The Tailoring Truth: How Fake ‘Bespoke’ Suits Are Misleading Australian Customers

A Message from Anthony Van Pham: Protecting the Integrity of Tailoring in Australia

Behind every stitch is a story.

Here at Perth Tailoring Co, every bespoke suit is hand-cut, measured, and crafted in-house by third-generation tailor Anthony Van Pham—not just designed, but built with care, tradition, and precision. No outsourcing. No sales reps. Just real tailoring, done the right way.

As the third-generation tailor and Director of Perth Tailoring Co, I feel a personal responsibility to address a growing concern within our industry—one that affects not just us as craftsmen, but you as clients, consumers, and future generations who deserve better.

At Perth Tailoring Co, we did not build our reputation, nor earn our national awards, by telling fairy tales. We have not lasted over 40 years in Western Australia by misleading our clients or dressing up offshore suits as handmade luxury. We built our name the hard way—through skill, service, honesty, and the belief that trust must be earned, not sold.

Today, anyone can open a showroom, set up a factory account overseas, and call themselves a tailor. They can rent an apartment, fly in for a few months, and claim to offer custom suits—without ever touching a needle or cutting cloth. It’s the equivalent of a door-to-door salesman selling pipe dreams with polished language and zero substance. These are not tailors. These are salespeople wearing masks. And unfortunately, they are flooding our industry with noise and false promises.

What’s At Stake

The tailoring industry in Australia is unregulated. There’s no governing body protecting the definition of a tailor, seamstress, machinist, or dressmaker—which is why terms like bespoke and made-to-measure are now thrown around recklessly.

• Bespoke has a very specific meaning. If the person consulting you is not the one cutting your cloth and overseeing every stitch of your garment, then it is not bespoke.• Made-to-measure must be done in-house, by a trained tailor, not outsourced to a foreign factory with measurements taken by a sales assistant.• In-house tailoring must mean the garment is made locally by the team you’ve met—not shipped from overseas under the guise of "local craftsmanship."

This misuse of language misleads good people—people who walk into these stores trusting that they are speaking to professionals.

Why I’m Speaking Up

There are only two long-standing, family-run tailoring houses in our state that still cut and make suits in-house, using traditional methods. Ours is one of them. The other is a dear friend of ours on Beaufort Street. Outside of this, the majority of shops claiming to offer custom suits are simply selling garments made overseas with local fittings, dressed up in marketing language designed to impress, not inform.

I write this blog not out of competition, but out of concern. Our family has dedicated three generations—starting with my grandfather, then my father, and now myself—to the art of true tailoring. We’ve worked with our hands, earned our stripes, and built trust within our community. The awards on our wall weren’t bought—they were earned through sweat, service, and the quiet dignity of getting it right.

This isn’t just our livelihood. It’s our legacy.

What We Ask of You

If you're investing in a custom suit, ask the right questions:

• Who is measuring you?

• Who is cutting the cloth?

• Where is your suit actually being made?

• Is the person advising you qualified to construct what they’re selling?

If they can’t answer these questions honestly, walk away. Because if they’re not being transparent, they’re not just selling you a suit—they’re selling you a lie.

Final Word

We are immensely proud of what we do at Perth Tailoring Co. Every stitch represents our family’s commitment to quality, honesty, and traditional craftsmanship. We are here not just to sell suits, but to educate, advise, and protect our clients from being misled.

We invite you to visit us at our heritage-listed studio in Trinity Arcade, Perth, where tailoring is not just a business—it’s our family tradition.

Keywords for Search Visibility (SEO):

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Thank you for taking the time to read this.

We hope it helps guide you towards a more informed, genuine, and rewarding tailoring experience.

With respect,

Anthony Van Pham

Director

Perth Tailoring Co