Clothing where you pick style, color, fabric
Small business owners are the backbone of local communities in Shanghai. They take pride in the businesses they have built through hard work and attention to customers. This series talks to some of these cornerstones at the grassroots. introduced other National Basketball Association people to our shop,” Ji says. “They are very friendly and down to earth, not like celebrities at all.”
There was also an actress from Singapore, whose name Ji and Li can’t now remember, who once visited and kept a low profile. “It was a winter, and she was wearing a simple-style white down jacket,” said Li. “Later, I learned from other patrons who recognized her that she was a celebrity. Now her stylist keeps in touch with us.”
The couple always try their best to accommodate what patrons want, even if requests befuddle them a bit.
A customer from the United Kingdom once ordered a white dress, and she loved it so much that she asked for a hat and a pair of shoes to go with it.
“We really didn’t know what to do about it,” Li says. “The hat was barely doable, but shoes? I had to ask for my sister for help because she learned to make cloth shoes from our mother. My sister made a pair of shoes in a very simple style, and the customer loved them.”
The couple say Chinese people didn’t share the same opinion of custom-tailored garments with foreigners, but now their ideas have changed.
A long time ago, when fabric was in short supply, there was not enough ready-to-wear clothing in the shops to meet public demand. At that time, people had to find fabric and make their own clothing. Then, after economic reforms, they could finally buy ready-to-wear clothes, which looked more fashionable than homemade clothing.
But now Chinese people are beginning to accept the idea that tailor-made clothes can be more fashionable than those found in shops. They fit better and come in styles and colors of one’s choice.
“Suits, for instance, require very strict measurements if you don’t want to look like you’re wearing a jute bag,” Ji says. “Those sold in stores can provide only a vague size, which may not fit quite right unless you have a perfect, standard figure.”
However, the stall still attracts more foreign patrons than Chinese, which means the couple’s business rises and falls with the tide of global economic conditions.
“To us, the best time was from 2003 to 2008,” Li says. “At that time, the stall was always packed with customers even on weekdays. After the global economic recession in 2008, the business fell off and that was a heavy blow. Now we’re facing the challenge of e-commerce, but we still believe that the tailoring skills and the services we provide are competitive enough.”
Add: #282, 2F, 399 Lujiabang Rd
To get there: Metro Line 8 to the Laoximen Station near the market.