- The given specifications weren't followed. To guide the style, I dragged along my last autumn's Sartoria Rossi MTM single-breasted navy blazer. What was produced was a horrible bastardization of a very padded jacket with a fairly roped shoulder. The same problem persisted with the overcoat.
- The collar role of the jacket has been somehow destroyed entirely making it appear very flat and two-dimensional. This is something I would associate with outfits such as A Suit That Fits and similar companies.
- The button holes appear very much machine-made and are very generic.
- The breast pocket was straight and not the curved barchetta type.
But the biggest problem is the style and fit, which both fail horribly. And because of this, it doesn't even matter what the technical quality of the work really is, because if a garment doesn't attract you to wear it, it doesn't even need to last.
To my shame I was in a rush in Beijing and forked over the cash too easily. The price for the suit and the overcoat was altogether 14000 RMB, which is very heavily overpriced for what was ultimately delivered. This was my first and most likely only test into Asian tailoring market and that's why I ended up deciding to just go to a bit higher pricepoint than what the average there is.
I did email Mr. Frye, highlighting the dissatisfaction, but he has yet to reply. In the mean while I would advise anyone thinking of doing business with Senli and Frye to perhaps think again. Based on the experience so far, there aren't too many positives.
39 comments:
I put down RMB 3000 on a RMB 6000 suit and it was so bad on the first fitting that I just walked away. Have no intention of going back. Just terrible from the measuring to basic construction.
Ouch, so sorry to hear that, but fortunately you still only took a hit on the deposit and not for the whole sum. I had more or less forgotten about my Senli and Frye incident, but now that I think about it, Mr. Nels Frye never actually got back to me after I knocked him an email on this issue, so I guess it's fairly safe to now conclude that Senli and Frye is a bit of a miss, if not a blatant scam outright.
Just out of interest, did you get them to give any type of explanation on what had happened?
Also, hopefully these two experiences are able to help any potential Senli and Frye customer who may be googling around before they even dump the deposit.
The problem isn't as much to do with the technical quality of the product; I know much too little of the technical side of the clothing industry to be able to make a good assessment. I'm quite sure that Mr. Frye is correct that it is below that of higher quality outfits, be they on Savile Row or elsewhere. That is ultimately not the biggest issue I had with them. Instead, to cite their promise from their own website:
"We know the difference between a Neopolitan[sic] and a Saville[sic] Row shoulder and we are also familiar with styles from Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche, to Comme des Garçons, and Dior Homme. The most expensive tailors usually only give you their house style, while the cheap ones just make a mess. We labor to create suits exactly according to client’s requirements, though we do request that bring in an existing suit. We can use this as a model from which to discuss your preferences in terms of fit and styling." (http://www.stylites.net/senli-and-frye/, "Services and Flexibility", cited on Tuesday, November 27th, 2012)
Based on my experience, I would highly argue that the above promise was not fulfilled, despite bringing in a jacket to demonstrate some of the stylistic aspects. Case in point, when voicing these concerns, Mr. Senli insisted that the suit was a good and nice "Savile Row" cut, despite the fact that I had brought in a clearly Italian jacket with a distinctly different type of shoulder construction and other stylistic elements.
But I do agree with Mr. Frye, their product will undoubtedly survive many years, especially when it is not worn due to it not fulfilling the customer's requirements. And I tend to also believe, based on this experience, that if one wants Savile Row, one should go to Savile Row, and if one wants Neapolitan, one should go to Naples. If one wants a certain level of unpredictability and adventure, one should go to China. Just apply the appropriate amount of care, however, which I guess was the biggest learning from this adventure.
Hi, did you get a refund or just apologies from Senli & Frye?
I find that the excuse of working in too many projects it is equally insulting, to say the least, to prospect and former clients.
Do you agree with me?
Nope, didn't get a refund. The only reply I've so far received has been the above comment from said outfit. To be honest, I mentally wrote off the financial aspect of this adventure relatively quickly.
