The London Lounge

Gentlemen I'm going to Hong Kong and Singapore for five days and four days respectively at the end of the month. I would greatly appreciate your recommendations of tailoring outlets, especially shirt makers, I should visit.

Many thanks,
Snapper

Ascot Chang is certainly one of the better bets for shirts. I was measured in the Central office, and some say that it is the best of the batch. No idea myself.

Good workmanship, and very good service to their international clients. The downsides are that their better fabrics are very expensive-- whether that is a HK tariff issue, a distributor's problem, or a desire for huge profit margins from the top of their client list I could not say. But the price gap between CMT and fine shirts from their own fabrics is pretty alarming.

Bring your best shirt to copy-- or modify slightly, if that is your wish. Make time for a fitting, since their first try may be really wrong. Use a stock fabric that isn't too precious for the first draft. And remember that they have no definable house style as such, so you need to ask for what you want. It won't be standard issue Jermyn Street or Naples unless you all agree on the details, and even then it won't be quite the same.

WW Chan is my source for HK suits. Their prices aren't low, and the emergence of the budget Savile Row options means that they aren't necessarily the best value. But their work is very careful and worth a look. I think they've moved across to Central from Tsim Sha Tsui, which probably implies a glossier storefront. You won't get a suit finished in 5 days but if you get an appointment for Monday morning and use an in-house fabric you should be able to get one and maybe two fittings by week end.

Concordia,

Many thanks for your reply, not only the contact names but also the advise on how to use them. Much appreciated.

Regards,
Snapper

If you browse the forum archives, you'll see quite a few customer reviews.

I have been pretty happy with Gordon Yao in Kowloon (he does CMT work), and with his buddies at Ascot Chang in the Peninsula Hotel in Kowloon. Not so happy with Ah Man Hing Cheong.

Simon,

Thank you for your reply. I have taken it all on board and will try to get to see some of the recommended tailors.

Regards,
Snapper