Hello everyone, and welcome to another of my reviews. In this article, I’ll review a new suit commission from the Bangkok tailor Victoria Tailors.
I recently returned to Bangkok for another trip and, while strolling through the iconic MBK Center, came across Victoria Tailors. What immediately caught my attention was the prominent display of “branded” mills such as Cavani, VBC, and Zegna—something I don’t often associate with tailors in MBK Center, where the focus is typically on affordable suits. Curious, I checked their Google rating and was surprised to see an impressive 4.9/5 from more than 700 reviews. That was enough to convince me to commission a suit and put their services to the test. Here’s how the experience went.
Victoria Tailors MBK – the Video
For hands-on footage of my experience with Victoria Tailors MBK, do watch the YouTube video below:
Victoria Tailors MBK – the Experience
Victoria Tailors is located on the third floor of MBK Center, in Zone C. Given the sheer size of the mall, finding your way around can be somewhat confusing for first-time visitors. Thankfully, the shop is situated near several key escalators—which is also how I first stumbled upon it—making it relatively easy to locate.
Just keep an eye out for the prominent signboard and the row of conspicuous mannequins at the entrance, and you shouldn’t have much trouble spotting it. The store itself is spacious and appears to have been recently renovated—a refreshing change from some of the more dated tailor shops you’ll find around MBK Center.
The showroom makes good use of its space, with rolls of fabric neatly lining the walls from floor to ceiling. It also prominently features fabric mills such as VBC, Cavani and Zegna—one of the details that initially caught my attention and prompted me to take a closer look at Victoria Tailors.
The first thing that struck me about Victoria Tailors was the sheer breadth of its fabric selection. In my experience, the variety was considerably greater than what I’ve encountered at other MBK tailors. I was presented with an extensive range of fabric books spanning different materials and price points—and that’s not even counting the rolls of fabric lining the showroom walls.
While I was initially drawn to Victoria Tailors by their selection of prestigious Italian mills such as VBC and Zegna, this was my first commission with them, so I wasn’t quite ready to splurge on their more premium offerings. Instead, I opted for a middle ground: a handsome chocolate-brown linen from Cavani, a mill particularly popular in Thailand. Having used Cavani fabrics several times before, I’ve found them comparable to entry-level offerings from Italian mills such as VBC and Holland & Sherry, yet at a slightly more accessible price point.
Once I had settled on the suiting fabric, we moved on to selecting the buttons. I opted for natural horn buttons, which complemented the rich chocolate brown of the linen nicely.
Similarly, I picked a brown paisley lining to complement the earth-toned fabric.
For the shirt, I settled on a cream linen with a subtle texture, which I felt complemented the chocolate brown suiting fabric perfectly.
With the fabrics settled, I had my initial measurements taken. The process itself was fairly standard, using a traditional tape measure, so I won’t go into too much detail here.
The next day, I returned to Victoria Tailors for my basted fitting session. For those unfamiliar with the process, a basted fitting involves trying on a skeletal version of the jacket, held together with temporary white basting stitches. To learn more about the basted fitting, read this educational article here. Personally, I believe that a basted fitting is essential to a true tailoring experience. To quote a line from the article mentioned above: “It’s the difference between flying first class and flying on a private jet.”
This time, I was joined by Rohan, the founder of Victoria Tailors. With more than two decades of experience in the tailoring industry, Rohan also operates several tailor shops across Bangkok, including another MBK Center outlet, Rohan Collection.
From the outset, Rohan’s experience was evident during the basted fitting. He immediately spotted excess fabric at the back of the linen shirt, which was caused by my arched back, and promptly pinned the area for alteration.
Next, I tried on the basted jacket. It immediately looked and felt promising, with well-defined shoulders and a comfortable fit that was neither too tight nor too loose.
