New York — Hunched over a sewing machine, Kel Bay sews a dress inside his Manhattan home Tailoring shop When a new customer comes in with a classic Tommy Hilfiger jacket they want to have it.
The modeling agent paid $20 in Thrift store For his style the reversible bomber is patterned on one side and red on the other. He’s willing to spend $280 to downsize. The tailor says customization requests with such a price disparity would have seemed strange a few years ago, but they help keep the rollers swaying at his one-man shop, 85 Custom Tailor.
Bai carefully examines the cardigan before moving to install it, circling the customer like a sculptor with a chisel. He began training as a tailor at the age of 17 in his native South Korea. Now 63, he is part of a shrinking breed in the United States of professional sewers, seamstresses and tailors. Aging out of the workforce as their services find new demand.
Shoppers raised on disposable fast fashion are enlisting tailors and seamstresses to give off-the-shelf purchases a custom fit or Personal tasteTo revive used pieces or extend the life of wardrobes, according to fashion industry experts. Weight loss medications Such as Zepbound and Wegovy mean more Americans are looking for modified waistbands, tapered sleeves and other types of sizing, Pai said.
“I recommend this job to young people because this job is not possible for AI,” Bai said, noting that AI is automating the pattern-making process, but it cannot yet replicate the manual work of a tailor. “Different bodies. Different shapes. She can’t imitate like this. If I close this door, I can go out and find another one.”
But like engraving, repairing musical instruments and many more Skilled craftscreating clothing and fitting it to individual specifications has not attracted enough entry-level workers over the years to replace them Professionals Their retirement from the pads after decades of performing their craft.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimated about two years ago that there were fewer than 17,000 tailors, sewers and seamstresses working in commercial establishments across the country, a 30% decline from the previous decade.
Including self-employed individuals and people working in private homes, the average age of all sewers, tailors and tailors was 54 years old last year, 12 years older than the average age of the entire working population, according to the bureau.
Fashion industry experts said that the income generated by mastering the use of needle and thread compared to the skills required and the physical effort resulting from bending over hours of detail work would likely discourage teenagers and young adults from heeding Pai’s advice.
The median annual wage for tailors, dressmakers and custom sewers as of May 2024 was $44,050 per year, compared with $68,000 for all workers, according to calculations by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
“Most fashion training is actually aimed at mass production, not spending time in a store hand-making clothes,” said Scott Carnes, dean of LIM College, a for-profit college that offers degrees in majors on the business side of fashion. “Work is boring too.”
Online job postings for tailors, dressmakers and sewers have remained fairly stable, according to Corey Stahl, an economist at the research arm of the jobs website Indeed. Between February 2020 and the end of the same month this year, job postings fell by about 2%, while postings for both marketing and software jobs fell by about 30%, he said.
“There’s a kind of craftsmanship… that I think is an important piece that we can’t ignore,” said Stahl, who focuses on the US labor market.
Immigrants with or without permanent legal status, refugees and naturalized citizens I have energy The clothing industry has been in America for more than a century.
An analysis of recent census data by the Migration Policy Institute found that about 40% of tailors, dressmakers and sewers were born abroad, according to Julia Gelatt, associate director of the nonpartisan institute’s U.S. Immigration Policy Program. The largest stocks came From MexicoShe said that South Korea, Vietnam and China.
To address the worsening labor shortage, the fashion industry is looking to create New generation One of the master tailors.
Nordstrom, the largest employer of tailors and alteration professionals in North America, has teamed up with the New York company Fashion Institute of Technology To launch a nine-week program in advanced sewing and alteration techniques.
“Traditionally, sewing has never been part of the American skill set,” said Michael Harrell, FIT instructor and Broadway costume maker, who teaches the course.
the Fashion Institute It received 200 applications for the inaugural class of 15 students, which began in October and He received certificates of completion in February, said Jacqueline Jenkins, executive director of the school’s Center for Continuing and Professional Studies.
The hands-on training is designed to prepare participants to work at Nordstrom. The luxury department store chain employs 1,500 people to provide tailoring and tailoring, from hemming jeans and repairing rips to fitting suits and reworking evening dresses.
Ten top-tier members have been hired or are in the process of being hired, said Marco Esquivel, director of adjustments at Nordstrom.
“We owe it to the broader industry to ensure that this is an art form that exists for years and years to come and continues to serve customers inside and outside our walls,” Esquivel said.
Meanwhile, other retailers are expanding their tailoring services due to demand.
Brooks Brothers, a luxury brand that has been making tailored clothing for men since the 1800s, tested a similar service for women in five stores last year. This year, it expanded its bespoke women’s tailoring business to 40 additional stores. Prices start at $165 for shirts and $1,398 for suits, the company said.
Back at 85 Custom Tailor, Bey asked more than once if the customer wearing a Tommy Hilfiger jacket was sure he wanted to go ahead with the alterations. Jonathan Rees, 33, was sure of it. He said he planned to wear Jacket often.
“I think I’ve fallen victim to buying cheap things and then realizing they fall apart or shrink or don’t last as long,” Reese said.
Bay has a son who is a year older than Reese. Try to convince him to go into tailoring. The son worked with computers and then opened a bakery shop.
“Young people. They just want to find a job in computers,” Bai said. “I think this is very boring. I think this is very interesting. Every time, I draw in my head. I’m like an artist.”
Bae was trained by his older sister and brother at their designated clothing store about 93 miles (150 kilometers) from Seoul. Five years later, he moved to the South Korean capital to work on custom orders and samples for different companies. He moved to the New York City area, where he worked as a pattern maker for Ralph Lauren, Donna Karan and other brands.
He opened his own store in Connecticut in 2011, but the COVID-19 pandemic forced it to close after a decade. It reopened in its current location a year later.
He uses three different sewing machines: a basic one, another for heavier materials like denim and leather, and an overlock machine, which cuts, trims and finishes fabric edges simultaneously.
Bay said he intends to keep working as long as his hands remain steady enough.
“I’m always learning,” he said.