bespoke, what alterations are likely to be necessary or even possible? b) how many of their international customers are likely to take them up on this offer even if they could think of something to alter? It's a nice thought, though.

This has not been my experience. I have had the waist of older pants let out and sleeve lengths of jackets shortened. I have been charged for these alterations.


I've been a regular Chan customer for 6 or 7 years and am surprised that my experience seems to be very different from other customers. Are others getting offered a better deal or negotiating better terms with Chan? Maybe I just don't know all the facts of each case.

It's funny how these debates flare up at about the same time Chan sends out its US tour schedule. I received mine last week.

The one thing I will say about WW Chan, more specifically Patrick, is that he really cares about how his products look and what his customers want.

Originally Posted by bcate3

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Any time I’ve requested an extra fitting, I’ve been charged $100. (A thread last month indicated that fee has gone up to $150 since March.) How Chan classifies that fee seems to vary. Some email confirms call it a fitting fee, while a confirm from May 2010 calls it Shipping and Handling to US. Whatever that fee is called, I have had to pay for the shipping of the basted jacket back to HK, an extra $50-$60 or so.
I understand and I've heard that several times. I wasn't charged anything but it may have been a mistake on their part. I was charged for shipping initially but not the second time they shipped it after the basted fitting.

I was never charged for alterations either.

Originally Posted by dragon8

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If I'm not mistaken, Chan uses higher end Zegna cloth like Trofeo, 15 Mil Mil 15, which makes suits closer to the $2k range. For a few hundred dollars more you can get a MTM zegna.

You can get Zegna Trofeo MTM for 2k?

Originally Posted by lee_44106

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you seem to have a remarkable amount of insight for someone who only joined the forum less than two months ago.

What are you, Asian?

Hmm well I read teh forum for about a year and a half or so before I could be bothered to join. Sorry if it seems like an attack on you, I was just pointing out that often the Asian tailors liek Chan get a lot of love as well as hate. That's all.

Originally Posted by gdl203

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I understand and I've heard that several times. I wasn't charged anything but it may have been a mistake on their part. I was charged for shipping initially but not the second time they shipped it after the basted fitting.

I was never charged for alterations either.

Greg: just curious: do you do more fitting(s) beyond the basted fitting with Patrick?

Originally Posted by bcate3

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This has not been my experience. I have had the waist of older pants let out and sleeve lengths of jackets shortened. I have been charged for these alterations.
Apparently I slightly overstated the case but it still appears that you got overcharged. From Chan's site, Limited Lifetime Guarantee Every Chan's product carries a limited lifetime warranty covering free repair of any seams, loose buttons, and minor alterations. Major alterations due to substantial change in weight are subject to labor charge accordingly. Customer will be responsible for shipping and handling cost. http://www.wwchan.com/policy.php So if you gained a lot of weight and had to have your pants let out, you'd have to pay. But your arms didn't get shorter because you got fat. I think the larger question, you should pardon the expression, is just how much scope you have to let out a bespoke suit. RTW leaves substantial fabric, especially in pants, to accomodate a range of sizes. How much is left in a bespoke garment depends on the tailor, I guess. Though I'd be surprised if it were ever as much as in RTW.