Even at this early stage, the back of the jacket was already cut remarkably well. Despite my aforementioned arched back, the basted jacket draped cleanly and created a flattering silhouette. It wasn’t quite perfect—Rohan did identify a few minor areas for adjustment—but I was already sufficiently impressed with the fit.
Thereafter, Rohan attached the sleeves to the basted jacket, a common practice among Thai tailors that allows the sleeve pitch to be fine-tuned for the best possible fit and balance.
Throughout the basted fitting, Rohan demonstrated a high level of proficiency with chalk and pins—the quintessential tools of the tailoring trade. While this may seem basic or even obvious, it’s worth noting that several tailors in Singapore, particularly at the more affordable end of the market, don’t offer basted fittings simply because they lack the requisite skill set to execute them effectively. It takes considerable experience to pinpoint areas that require adjustment (pun intended), as well as the technical know-how to use chalk and pins to make those alterations accurately.
In fact, Rohan goes a step further by taking the time to educate his clients and build a genuine rapport with them. For instance, after seeing that I had opted for a 100% European linen from Cavani, he brought out some of the latest fabric books from Cavani, along with other “affordable premium” mills such as Luciano. He then walked me through various fabrics—including flannel and seersucker—that I could consider for future commissions, even pointing out specific shades that would complement the chocolate brown trousers and jacket. Rather than simply focusing on the current commission, he was effectively helping me build a versatile capsule wardrobe.
Rohan explained that these “affordable premium” fabrics from mills such as Cavani and Luciano are typically made from 100% natural fibres—whether wool, linen, flannel, or otherwise—unlike the generic fabric rolls, which tend to contain a high proportion of polyester. To demonstrate the difference, he cut a small swatch from one of his entry-level fabrics and another from a 100% wool Cavani fabric before subjecting both to a “burn test.” As expected, the Cavani wool ignited readily and burned cleanly, while the lower-quality fabric took noticeably longer to catch fire, leaving behind a dark residue and a strong odour reminiscent of burning plastic.
Lastly, Rohan showed me the shoulder padding used in his suits. It is relatively thin and has a noticeably premium feel, thanks to its horsehair canvas construction. According to Rohan, this allows the shoulders to look more natural while gradually conforming to the wearer’s body. He also pointed out that this isn’t necessarily standard practice among Thai tailors, many of whom use cheaper, coarser shoulder padding to keep costs down—particularly since it is ultimately hidden from view in the finished garment.
Victoria Tailors – Suit Review
Now that I’m back in Singapore, let’s take a closer look at the suit.
From the front, the jacket already fits well, with cleanly seated shoulders and no visible wrinkling. The waist is gently tapered, creating a refined, cinched silhouette, while the jacket length is spot on, ending just below the thumb bone. I also noticed no creasing beneath the shoulders, suggesting that Rohan and his team had successfully accounted for my sloping shoulders.
The sleeve pitch is also well executed, with the sleeves draping cleanly from the shoulders. The visible wrinkles are simply a result of the linen’s natural tendency to crease, rather than an indication of any fit issues.
The back drapes equally well, accommodating my arched back without any obvious fit issues. Once again, the visible creasing is simply a natural characteristic of linen rather than a sign of an improper fit.
Since we’re on the topic of linen, I have to highlight just how lovely this chocolate brown Cavani fabric is. Like wool, linen comes in varying grades and qualities, which explains why a linen shirt from Uniqlo can cost around $30, while one from Loro Piana can easily exceed $600. The same applies at Victoria Tailors: a basic linen suit starts from just 7,000 THB, while this Cavani linen suit costs more than twice as much at 16,000 THB.
The difference ultimately comes down to quality. This Cavani linen looks and feels distinctly more premium, with none of the scratchy texture commonly associated with cheaper linen fabrics. It is also wonderfully breathable and holds its shape well, something that isn’t always guaranteed with lower-quality linen.
Speaking of quality, the suit incorporates several classic sartorial details, including a Milanese buttonhole and pick stitching along the lapels. Having visited more than a dozen tailors in Bangkok, Victoria Tailors is actually the second Thai tailor I’ve encountered—after Rajawongse—that offers Milanese buttonholes.
