Pictured above: Ketan and Harsha Jethwan outside their
successful Leicester store
Tailoring UK, a Leicester-based tailoring business, which began
trading in the depths of the recession is enjoying excellent growth
and plans to expand its high street retail presence.
The business, which began trading just over a year ago,
currently has bespoke tailoring stores in Leicester and Cambridge
city centres and is about to unveil a third in Nottingham city
centre.
In the past year, the Churchgate based business, which also has
a manufacturing facility on Wheat Street in Leicester, tailored
over 300 suits for customers and a further 600 for fashion industry
high street name clients for whom Tailoring UK acts as a
manufacturer.
Contrary to the opinions of many Leicester independent
retailers, managing director, Harsha Jethwa, who founded the
successful start-up thinks that the Highcross Shopping Centre in
Leicester has aided business growth. She says:
"The Highcross has shifted Leicester's city centre to this end
of town, which has increased footfall for our business. With such
great fashion brands across the street, our Churchgate store has
benefitted from the influx of fashion orientated shoppers."
In addition to the bespoke tailoring service for suits and
shirts, Tailoring UK's high street stores also sell its own
exclusive brand of ready to wear suits - the Joseph Brandon England
range, designed and created by its professional tailors to offer a
semi-bespoke alternative to buying a fitted suit. The stores also
stock a vast range of ready to wear shirts, ties and accessories
such as cufflinks and collar stiffeners and provide an alterations
service used by most high street fashion retailers in Leicester and
Cambridge.
"We chose to offer a complete service - from tailoring to
alterations to ready to wear and accessories, and because of this
we're not giving competitors much of a chance to build
relationships with our existing customers," continues Harsha.
"Additionally my husband and creative director of the business
Ketan is a renowned tailor and his reputation and the
recommendations he brings are also factors responsible for the fast
growth of the business."