As for the amount of other projects Mr. Frye engages in, I'm sure that he's busy and to be honest, I am not entirely certain what the split between tasks is in Senli and Frye's joint venture; my understanding is that Mr. Frye's role is more marketing oriented but it is somewhat unclear who, for instance, would ultimately take responsibility for the service and product they provide. But yes, I can see the slightly negative impression it might give to prospective clients if one half of the partnership openly admits to prioritizing other ventures ahead of the one being discussed.
Mr. Nels Frye is very generous:
He promises bespoke cashmere/wool overcoat that will last forever, and he delivers!
I wonder who paid that wine.
http://www.stylites.net/2012/12/07/winter-drinks/
Anyway, I think this post and the comments, which now appear at the top of the google rankings for Senli and Frye are more than sufficient as a revenge. I can only imagine that this has already caused us immense suffering and will continue to harm us forever.
Apologies for any suffering caused. The intent wasn't revenge; the intent was to add to the collective experience base*. Think of it this way: this discussion has highlighted some issues with at least the process. Fix those or alter the description for what you're selling and you'll be fine.
And to make it clear to anyone still reading this: this is just my experience and should not be construed as anything more than that. Others may or may not have had similar experiences. To conclude this discussion on my part, I would just reiterate two points:
1) The crux of it all was that from my perspective I was sold something which in retrospect did not stand up to marketing hype. C'est la vie, and that's how life sometimes goes.
2) I'm not outright saying that nobody should ever buy from these guys. I'm merely adding my experience to the discourse. By all means, if you find yourself here wondering whether to go with said tailor, don't let me spook you off so easily. Go talk to the guys and get a feeling for yourself and do your due diligence based on what you want and expect.
* When I was doing research online, I mainly ran across praises and very positive comments. For me it would've helped if I'd known where the possible caveats were in advance. This would've possibly helped me try to communicate even more clearly what I was expecting as well as helped manage my expectations better.
Immense suffering? What do you mean? Who is the real victim here?
Why is Mr. Frye trying to make you feel bad about your very objective post?
Mr. Frye should be aware that most of his clients are not Chinese, so please don't even try to impose your censorship rules here.
Psychological manipulation is not welcome in this debate.
Lastly, TTJ just answered to your comment, you decided to continue the conversation.
Richard,
As an American, I've never quite understood the accusation constantly brought forth by foreigners that there is some sort of attempt to "impose censorship" by people that have spent time in China, as if the way the state-owned press operates would have rubbed off on them. How was I doing that? You are right. There is absolutely no way to succeed in censoring someone else's blog. Still, what a simplistic, childish sort of point to make given the utter impossibility of the proposition. Of course we have lost a lot since this is what appears in google rankings. How is that debatable and how am I trying to impose censorship? You in fact are trying to tell me that I am not allowed gripe about his comments. Also, are you trying to censor attempts at psychological manipulation? Who are you, Richard, to decide what is not welcome and what I should and should not say? I say this mainly to highlight the childishness of your censorship argument. Yes, I find that red herring particularly irritating, partially because it is marched out with such confidence and finality each time.
As for victims, who are you to say? We do good suits and the vast majority of clients are very happy. However, the rare bad experience tends to get mentioned and can have quite a big effect once it reaches the web. I am not saying that we are "victims" since we are out there doing business and certainly can expect some criticism. I am also not saying that TTJ should not have posted his reactions - merely that we are certainly suffering. You can argue that we deserve but that doesn't relate to whether the suffering exists or not. It does.
Tell me what else is not welcome, dear Richard. You decide what I can and cannot say from here on in, Mr. Moderator. How's that?
As for the comments of TTJ, I very much appreciate them and I have actually gone ahead and altered some of the language on the site to reflect your suggestions. In the long run, it is good to have all types of reactions available for clients on the web. Our business has suffered as a result of your post, but that his how it works.
My verdict: inferior and unsatisfactory workmanship at the sleeve and in the shoulder area. The sleeve-head and the collar felt quite meager and hard. The jacket didn't conform with my body. A really bad suit for the money I paid. Much more handwork should be put into their suits. I cannot recommend this tailor even though Mr. Frye & Co. seduced me, I spent my savings and I deeply regret about this. He is right, if you want the highest quality his shop isn't the place to go.
