When we go back to the basics and think about some problems, we can break some magic barriers.
In today’s circle of classic menswear lovers, when it comes to bespoke, the vast majority of people are just looking for an identity, such as this group is playing Sartorio Jun, and the followers rush to Jun. That group of big guys all ordered Zhang Xiao, then they had to commission Zhang Xiao. This is actually not so related to the quality of the product. There is no difference between the essence and buying a big logo, but in a sullener way.
For this, I may be a little bit critical subjectively, but macro speaking, buying Status is the most important value of luxury, if you want to talk about cost performance, their value is super high! It’s just that this “value” cannot be said too explicitly.
On the bright side, these tailors or shoemakers who are recognized by the circle must have their own strength, and maybe the best. Their products, whether in aesthetics or details, are still worth appreciating and playing with for those who really understand.
So the first layer of fun of bespoke is circle layer identity, and the second layer is aesthetic experience. And the latter one, which can be said in a grand way, is very good.
Another ethos is to check in, collect stamps, and go to shops that are considered unique and high-quality.
Then a picky friend asked a question, which I thought was a bit interesting. Where is the “I” in that bespoke?
According to the above understanding, it is the store you go to, which determines the style of your clothes, so is this essentially the same as buying ready-to-wear? Where are your style and elements?
The answer from another picky friend is that each of your pieces should be the ultimate choice of a certain style and aesthetic, and then reconstructed through your own collocation, this is your style. It sounds plausible, but everyone says he’s a cult, and some say he’s a neurotic.
When I think about it, I lean more towards the thinking of the one who asked that question. Bespoke is the tailor who realizes one’s ideas for him? As mentioned in a previous article, tailors were originally tool men of the aristocracy, but later when new industrialists wanted to move closer to the aristocracy, these tailors changed from tool men to consultants. So what is wrong with us today holding the old pictorial and asking tailors to replicate? If you say, you don’t have a Rolls-Royce pick-up, how can you wear a three-piece suit, is that you are overemphasizing the power of the language of clothing? Clothing is a language, but is it so strong? I think Chinese does not follow the British on strict dress code, what class wears what standard. We don’t have the cultural background inheritance like them, suits in the current Chinese context, has nothing to do with nobility, to put it bluntly, they are work clothes.
So the fun of bespoke is more open and lies in participation and realization of your ideas. There must be failures in the middle, there are things that look back at waste of money, but is life not a game at all?