Shirtjacket blindfold test: East vs. West

[Concordia]

It seems that Chan's ladies division won't do this anymore. Or if they do, perhaps they need something to copy. Anyway, I asked during their stateside visit and got turned down.

[tteplitzmd]

They copied (but improved upon) my Savile Row item. It's curious how reluctant tailors/shirtmakers are to make these. They have to change needles on their sewing machines, and
they are not particularly expensive (read: worthwhile), so most just don't want to be bothered. My London version was very expensive, supposedly reflecting the time involved.

I know Will has been successful in having them done in HK with one of this tailors. You might contact him.

[Concordia]

Thanks-- I shall look into trying them.

[Concordia]

I tried to find out via e-mail if Ascot Chang might be interested. In addition to their top-flight shirtmakers, they also do tailoring.

Dead silence, which I take to be a face-saving way of saying "no." Perhaps Dr. Teplitz has managed to frighten all the best HK shops away from this project...

We shall see if mytailor.com will bite. They do come to my town in the fall, although I do prefer the look of Chan's work to the photos on Will's blog.

[marburyvmadison]

Ascot Chang does make these safari-jacket shirts, with a 'belt' at the rear.

[tteplitzmd]

I think the key here is that Chan copied my Savile Row prototype. The workmanship
was sloppy on the SR attempt, many details requested were ignored, but the fit was
very good. I did send my SR shirtjac to Hong Kong.

Years ago, I had David's in Hong Kong copy a Sulka golf jacket. The workmanship was
superb but the fit on the RTW Sulka jacket wasn't very good, but it was copied,
exactly, by the Hong Kong shirtmaker. There's a learning curve here.

I think it's a lot of work to make the shirtjacket from scratch. Once you've got it
worked out though, I think the Hong Kong shirtmakers would make copies. I think
the shirtmaker don't want to take the time, it's a bit of a departure from the usual,
and economically, not worthwhile for them. They also have to change needles for the
heavier cloth.

I paid dearly for the botched SR jackets (it took two versions and countless trips'
to New York and London over 2 years' time.) A waste of time and money.

Your mileage may vary.
mileage may vary.

[tteplitzmd]

Ascot Chang does make these safari-jacket shirts, with a 'belt' at the rear.

All my Ascot Chang shirts were unwearable and discarded.
Poor customer service and very aggressive pricing. I think
they would copy a shirtjac but not start from scratch.

[Concordia]

I did get a reply from AC suggesting that they could make one, but the price is a little higher than I was expecting. So I'll continue to sniff elsewhere.

[marburyvmadison]

Ascot Chang does make these safari-jacket shirts, with a 'belt' at the rear.

All my Ascot Chang shirts were unwearable and discarded.
Poor customer service and very aggressive pricing. I think
they would copy a shirtjac but not start from scratch.

Do you think you could elaborate a little on why they're unwearable? Is it due to the poor fit? Which branch did you visit?

[tteplitzmd]

New York shop: all shrunk in excess of any other shirts I've had made.
No interest in addressing the problem.
High prices to begin with.

When in Hong Kong I had their competitor, David's make some shirts. They did a nice
job, but their prices are also on the high side. You can get a generic London made shirt
for about the same price.