Why is an American engaged in the business of tailoring in China with intent of deluding Western men? Why not in New York? in China, this charlatan can get away with it, in New York he would be behind bars.
In addition he can coerce his innocent Chinese business partner to make suits for him. Rest assured that those suits are better than the crappy suit and overcoat this defrauder gave you.
Based on my experience with this tailor I won't do any kind of business with Nels, he never replies on time and refuses to take responsibility.
These negative experiences should help any potential Senli and Frye customer before it's too late.
Try Lisa Tailor if you need to buy a cheap suit in Beijing. Lisa Tailor suits aren't perfect but they aren't a scam.
Given the paucity of dissatisfied customers that we actually encounter and the preponderance of happy ones, I'm starting to wonder if some of these comments are not the work of competitors.
Also, please do keep in mind that poor value and a "scam" are two different things. If you want to accuse us of the former, we can have talk. If it is the latter, your statements are slanderous.
The reality remains that we are offering a fully-canvassed suit using British and Italian fabric, cut by hand, tailored by hand, and the person that took the measurements and your order was also the cutter. I challenge you to find another suit that meets these criteria at a lower price in Beijing.
Although in fact, this series of comments has really given me pause for reflection because I think it does prove again that it is best not to have a product that is somehow stuck in the middle. That is the tough area. The comparison to suits at Lisa Tailor, for example, is instructive. These are really appalling suits that yell cheap suit from ten meters away. Many of our clients are former clients there. The fabric, construction and fit are all dismal. However, at the price of around 1,200 RMB or even less, one cannot really fault them. The value is there. I suspect if you really monitor the tailor and insist on certain details and make them repeatedly correct the mistakes, you can get a better result. I have had this experience.
There are many suits in Beijing at this 1,000 RMB price level and none of them come up even to the level of a suit from H&M or Zara. But they are other custom, so the price is good. Once you start getting into the 2,000-6,000 range, there are not so many options and the business is much tougher to do. It's from around our price of 6,000 or 7,000 that there are more options. Then, the sky is the limit. There is quite a range of quality and of course client expectation are much higher in this range. These are high-end suits. At this price range, one is in competition with a more global market of tailors from Hong Kong to Naples.
I'm trying to figure out why there are not more options in the mid-range and I'm thinking that it has much to do with the fabric supply in China and the production scale. The low-end tailors are mostly sharing factories and are using a MTM model that allows for a great deal of scale. It would be great if we could figure out a way to offer a suit that is more in the 3,000 to 4,000 range, but it could not be bespoke in the same way that we offer now.
Also, keep in mind that you can inspect our fabrics and plenty of samples of our suits in the shop. If you don't like the price then don't use us, but please don't call us a scam and say that I should be locked up. It's really not fair as we are not doing anything wrong.
These accusations are ridiculous of course, but this post is so high in the google ranking that I must respond.
I have had a couple of suits made here. I think the comments in general are a little unfair - there seems to be a sense of demanding bespoke tailoring on very limited time - something which would not happen on Savile Row. If you do not live here and are not going through the proper process of fitting (to my mind, at least twice during the construction process) I don't know how you can expect things which don't occasionally miss. Not great if you are the miss, but that's the risk you take from being a flying customer.
In London a suit took a couple of months to make at least, with several visits. These fit well. I live in Beijing and do the same with Senli - and I am actually slightly "problematic" in any case in terms of body shape. I have had good results. You get out what you put in in that sense.
Broadly speaking the dilemma with Beijing is, do you pay upper-middle pricing for an upper-middle product? Or might you just as well go and spend top dollar abroad? I use both Senli and cheaper tailors in Beijing, for different things. I also use a tailor in Hong Kong and have my London man. But if I want a decent suit made in Beijing, there is not much choice and Senli is as good as it gets from my experience.
It is like the bespoke shoemaker in Gulou, whose shoes I like very much. It will not equate to a pair of Trickers but it is bespoke and it costs less than London. Sometimes it is the right buy. But in both these cases, it is clearly not a scam - just a reflection of what is actually available in Beijing. It may change, but for now, this is as good as it gets.
