LiiYuan is the top bespoke tailoring house in Wuhan and even the whole country. It tops at aesthetics as well as handwork. LI Yuan, as the manager, has more exposure to customers, Zhang Chunhai, is known as Teacher Zhang, and only a few people who have LiiYuan clothes know. What is the division of role between them? What kind of identity and role is Teacher Zhang in LiiYuan?
Let’s get to know this real craftsman.
Briefly introduce yourself.
My name is Zhang Chunhai, I am a craftsman who has been making traditional handmade suits for more than ten years, and I am also a college teacher who has been engaged in education for ten years.
In addition to studying traditional suits and teaching, I also go to fitness, swimming, painting, etc.
When did you and Li Yuan start working together? What is the division of labor?
Li Yuan and I are college classmates, and we have been cooperating since the establishment of LiiYuan brand. He is mainly responsible for design, quality control, and aesthetics. I am mainly responsible for the structure, process, and production.
To put it simply, he is in charge of the front store, and I am in charge of the workshop in the back.
What kind of aesthetic do you think your current version conveys?
We believe that suits serve modern society, and people’s dress styles should conform to the cultural environment, whether as a business appeal or personal aesthetic style, it should be related to mainstream culture.
For the shape and design style, we pursue the combination of classic temperament and modern dress habits, so that our products are acceptable and recognizable.
I heard that your pattern is inspired by Corcos, why are they completely two directions now?
Newton said, “If I see farther than others, because I stand on the shoulders of giants”, and all learning is to gradually establish one’s own independent thinking from imitation and continuous exploration.
Our impression of Florentine style also happens to be our own portrayal of modern classic menswear culture, tested, overturned, rebuilt, and repeated. In this process, we find our own mature beauty and making process.
What are the stages of your understanding of suits?
The first is the early stage of understanding, at that time I didn’t know much about suits, and I was still in a structural version learning period for teaching.
The second is the mid-term exploration and learning stage. When Li Yuan founded the brand LiiYuan, and the two of us began to explore and learn all aspects of suits, including styles, genres, structures, craftsmanship, fabric accessories and so on.
However, the domestic market at that time was not mature, and there were not many things to see learned in China. The process was very difficult of assessing the market, studying accessories, researching production processes, tweaking style and so on.
During this period, we made a lot of samples and many detours. Our original intention for tailoring suits has not changed.
The third stage is the maturity period. With the development of information flow, the maturity of the market, the growth of customers, and the promotion of major bloggers in China, we have slowly determined our own direction, that is, Italian style.
By chance, I went to Rome, Italy to participate in the “Grand Prix of Italian Golden Scissors Tailor”, and learned the traditional Italian craftsmanship.
The influence on my structural craftsmanship was a turning point, and it also made a qualitative leap in my understanding of handmade suits.
After returning to China, Li Yuan and I began to study a new style, trying various Italian imported accessories, adjusting line proportions, studying collar sleeve shapes, improving the structural shape of hemp lining, adjusting the style structure, etc.
At this time, we were very excited, we could make five or six sets of samples for the curvature of a line at the hem or the slope of the serial port line. Regularly stayed up two or three o’clock in the morning, completely unaware of tiredness.
This period gives us the biggest gain, we feel that we have made works that we are satisfied with at this stage.
Because everyone’s aesthetics are different, the pursuit of beauty is different, maybe we will adjust in the next stage, but at present we are satisfied.
Is the workmanship of handmade suits just “a layer of window paper”? Or are there some practical difficulties?
A handmade suit contains more than 300 processes, and different processes have different levels of difficulty, which may be not difficult for masters, but not so easy for beginners.
That’s why apprentices in handmade suits start by handicraft, and practice makes perfect for a few years. But being able to do handicraft is not the same as being able to do handmade suits.
Why are you not in agreement with the production methods of some famous Italian bespoke tailors?
The way Italian suits are made is my philosophy and I completely identify with the way they make them. This is also what Li Yuan and I have been insisting on. Bring handmade, soulful, and living works to everyone, rather than giving everyone an industrial product.
Of course, some Italian craftsmen may be very “romantic” because they have a romantic temperament unique to Italians. If you have a chance to observe, you will know what I am talking about.
It seems that most tailors are not so fond of works from peers, is this because in the end it is completely aesthetically different?
Our country is 32 times the size of Italy and 23 times the population of Italy. But think about how many bespoke tailors are in China? There are so many bespoke tailors Italy, then China definitely needs more.
Everyone’s perception of beautiful things is different, and everyone’s understanding of beauty is also different. We cannot impose our understanding of suits on others, nor can we deprive others of their interpretation of suits.
As long as we are doing good suits, we appreciate. The market needs to bloom, customers need different works, and we need to collide with each other to motivate us to create new and beautiful things.
What’s your plan in the near future?
We are not in a hurry to pursue profits and expand scale, because what we want to do is to start from the product to accomplish something more meaningful.
We love suits and pay attention to the research of suits. After so many years of repeated revisions, our works have become relatively mature.
We are planning a new brand which includes and inherits traditional handmade product of LiiYuan Bespoke, and also incorporates some products and styles to serve different customers. I hope that our new brand can meet you in a better way in the future.
Price: CMT 10800 RMB
WeChat: lii-yuan