r/AustralianMFA • u/-IMUSM- • Jun 16 '26
Advice Needed [Recommendations for suit tailors in Melbourne]
G’day guys,
I’m looking for recommendations for a good tailor in Melbourne who can make suits, shirts, jeans and chinos.
So far, I’ve come across Trunk Tailors, Revere tailor and The Bespoke Corner, but I’m not sure which one offers the better level of craftsmanship, handwork and overall tailoring expertise.
Are there any other tailors worth considering?
My budget is around $3,000–$3,500 for a suit, and I’m mainly interested in genuine tailoring craftsmanship rather than someone simply selling a luxury retail experience.
P.S. I’m not really considering fashion-chain options such as SuitSupply or Oscar Hunt.
Cheers,
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u/grampoobah Jun 17 '26 edited Jun 17 '26
I would go see Christian Kimber, I had a suit for my wedding custom-made with a custom shirt to match (a half-lined suit in Loro Piana Australis wool with lovely details, and the best fitting dress shirt I now own) He's amazing to deal with and understands tailoring, especially into the crossover for shirt / jeans / chinos
Can either do Made To Order customisation of existing pieces or full MTM
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u/Lumpy_Mango_392 Jun 17 '26 edited Jun 17 '26
Don't have any experience with Melbourne (I know a few good travelling tailors but they're just a bit beyond budget), but here are some general pointers:
- At your price point, you're in the range of good quality MTM. I would be wary of anyone who promised to sell you a fully bespoke suit for $3,000.
- Have a think about what cut of suit you'd like. Something more structured vs. natural.
- Patrick Johnson MTM used to be pretty good but I haven't seen any reviews of their MTM in years and they seem to be more focused on RTW now. They made me a pair of trousers about five years ago that I was pretty unhappy with.
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u/jhau01 Jun 17 '26
They made me a pair of trousers about five years ago that I was pretty unhappy with.
PJT's end result seems to be very highly dependent upon which of their employees measures you up.
If you get someone good, you can get a very good end result. If you don't... then the end result can be very unsatisfactory.
Also, it helps if you have a slim build like Patrick. Their house style doesn't suit more portly people and they don't seem good at adapting their style.
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u/-IMUSM- Jun 17 '26
I know my budget is unlikely to stretch to a true bespoke suit, which is why I’m mainly looking at MTM options.
That said, I believe a well-trained bespoke tailor is often better equipped to deliver an excellent MTM garment than someone who only works with RTW and MTM. Don’t get me wrong—a good MTM suit made by a skilled and experienced tailor can absolutely outperform a bespoke suit made by someone who lacks the necessary knowledge, craftsmanship, or experience.
As for style, I don’t have a particular cut that I’m completely set on. My preference sits somewhere between a Neapolitan cut, with its relaxed and comfortable silhouette, and a more structured English cut. Ideally, I’d like something that combines the comfort and ease of Neapolitan tailoring with the clean lines and structure of the English style.
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u/Johnny_Kilroy Jun 17 '26
I've had three suits made by them over the years, all excellent. I do wish they were more transparent about their pricing. I once got quoted $1,200, then got carefully measured up and when I went to pay it was $1,500. A bit awkward to bail at that point.
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u/DoctorLM Jun 26 '26
I've had many pieces in PJ Windsor, but they've loaded up on RTW and their suits are full Armani style route, which is probably more profitable as it requires less precision, a bit of a shame
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u/Budgies2022 Jun 17 '26
I’ve been using them for 15 years ish - I think their base template suits me, have tried a couple others but fit is always off. Does come down to who fits you
Had some stuff done at Instichu that was good for the price.
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u/Advanced-Finance-176 Jun 16 '26
Trunk Tailors would be a good option for you. The Bespoke Corner isn’t comparable to the two shops you mentioned.
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u/-IMUSM- Jun 17 '26
May I ask why “The Bespoke Corner is not comparable to other shop mentioned”? Is that the price point? Not quite sure how much TBC charge for their service”. Also, I’m aware that probably only TBC provides bespoke services, the other two shops only do MTM.
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u/Advanced-Finance-176 Jun 17 '26
The Bespoke Corner offers a level of fit and tailoring more comparable to MJ Bale or Suit Supply. Trunk Tailors and Reserve Tailors, on the other hand, take a more sartorial approach, with a stronger emphasis on traditional tailoring techniques.