The last comment sounds like it was written by a peasant.
Mr. Frye doesn't have a London man. His tailor is Mr. Senli and he owns more than a couple suits made by him.
As an American I've thought about reporting him, to keep a close eye on his fishy business.
Mr. Frye's business is clearly a scam for some of his former clients.
The reality is that the suits Mr. Frye is selling don't fit properly so it doesn't matter if they are tailored by hand using the best stuff. The OP could not even wear it!
Mr. Frye should do the right thing, refund him. He changed the legal terms, and created a new entity after this incident to avoid being sued.
The last comment was made by me, thank you. And if I am a peasant, I'm not sure what that makes you since at least I can write properly.
"As an American"? What is that supposed to mean? And why would anyone want / need to preface their comments with such a piece of information? Sadly it makes you sound rather like a peasant.
I think we can all agree: you, "Dan", are an idiot, plain and simple.
I must say, also, that I am quite amused the small world of retail tailoring in Beijing could warrant such trolling by the likes of "Dan". It really makes one think of Kissinger's comment on student politics.
Anatale Frye, if you read your old comments again you will notice that you already used that sentence "As an American..."
I wrote the same merely to highlight the stupidity of it.
No trolling dear, just very angry customers. Face it and refund the OP! REFUND HIM!
I decided to try to steer clear of commenting on this subject anymore, but I guess one final comment for the road is in order...
My initial point of an unsatisfactory experience still stands. This wasn't related to the technical merits of the suit as I am not a trained tailor and do not feel competent to assess this. My comments were more related to style and what was delivered based on the specs I provided. In this case the result was not what was specified, and certain improvements could be implemented in the order/purchase process to allow for better alignment with customer expectations.
I will retract my implication of a scam from an earlier comment: in retrospect that may be a bit unfair. The company did deliver a suit and a overcoat. They just didn't fulfil the specifications given. However, I'd like to reiterate a point from an earlier comment that these guys may of course be able to provide a satisfactory product, but customers should apply a certain degree of monitoring/oversight on the process to ensure that the product doesn't deviate from the specifications and that all possible deviations are addressed well before the final delivery date. With tailored clothing this is of course slightly difficult, especially if the buyer lacks experience.
In my case I put too much trust on the marketing material and that the supplier understood my requirements, which obviously in the end were not understood at all. This was, to an extent, confirmed by Mr. Frye in an earlier comment in this thread, where he acknowledged that "[they] cannot do a Neapolitan shoulder". And this was what was the central issue, which I've attempted to communicate as clearly as possible. Based on the comments and my experience, it appears that the degree to which they are able to create different styles and facilitate customer requirements is more limited than what was both implicitly and explicitly promised.
As for refunds, I agree with Mr. Frye's earlier comment that giving refunds in tailoring is quite unconventional. In my case, as mentioned previously, I've written off the financial cost of this experience and considering that it has been almost a year and a half, I don't think there is much more needs to be done.
Now, a point related to moderation of this discussion: I have a policy that asides from spam, I don't bother moderating discussions. That said, in the event that this thread significantly deviates from topic and/or regresses to ad hominem sniping or similar, I will have to consider changing the policy. Feel free to continue discussing the subject, if you wish, but if you don't have anything meaningful to contribute to the discussion, please consider whether or not to leave a comment. Thanks.
"Dan", you continue to showcase your own ignorance. If indeed you are real and live in Beijing, you would likely know who I am and would also know I am not Nels, just a previously satisfied customer at Senli & Frye. Unlike you, I have also given a reasonable and rational account on this page of my thoughts on the subject of their tailoring.
This leads me to suspect you are trolling from a remote location on who-knows-what grounds. Do you mind letting us know which bridge you reside under, "dear"? And please, for Heaven's sake, learn some basic standards in formatting.
(Apologies to the author of the blog - I couldn't let that one slip!)
The author explicitly requested that post's comments should stay on the topic, tailoring experiences at Senli and Frye (good or bad) so I won't answer the blunt comment left by a self-infatuated somebody that believes that he is so vital in Beijing that everyone must know him. I'm glad I don't.
