Here’s some names and addresses of tailors and shoemakers I used when I visited Hoi An that might prove useful if you’re planning to visit this beautiful old-world town in Vietnam
I’ve written before about the charms of Hoi An, a small town in Vietnam that was spared from the war and which has preserved its city centre from modernisation, even going so far as to ban cars. The Old Town, as it’s known, is packed with artisan shops that can make clothes, shoes, handbags, paintings and much more. Have a read of my previous article about Hoi An if you’re interested to know more.
I recently found this list of the different tailors I used in Hoi An, Vietnam when I was there in 2003. Presumably the prices will be a little more expensive now, but I would bet most of these tailors are still in business.
Of all the clothes I had made in Hoi An, I’m most pleased with the hand made shoes. I wear them when I dress up for a posh night out – which isn’t that often – and they are extremely comfortable to wear. For $25, you just can’t argue.
The golden rule with getting clothes made for you is to not leave it to the last minute. Even though every tailor in Vietnam and Thailand will tell you they can do 24 hour turnaround, you are asking for trouble if you rely on getting your clothes made so quickly. You need to leave time to have two or three fittings – so two or three days – to ensure everything fits you just right. Otherwise what seems like a bargain can turn into a waste of money because you’ll never wear it.
Tin
Nha Trung street
Tailor made leather shoes, again copied from the Next catalogue, for $25. My pair fitted extremely well.
Ana
1D Nha Trung street
Shirts $5, shorts $6, boxers $2, bags $3 – very friendly staff and great cheap basics for blokes. Boxer shorts aren’t made of particularly soft cotton though, so maybe best avoided. Ouch.
Nhut
1 Tran Quy Cap Street
Shirts $5, shorts $7 – Again, good cheap basics for men.
Ngoc Ly
No. 7 Hoi An Market
You have to venture into the market to find the industrious Hong and her cohorts of seamstresses, but you may well get approached by Hong’s mum, Flower, in the street, inviting you to come and choose anything from the Next catalogue to be tailor made for you by the next day. I got my suit made here – $35 for jacket and trousers – and it fits extremely well. Suit shirts were $7 each, and comba trousers were $10.
Lai
Phan Tru street
Tailor made grey wool overcoat to go with my suit – $13. Leather jacket $18, although the leather’s not premium stuff. Grey wool blouson $13. All fitted extremely well.
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Hoi An tailors are awful and do not compare with Hong Kong tailors. At Yali, none of the men in our group bought the suits that were made for them the tailoring was so bad. After extensive measurements: jackets were too tight or too lose; pants had rises too long or too short; pants were invariably too tight; cuffs were added by heat tape; etc. etc. etc. Yali’s reputation for service is overrated and not true. The only thing that Yali did correctly was copy a shirt made in Hong Kong. As we walked around Hoi An and explored other shops we saw similar situations. In a shop called My My, they put pockets on custom shirts that were disproportionately large and inappropriately placed on the body of the shirt-the shirts looked rediculous and the customers said so. Hoi An is not the tailoring destination that its reputation would have you believe. perhaps customers with minimal standards are satisfied, but if you dress well, Hoi An is a disappointment.