A few readers asked for this piece after I did my article on my favourite bespoke tailors of all time last year. I haven’t tried as many made-to-measure as bespoke - 20 rather than 60 - but it’s still a good number in terms of pricing, style and geography. Enough to cover most readers.
And although there is an article here that lists every MTM tailor we’ve covered, 20 is too many probably to digest easily. It needs to be broken down.
So today’s piece will order all of them and explain the reasons.
Before we start, a definition:
- ‘Made to measure’ is used to refer to tailoring that starts from a standard block, rather than an individual paper pattern. The level of fit is therefore usually the thing sacrificed compared to bespoke.
- This definition of made to measure can include a wide range of different fabrications, from fully machine made to the same level of handwork as bespoke. This is spelled out in each case below.
- This is all different to made to order, where usually an item of RTW is simply ordered in a different colour or size, or with minimal adjustments to fit.
As with the bespoke guide, I think it’s important to explain why I would recommend each of these different tailors to someone, in terms of specific metrics. Too often people concentrate on price and quality, and assume everything else (eg convenience or style) is much less relevant.
The metrics are:
- House cut. What the cut of the house is roughly, such as southern Italian or structured English. Don’t ask them to make something different
- Style. How strong the style of the house is in other ways, apart from cut. This can work both ways: usually a strong style you can see and understand is helpful, but it can mean less flexibility
- Convenience. The longer you commission tailoring, the more relevant this is. So whether a maker has a shop or just trunk shows, how many shops, how many trunk shows, what kind of shops even
- Consistency. Delivering what they say they’ll deliver, when they said they would, and the same as the last time
- Price. Pretty obvious, but has to include a consideration of all these things
- Quality. The make, the handwork, the fit
All the names below link to the original articles on these makers, where you can find more detail.
My two favourites
The French shop Jean-Manuel Moreau has delivered the best made-to-measure southern-Italian tailoring for me. I’ve had a linen suit made, a tweed jacket, and in Florence we fitted a seersucker suit. They’ve all been consistent and a great fit.
Jean-Manuel works with Orazio Luciano in Naples, but has his own cut and high quality control. The jackets are hand-padded alongside other hand work, which is rare in the world of MTM. The only small downside is that the shop has less of a strong style than some others on this list.
Suit starting price inc. VAT: €3300 (£2860)
Travel/availability: In the Paris shop, and then trunk shows in London, New York, Geneva and Brussels, with Dubai coming in 2026
Bryceland’s work with WW Chan to offer their made to measure. They made me a tweed jacket which was an excellent fit, and which was also handmade in the same way as Chan’s bespoke product. There is more of a style at work with Bryceland’s, as you might expect, and this is their cut. It is soft but not as curved as most Italian pieces, which may particularly appeal to some readers.
The only caveats are that Bryceland’s have only made one piece for me, and that there has been some turnover in the store, at least in London.
Price: £2250
Availability: Only available in stores (London, Tokyo, Hong Kong) but adding to trunk shows in the future
Also good
Saman make a very well-fitted garment, also with hand-padding as with the two above. The main caveat here would be price, as they’ve become so much more expensive over the years. The biggest upsides are the level of service and the design input - they increasingly use custom fabrics you won’t get anything else, and have very close relationships with their customers.
Price: £2300 / £3500 (Toscana and Napoli lines, the latter hand padded)
Availability: In stores (London and Stockholm) and during trunk shows (New York and Los Angeles)
Jake Mueser in New York has become a really good supplier of MTM tailoring for people we know. They made me a great herringbone jacket, and seem to be more consistent now too, as well as expanding into more ready-to-wear. Their style is quite a standard southern Italian one, but they are very good on cloth selection and advice. No hand padding, but that’s reflected in the price too.
Price: $2950 (£2155)
Availability: In the New York store and during trunk shows (Los Angeles, Detroit, Washington DC, Miami, London, Paris)
Anglo are more particular in terms of cloth and cut. Although it’s a soft make, it’s less standard and has a few little idiosyncrasies like the curve at the bottom of their double-breasted lapel. Their house cloth is also quite distinctive, though they carry other cloths as well. Not hand padded, same as Mueser.
Price: £1980
Availability: In store (London) and at New York trunk shows
The Armoury’s biggest advantage is they have a big range of cuts, spelt out in a numbering system. This is pretty rare - most brands don’t offer different styles and cuts like this, and certainly not with all in the shop ready to try on. They are quite expensive, and a second suit I had from them wasn’t as good as the first, but there are two price/quality levels, which again is rare.
Price: $3000 (£2200) for Ring Jacket, $4950 (£3645) for Hundred Series
Availability: In the New York and Hong Kong stores
Only for particular things
The jacket Brioni made for me was good, and the experience of visiting a real luxury brand was a refreshing one. Still, the price makes it hard to compete with other bespoke tailors, and for that reason I’d recommend it only to readers that like designer brands and want this level of elevated make.
The offshore service from Edward Sexton doesn’t quite fit into this piece, as it’s cut to a proper bespoke pattern and then made in China (the opposite of our definition). Still, it’s not quite their full bespoke and closer to these others in price. I would use Sexton for their particular style, which won’t be for everyone but if it is for you, the service presents a solid non-bespoke option.
It’s been a while since I’ve tried P Johnson’s tailoring, but in the intervening time I have tried their ready-made jackets, and the cut seems to be more relaxed and elegant that it used to be, which is welcome. I include them here therefore as they did a solid job on the fit, and are more accessible to our antipodean cousins than anyone else.
Others
Assisi - Korean tailors Assisi do a made-to-measure service which looks very good, and which I am in the process of trying out. More soon.
The Anthology - The Anthology do a very good MTM service, which Manish has covered on Permanent Style. Given how consistent they’ve been with everything else, I’d have no hesitation recommending them.
Husbands - One I would like to try but haven’t yet. Notable here as they have a style which is more structured, as well as being quite distinctive.
Maximilian Mogg - Same goes for Max. I admire what they’re doing, even if it’s not my style really. We will cover them some time I’m sure.
La Bowtique - I’ve not tried the service, but Manish had a good experience. A nice option for anyone looking specifically for a dinner suit and broader advice on evening wear.
Suits pictured, top to bottom (with links to the relevant articles): Jake Mueser, The Armoury, Jean-Manuel Moreau, Bryceland's, Saman Amel, Brioni, P Johnson, Anglo-Italian.
For a full list of all made-to-measure covered, see article here.
