Each clothing item in our wardrobes comes from a piece of cloth, but we don't seem to get a clothing item starting with a piece of cloth.

 

The walls of the shop are heavily lined with floor-to-ceiling shelves with fabric swatches hanging. Ranging from chiffon, velvet, cotton, silk, to leather, fabric rolls are tied and some leave the ends loose which swing in the air. At the back, the embroidery on cheongsam (qipao) fabrics reflects the little spotlights, glittering like hidden treasures. Walking in the store, people need to pass through the bushes of fabrics.

 

"Buying fabrics for tailoring was a habit and lifestyle of people in Macao," Lei Chi Wa, the second-generation owner of the fabric shop Sun Heng says.

 

Lei, 59 years old, has been in the industry for 30 years. "Selling fabrics is our family business and I followed my dad with no doubt," he says.

 

Lei's 90-year-old father had sold fabrics for 50 years before he retired. The family started their little business as a hawker. From a fabric stall, they expanded their business to two branch shops. Currently, they only maintain the store located in Rua de Fern?o Mendes Pinto, "The fruit street" as the locals call it, which gathers most of the fabric shops and tailor stores in Macao.

 

- Fad of fabrics -

Talking about the old time when ¡°everybody loved to buy fabrics,¡± Lei is delighted. He points out that the industry was the most prosperous before Macao's return to China.

 

"People bought fabrics to make new clothes, they would also buy fabrics as gifts to their relatives and friends in hometowns," he says. "The Portuguese people, specifically, loved to make clothes very much. The materials they chose were usually the most expensive ones among all."

 

However, the sophisticated fabrics lovers went back to their home country Portugal after the handover, the market lost a group of loyal customers.

 

Another peak of Lei¡¯s business appeared when flocks of tailors from different provinces came to Zhuhai.

 

"The mainland tailors, especially those from Shanghai, attracted many people to buy fabrics in Macao and had their clothes made in Zhuhai," Lei says.

 

About 20 years ago, Lei hired Shanghai tailors from the mainland to provide in-store tailor-made service. "People were waiting outside, once I opened the gate, people flushed in and the shop was jam-packed with people," Lei grins, recalling "the most unforgettable memory" throughout the years.

 

- Flows by flows -

The ready-to-wear industry and the mass production dealt the fabrics retailers a heavy blow. Fast fashion is vastly replacing made-to-measure items nowadays.

"The cost of the ready-to-wear industry is so much lower and so is the retail price," Lei says.

 

The gaming industry is another industry affecting Lei¡¯s business as casinos offer many job opportunities and high salaries, making it hard for small retailers like Lei to hire new employees. "Selling fabric itself is a hard work," Lei sighs, illustrating that to muscle the heavy fabric rolls and stand for long hours may be tough for the younger generation. Moreover, it takes at least one and a half year for an apprentice to be skillful at work.

 

- Why still fabrics? -

"There are thousands of combinations you can create with fabrics, but you may only have one or two colors as option for one style in ready-to-wear clothing," Lei says.

 

Lei's customers consist of a diversity of people due to the various purposes and choices of fabrics. "Most people come for attires for special occasions such as weddings or dinner banquets, men usually prefer suits while qipao is the traditional dress favored by many female customers," Lei says.

 

While some people still order tailor-made causal wear, Lei adds that companies and institutions, such as schools, government departments and offices, have been choosing tailor-made outfits for uniforms. The amateurish use of fabrics is very common as well as people use fabrics for school works, handicrafts or home decorations, etc.

 

"Bespoke clothes are durable due to the materials and it is undeniable and important that they fit you the most," he says.

 

- Keep rolling -

"It won¡¯t be true if I say this industry will completely become extinct as there is always a demand," Lei says. He agrees that the market of fabrics is shrinking, whereas he is optimistic about the longevity of fabrics and tailor-made clothing in Macao. Lei confesses that he will stick to his fabric business, hoping that "the business will get better."

 

Lei unties a fabric roll on a big cutting table and naturally puts that white rope around his neck; he holds the scissors with his callused fingers. Often smiling, Lei turns to a stern face for a second. A piece of cloth slightly falls on the table as the scissors drive through the cloth in a perfect straight line.

 

Immersed in a culture of fast fashion and ready-to-wear apparel, do we consider buying fabrics for bespoke clothing outdated? Instead, it is likely to become one of the fashion luxuries. Many people still explore in the jungle of patterns and seek out new outfit ideas, enjoying the art of how clothes are created from fabrics.