To be fair, the execution here isn’t quite as refined as what I experienced at Rajawongse. However, that is hardly surprising given that Rajawongse operates at a significantly higher price point than Victoria Tailors. For the price, I was still impressed to see this level of sartorial detailing offered.
The jacket also features functional sleeve buttonholes, commonly known as surgeon cuffs, which are another hallmark of quality tailoring. The natural horn buttons, each with its own unique texture and grain, also complement the lighter chocolate brown fabric beautifully.
Furthermore, the buttons are hand-shanked, leaving a small amount of space between the button and fabric when fastened. This allows the fabric to drape more naturally while also improving the buttons’ durability—an additional detail more commonly associated with higher-end tailoring.
On the inside, the brown paisley lining complements the earthy tones of the chocolate brown suiting fabric nicely. Pipe stitching runs neatly along the edges of the lining, providing another reassuring indication of the workmanship that goes into the suit. For a personal touch, I opted for a simple monogram of my name in caramel, chosen to match the colour of both the piping and the paisley detailing.
As always, I opted for side-adjusters instead of belt loops for a cleaner look. This time, I went with bronze hardware to complement the chocolate brown linen suit and cream linen shirt. I particularly liked the addition of a tab on the side-adjusters, which gives them a more refined and sophisticated appearance.
Lastly, I opted for a simple monogram of my name on the shirt cuff, rendered in chocolate brown to complement the suit.
Overall, I’m thrilled with how my suit from Victoria Tailors turned out. The wide peak lapels, soft shoulder padding and rich chocolate linen give it a distinctly European character—something that wouldn’t look out of place strolling along the canals of Venice. The cut is equally well judged: classic and comfortably proportioned, without being overly slim or boxy, as can sometimes be the case with Thai tailoring. In fact, if you showed me the finished suit without context, I’d be hard-pressed to guess that it came from a tailor in Bangkok’s MBK Center rather than a European atelier.
Conclusion – so Victoria Tailors “shiok” or not?
All in all, both the experience and finished suit from Victoria Tailors exceeded my initial expectations. Rohan is not only fluent in English—a significant advantage when tailoring in Bangkok—but also highly experienced and knowledgeable. More importantly, he takes the time to educate his customers and build a rapport with them, rather than simply focusing on making a quick sale. The caveat is that Rohan oversees several tailoring stores across Bangkok, so he won’t necessarily be at Victoria Tailors every time you visit. If you happen to catch him in the showroom, however, you’re in for a particularly worthwhile experience.
The finished suit also impressed me, both in terms of workmanship and overall design. Details such as the Milanese buttonhole, pick stitching, softly padded shoulders, natural horn buttons, functional sleeve cuffs and hand-shanked buttons demonstrate a level of attention to detail that I wasn’t expecting at this price point. The fit and styling were also equally impressive. MBK Center tailors often have a reputation for producing inexpensive, mass-market suits, but this chocolate brown Cavani linen suit was anything but that.
Suits from Victoria Tailors start from 6,900 THB (~S$265), with this particular Cavani linen suit costing 16,000 THB (~S$610). For those interested in commissioning a suit from Victoria Tailors, quoting the promo code ‘WAHSOSHIOK’ or presenting this post in-store will grant you a 10% discount on your total purchase. After the discount, suits from Victoria Tailors will start from just 6,210 THB (~S$240), though I highly recommend opting for their better-quality fabrics.
Book an appointment with Victoria Tailors here.
Victoria Tailors’ Location: MBK Center 3rd Floor, Zone-C, Room #3C-01 , Phayathai Road, Pathumwan, 10330 Bangkok, Thailand
P.S. Shiok is a common word Singaporeans use to express admiration or approval. As of 2016, you can find the definition of the word in the Oxford English Dictionary.
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