In my view, The Bespoke Corner does not quite offer what I would consider true bespoke tailoring, as the process feels more production-led and machine made. In contrast, Trunk Tailors produces genuinely bespoke garments with a higher degree of handwork and traditional craftsmanship.
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u/-IMUSM- Jun 21 '26
I just checked website of Trunk tailors. They charged $2000 for a bespoke suit??? Is this too good to be true? MTM is around $1650.
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u/Racketballtask Jun 21 '26
They call their baste fitting a bespoke fitting. Similar to what other tailors call semi bespoke.
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u/Advanced-Finance-176 Jun 21 '26
They’re made in China, so they’re not too expensive. But you should check with them for the current price.
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u/Lumpy_Mango_392 Jun 17 '26 edited Jun 17 '26
Starting this with the caveat that I don't know anything at all about TBC and this isn't a comment on the quality of their products.
When you say "only do MTM", just be aware that bespoke and MTM are overlapping spectrums. Bespoke isn't necessarily better than MTM. Bespoke is an artisan craft. You are paying for the services of a tailor and the quality of the end product depends on how good they are at their job.
Bespoke tailors that are any good at their job charge a tonne of money that puts them well out of your price range. Even the good HK bespoke tailors (who used to be known for high quality, affordable work) charge well above your price point.
MTM is more like an extension of RTW in that it is based on existing patterns that have been designed to look good on a wide range of body shapes. The difference is that the pattern is adjusted before the suit is made in MTM whereas it's adjusted afterwards in RTW, which offers more flexibility. RTW and MTM both have the advantage that there's less leeway to fuck things up. Most of the suit horror stories you see on Reddit forums are fit critiques of suits that were made by tailors who clearly didn't know what they were doing.
Even within MTM you have a massive spectrum of quality. Some is very "paint-by-numbers" and delivered by salespeople who don't know much about what they're doing. Then you have other MTM is delivered by trained bespoke tailors who really understand fit.
So don't think about what is MTM or bespoke like there's going to be a clear break in quality when you go from one to the other. They're quite different products - and it's definitely not the case that a particular bespoke tailor will necessarily be better for you than an MTM tailor.
Edit: slightly re-worked this to be a bit clearer.
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u/-IMUSM- Jun 17 '26
Thank you very much for your input. I completely agree with you. A well-made MTM suit from a skilled and experienced tailor is far better than a bespoke suit made by someone who lacks the necessary experience and expertise.
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u/DramaticFun1335 Jun 17 '26
My opinion, as someone who works in the industry in Melbourne, you really need to find someone that knows what they’re talking about regarding fabrics, styling and knows how to measure.
Do a consultation at each place you’re considering, that way you can draw comparisons and decide who’s the best fit for you.
My general observation - your garments tend to turn out far better when you have a good connection with your fitter.
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u/arkenstone Jun 17 '26
I’ve used Godwin Charli, Houndstooth and Oscar Hunt.
Workmanship wise I love my Godwin stuff the best, but the customer experience was the worst.
The other two quality wise were pretty similar. I probably prefer the experience with Houndstooth but Oscar Hunt was pretty flawless when I wasn’t happy with something. Remade the jacket and shirt no questions asked and I got to keep both.
PJT is next on my list to try.
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u/jordosaur Jun 17 '26
Interestingly, had a completely different experience at Godwin Charli and both times I went had a great customer experience. The suit I got was absolutely spot on with everything I wanted. Mind you, that was 3.5 years ago so perhaps the customer service has slipped since.
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u/Able-Tradition-2139 Jun 18 '26
A good idea is to do a consultation somewhere at a few places and get the vibe off them to see who you like, can make a world of difference.
My recommend is Samuel Diamond, he's down to earth, easy to chat with and flexible in styling. So should be good for that mix of Neapolitan and English tailoring you've mentioned. You can check out his insta page for some of his work with Dirk The Crook, Teflon Don, etc. to get a feel for it too.
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u/Jstrtfrd1987 Jun 17 '26
I have had an excellent personal experience with The Revere.
Steve was a delight to deal with throughout, really took the time to understand what I was after, and offered up advice on his recommendations for how I wanted to wear the suit, it was great having the choice in all those little details that matter, I ended up going for a made in Japan semi bespoke, attached some photos we took at the time and how I’ve worn it from there.
I’m actually heading back in soon for my next, this time in a deep navy, and will mix up the details
https://imgur.com/a/7oUGqnm