Anyone reading this thread doesn't need to be too bright to remark that Nel Frye's answers (inclusive of any answer by someone of the name of Anatole) yell Frye from ten meters away. I admit that it's possible that Anatole typed those messages that Frye whispered in his ear, however it's quite a remote possibility.
Now, a point related to Senli and Frye praises and very positive comments that you ran across when doing research online.
On Senli and Frye's facebook page, Frye, as Marketing Director of "Senli and Frye Co" (his newly created entity after the incident) is offering a free silk tie in exchange of any new review on his business posted on Cityweekend, a Chinese website for expats.
Further, Nels Frye has requested to his acquaintances (or other editors) time and again that rightful negative reviews left on their sites to be removed.
The crucial question is, why would any honorable Marketing Director of a tailoring business be so determined to read new (positive) reviews about his own company and to do whatever it takes to censor any dissenting opinion?
I entirely agree with the OP about his experience at Senli and Frye, like his, ours was an unsatisfactory one. In both, my case and my friend's, we remarked poor workmanship, details and appalling fit, not to mention the lack of service after dumping the deposit. That's all. If you like unpredictability and have extra cash go ahead and give them a try. Nonetheless I wouldn't recommend Senli and Frye to my friends.
I'm on holidays, I will be returning to my office in Beijing at the end of this month. I'm very sorry to hear that some of you don't get any holidays. Perhaps margins aren't what they used to be before people spoke out objectively. Thanks to heroic clients like the OP, he was the first to call it what it is by revealing Nels Frye's deceitful marketing material. You are fortuitous that the OP is a fair man, not a troll. If he wouldn't have been kind on his post, the tailoring business would have been already locked.
To conclude, for anyone doing business, to allege that an unsatisfied client is a "troll" exposes an astonishing lack of professionalism.
"Dan", I am amused that you won't even admit to the intellectual bankruptcy of your own argument. Now that you have thoroughly tied yourself up in knots over who may have written what on this thread, let us examine what you are saying.
According to you, anyone who defends Senli's tailoring must inherently be someone disingenuously in league with Nels Frye. Apparently, there is zero possibility that they are simply, as I am, a satisfied previous customer. There is also zero possibility that, broadly speaking, many customers are happy with Senli with some occasionally less satisfied. According to you, then, the whole thing must be some sort of quasi-scam like conspiracy?
This is the suggestion that marks you out as a troll. As it happens I have several friends who use Senli and, other than some remarks about his responsiveness / timeliness, I have never heard complaint about the quality of the work. Far from it, my own suits, when taken to my tailor in London for adjustment after I lost a fair amount of weight last summer, remarked quite the opposite.
So is it possible that I just happen to occupy a limited circle who by happy circumstance all had good experiences whilst the vast majority of everyone else did not? Highly unlikely, and especially taking into account the repeat nature of my friends and acquaintances' business with Senli.
Furthermore you have drifted well off the fairway regarding both the author's initial complaints (description) and subsequent discussion with Nels (refunds), the the ferocity with which you have continued to pursue this cause beyond his initial complaint marks something awry about you.
I'm afraid I am quite keen to pursue this now, since you seemed to have speculated variously about me and my motives. Who *are* you? And what is your agenda? Cough up, Mr Troll - the people demand an answer.
Dan, you are very cute! I always admire the dedication shown by stalkers.
If you aren't a competitor, you must have a crush on me.
The answer is timing. Plain and simple. We are in August, whoever is writing those comments is doing it at the demand of Nels Frye, Director of Marketing at Senli and Frye. Free silk ties anyone or free suits for more than one comment?
The two nicknames are in the same room or on the phone! It's undeniable.
The author of the blog might be receiving an email at any moment someone posts. Guess what? After Nels or Anatole writes, the other creature follows like a lifeless puppet, in a matter of minutes if not seconds.
It's very sad to witness pitiful attempts to dominate the prevailing discussion that Senli and Frye marketing promises are a misrepresentation of reality, just to turn the discourse into a soliloquy of self-aggrandizement.
I wish I don't have to answer any new meaningless comments.
One more thing: an editor of a very popular website in Beijing (and abroad) warned me about your censoring practices to silence well-founded opinions about your business.
