Central Custom Tailoring

DO NOT GO HERE UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES.
As a 33 year-​old professional working in financial services I was in need of a good tailor and started to bring suits and even some old winter coats that never fit exactly right to this conveniently located tailor off of Main Street in Reading, MA. The suit came out pretty good (overpriced but not a bad job) so I decided to bring in a favorite wool winter jacket. I paid the owner upon dropping off and sizing the coat and that’s where the trouble started. When I went back in a few weeks the owner was adamant that I did not pay him. He was incredibly unprofessional (keeps his transaction records in a little notebook all done by hand) which led to the problem in my estimation.
He refused to provide me with my tailored winter jacket and when I presented him with the receipt he again refused stating it wasn’t complete. (One of the weirdest things that’s ever happened to me). Ultimately I had to call my credit card company and have a new statement sent out to the house. After returning from a business trip I presented my bank statements to the owner who said nothing, no apology of any kind and handed me my jacket.
I just wouldn’t go here if you can avoid it. There are plenty of other small business tailors and small business owners to give your money to — this guys not one of them.

I am so happy to have found a real tailor nearby. Abdu is one of a dying breed of professional tailors who really know what they’re doing. Abdu has a wonderful pedigree, having worked as a head tailor at places like Neiman Marcus and Burberry.
Fair warning, you get what you pay for. A good tailor is not cheap, nor should they be. If you’re expecting to pay what you might at your local dry cleaners, you’ll be a bit shocked. What you’re paying for with professionals like Abdu is someone who can take a cheap suit and make it look like a million bucks on you.

I had an alteration done here for the first time and I was very impressed. I told Abdu that I’d read a favorable customer review and he said modestly, «I hope all of my customers are happy with my work». I had brought in a new pair of pants to have the hem altered. He gently suggested I might want the seat taken in as well, and he was right to suggest it. He did the work quickly and perfectly. With the rugs on the wall and the tiny old sewing machine, you feel like you’re stepping back in time. Great tailor, great experience. I’d definitely come back.

A petite girl needs a great tailor who has reasonable prices. Unfortunately, I did not find that here.
I dropped several items off, one pair of pants for hemming and about 5 dresses. Upon pickup, I was surprised d to find that the cost of hemming all of my items cost more than several of the items put together! A few weeks later, I returned to this tailor to have him re-​hem two items (a dress and a pair of pants) because I had taken them to another tailor who botched the job and made them uneven (lesson is never measure where you want things cut/​hemmed to yourself. EVER!!) So not counting the original hem job by a different tailor, the hemming here cost around $ 60 to re-​do the job. Now even though it was a challenging fabric (cotton/​jersey), this seems very pricy. This was also a smaller job, not exactly clothing made for a 300 lb guy who is 6’4. The hemming again cost more than what I paid for both of the clothing items — combined!
If you want to find a reasonably-​priced tailor, go elsewhere. Abdu is nice and does good work, but I got a hint of feeling like I was being taken advantage of (like when males occasionally does this to women who are nice and seem like pushovers) a little bit in terms of price and clothing time pick up.

Abdul has decades of experience, and in today’s economy his prices were better than I expected — he literally saved two pairs of expensive jeans by making the holes on the back pockets disappear. Low prices and excellent customer service skills are his strong suit and so is his creativity — he created a custom dress for my 8-​year old daughter. The process was painless, we brought in a picture from the Internet and enough material. My daughter felt like a designer/​fashion model. She is attending her grandfather’s 60^th birthday and an age appropriate sophisticated dress is a must. We have it, thanks to the able hands of Abdul.

After reading the past two reviews, I took a pair of jeans here to be hemmed. Abdu kept the original hem as I asked, and you can’t even tell the jeans were altered. What a great job, I highly recommend Central Custom Tailoring!

I followed Tina L’s recommendation and I too was pleased with a tailoring of a pair of jeans. Abdu asked me when I needed them, and was very friendly and welcoming. I wish I found them sooner!

After being dissatisfied with my last alteration experience at a random dry cleaning spot — I was on the hunt for someone who actually knew what they were doing. I found out about Central Custom Tailoring in a community flier where they were advertising 10% off for new customers. I brought in four pairs of pants, two needed to be hemmed (one was a pair of jeans which needed the original hem to be intact), one zipper fix, and one dry clean.
Abdu (the tailor/​owner) was polite, professional, welcoming, friendly… I could think of more words to describe him, but I’d be here all day. My clothes were ready in a week (probably could have been ready sooner if I had asked — I just told him to take his time when I dropped everything off). All of my items were returned in perfect order and the length is spot on!
I have officially found my new tailor!!! Just keep an eye out when you’re looking for the place, I passed by it the first time, as I’m not sure if there is even a sign on the street (there is one on the building however). It’s right next door to the old Wayside Bizarre (which is now being turned into some sort of bistro from the looks of it) on Rt. 28 North in Reading, near the Stoneham line.