This is starting to sound like the Cold War now.
Fear not! Our operatives are on Dan's trail.
Mr Troll: "timing" - a bit like your own opportunistic bandwagon jumping you mean? So someone posts a relatively nuanced and reasonably critique (the author), only for you two launch into a tirade of allegations of scams and demands for refunds - both issues which have been dealt with subsequently on this very thread without your hyperactive contributions to the subject. It is this total detachment from the underlying subject which marks you out as having ulterior motives.
Your problem is that you have not been sensitive enough to actually frame your troglodyte nonsense in the terms even of the original discussion. I would get back under your bridge an refine your skills. Even the hardiest of trolls should surely learn to use a scalpel once in a while and not rely on a bludgeon!
To be absolutely clear, I have never implied that I do not know Nels Frye and indeed he is a friend of mine who introduced me to Senli. The point is, though, that I am a satisfied paying customer and so are several of my friends, which is why I took an interest in the original discussion. Certainly my posts have been rather more constructive than that of "Dan" and his various pseudonyms.
I also joined in to make a specific side point which has not been dealt with by the author (and certainly not by you) - namely the disjuncture of expectations between "holiday visit" tailoring and what we might term "home" tailoring. Complaints about things like "fit" are a bit odd to me because tailors can always get things wrong at first, but that's why you go several times and closely interact in the process of shaping the suit. This is what I always did in London and the same applies here - several fittings over several weeks.
On limited time, the risks are of course higher and perhaps this is where Senli needs to make further adjustments on the marketing too. But one should be realistic about what one gets out from what one puts in. Senli would be a very expensive "holiday tailor" indeed, but I do not think this is what they are aiming for.
Anatole, Senli doesn't need to make any further adjustments on the marketing, please do keep in mind that the sole responsible of marketing affairs at "Senli and Frye" is Nels Frye not Senli.
Anatole Frye, stop blaming Senli. Senli used to have a very different kind of operation and pricing before Frye took over as self-appointed Marketing Director and rebranded the business. Long ago, Senli's business was quite different, just like any other tailor operating in Beijing, Senli didn't call himself "Beijing's premier bespoke tailoring experience" and other nonsense. The doctrinaire language was brought by Frye along with a continuous increase on prices that never reflected what was being offered.
You are absolutely wrong about me using different names. I use the same.
Concede people to decide what comments are constructive and what comments are meaningless to them, nobody cares about what you think on your own comments.
I don't give any credit to a tailoring business that gives away silk ties to get reviews drafted. Who would?
As far as I'm concerned, I will not continue this conversation, I just hope that my experience and information will help someone to think again before paying any money. I also wish that Senli doesn't have to share revenues with anyone. His tailoring work is not as good as Frye claims to be, nevertheless he could have his place along tailors like Lisa...
Oh I see. So you apparently don't use different names but feel free to accuse others of doing so. Yes, I would retreat from this hypocritical mess if I were you, too. Somewhere out there a village is missing its outspoken idiot; a land where the fields doubtless have more straw men than a antebellum southern plantation in the sowing season (I could go on, but you get the picture).
Unlike you and your assumed airs of supposed expertise, not to mention virulent and questionably motivated crusading, I did not ask anyone to take my "advice" (does what you wrote even constitute advice? Seemed more like mindless shit-stirring to me), I was actually bringing up an additional point - on the expectations of holiday visit tailoring - to this whole discussion which still stands.
If, as you claim, you do exist in Beijing under the name "Dan", I expect I shall meet you one day. I suppose it will be easy to guess who you are from the eye-watering cut of your Lisa suit ... :-p
As of now anonymous comments have been disabled.
Since this dreadful "Dan" person seems to be hell-bent on spreading his bile and nasty, rude accusations, I think it is incumbent upon me to tell the real truth of my relationship with Sen Li, etc. I will do this in several parts, as time allows.
One of thing I sought in China was a perfect, tailor-made, wardrobe. But O had struggled with tailors for years and never got anywhere near the suit that I wanted. Throughout the fabric markets of Hangzhou, the back hutongs of Beijing and the little booths in Tsim Sha Tsui, I had gone in my teens and early 20s, searching for the perfect fitting suit. There was always a strange crease that wouldn’t go away on the coat, some collar gap, or too much shoulder padding. The endless trips back to make adjustments just never brought a product that was anywhere close to perfect. At this point, I wasn’t even looking for perfection – just a suit that looked good.
At first, it seemed the problem might be that I wasn’t paying enough. Perhaps the tailors I was going just weren’t the types that took their work seriously, because the only way to generate enough revenue was by doing work a little too hastily and cutting corners. After all, if these were real masters, they probably would have found a way to locate their enterprises in more prominent locations or they would have developed loyal followings of dandies and other sartorial sophisticates.
So I turned to the higher end of tailors in Beijing. I was, after all, a business consultant at this point and had a bit more spending money. Even if with the better enterprises of the city, I met with disappointment. The fabrics, linings, and quality of construction was much better of course. The fits were still never what I wanted. In fact, the higher echelon of the city’s tailors seemed even less willing to adapt their styles to what I wanted. The suits always felt a little bit too big and boxy. It was back to the constant trips to the tailor shop to make little changes, nips and tucks that never led to a suit that really worked. Even a French tailor who had opened shop in Beijing was only able to produce something that, while it did have beautiful fabric and a lovely lime-color lining, looked like a sail up top.
One day in late 2005, having nearly given up on the project, I was riding my bike through a new part of town in an area with a lot of cranes, like much of the city at that time. I saw a tailor shop in the window of a nondescript building and quickly examined the suits, expecting them to be cheap garbage. One thing caught my eye though. That was the hand-sewn, working buttonhole on the lapel. Most tailors in the city would not bother with this detail, thinking correctly that most customers don’t really care about boutonnières.
I went and ended up engaged in a three-hour discussion with the tailor, a small man with thick-framed glasses and a wispy beard, named Sen Li. We really hit it off. I didn’t have a suit made that first time because I still wanted to think about it, since the price did seem a bit high. But I had a good feeling. Despite the trek, I headed back to that area again to commission my first suit.
To be continued in the next post.
I also had a bad experience with this tailor.
Mr. Frye is very unprofessional. I had a suit made there for an important occasion. He just messed me around from day one. Promising to have it done by a certain date, and he hadn't even started. I finally got the suit two weeks after he had promised, and I wasn't happy with the final product at all.
Then Mr. Senli did all kinds of strange things to the suit which I hadn't asked for and looked ridiculous. The two sides on the front of the jacket were totally uneven and asymmetrical. At the fittings he
didn't even have a tape measure or a pen and paper!
Mr. Frye also kept telling me he's so busy. The point is, if he's so busy, he shouldn't be accepting new work, or he should get more interns to take on the work.
And all of the above was not due to a language problem.
I will never use them again or recommend them to anyone.
The pricing strategy turned out to be deceptive. Very rude seller and bad value. Avoid this seller.
I'm sorry to hear that you had a bad tailoring experience. In my experience the best value in Beijing is D&J. I've been wearing three suits I bought there and I'm very satisfied. I haven't seen anything better than that in Beijing.
Lisa is fine if you want a much lower price but is not quite the same.
If you are more demanding you might visit Hong Kong. The best suit I ever bought in Asia was made at A-Man.
Most expensive tailors are just buzz.
Hello Nels, I asked your dr friend to give you a message but it's possible that the email was marked as spam. No kidding.
I just wanted to apologize to you before 2015. I'm sorry.
I have no idea what your aim is regarding what you have been doing but the result is that I've had to change some habits. You, and anyone doing what you suggest them to do, is being ignored, since a long time. I tell you because I no longer look at what you write or check back. I quit long time ago.
I wish you, Senli and J, a happy new year.
I would write you some constructive feedback about my first impressions, a few months back, but I'm creeped out by you and America. If that was your goal, congratulations.
Best wishes to S&F!
Caroline Andrew is a highly respected bespoke
Tailor in Kensington
who focuses on traditional hand-crafted British suits and shirts for both men & women. She is best Female Tailor in London
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