Bespoke Tailoring with Mr Cuff
Are you wedding suit ready? Come with us as we explore Melbourne’s very own bespoke tailoring label MR CUFF. We speak with the label’s founder Jarrad Cuff and get an insight into what makes this local fashion label one to look out for, and why supporting Australian-Made is so important.
“Firstly, MR CUFF is made by hand in Melbourne. We really focus on craftsmanship that goes into menswear and about 70% of our suits are made with a needle and thread.”
Who is Mr Cuff?
My name is Jarrad Cuff and I’m the bespoke tailor behind MR CUFF. I learnt to sew when I was a child and developed a keen interest in fashion design. Loved learning how to sew and my Mum was very creative when I was growing up. I’m originally from the outer suburbs of Perth and during the ’90s teenagers from my area got into cars, footy and heavy metal so I never thought it would be a career option.
My first career was in the circus and I’m what you’d call a wheel gymnast. I toured with various shows through my 20’s around Australia and different countries performing German wheel as my act (Wheel Gymnastics).
In the circus, we always have another skill. Mine happened to be sewing and costume repairs and fixing things that kept the show going. After I stopped touring and went back to Uni, sewing was one of the things that led me to fashion design.
I always loved dressing up but I loved making more, especially things I could interact with and wear. I wanted to push my skill level and bespoke menswear was an area that really tests your garment construction knowledge. That really drew me as I enjoyed the challenge of tailoring and how it was such a unique art form. A bespoke tailor is something you do for the rest of your life. It’s more about the journey than the career and understanding the path you’re taking is not a short one.
What is unique about your brand?
That's quite a big question, there are a few things about the brand that make it unique.
Firstly MR CUFF is made by hand in Melbourne. We really focus on craftsmanship that goes into menswear and about 70% of our suits are made with a needle and thread. It’s about preserving the role of the bespoke tailor which is a term I think has been blurred recently. Inside every MR CUFF suit, you’ll see the handwork that goes into every piece. The knowledge of bespoke is very unique and really sets the standard when we talk about the pinnacle of menswear. One of my favourite goals is to put bespoke tailors back into the Melbourne suiting industry. We’re not limited by pattern blocks or systems as things can be created with a lot of fluidity.
Inspiration for the brand I look back into my family history. It’s great looking through albums of growing up, parents, and grandparents. I often design something from a photo or use it as inspiration. MR CUFF is an Australian brand so looking into our own story, climate, lifestyle and letting that drive the narrative. You hear a lot about European and Italian tailoring but that’s not what's happening here. I think that’s been highlighted since the pandemic with an emphasis on buying and producing locally. I recently redesigned my Dad's old 70’s brown wedding suit and had a great time with it.
MR CUFF is named after my Dad, Michael Royston Cuff. He passed away before I opened up the business during my first year at uni. This is my acknowledgement to him in many ways. It was important to him to see me go back to study and he never got to see where it took me. It keeps his memory alive for me in many ways.
MR CUFF is a zero-waste business. The fabrics we work with are some of the finest in the world and you're often left with offcuts of fabric every time you cut a suit. We’ll make caps and masks to use up anything that can be salvaged. Everything else is donated to the quilting guild in North Fitzroy. Making suits in Melbourne means we produce less carbon from shipping a suit around the world 3 - 4 times in manufacturing.
When did you become a tailor?
I remember being on tour whilst performing in a circus and starting to make my first jacket. It was a mess. It was more driven by curiosity into how it was made and investigating its secrets. I could always sew and had been making things on and off since I was a child. I went back to university at 30 to study fashion design which was great exposure to the fashion industry but not to tailoring. I found there was a gap in the knowledge when it came to men's apparel and was often sewn as womenswear.
During my degree, I started working at a few made to measure tailors and men’s brands which introduced me to the menswear system. No one was making menswear suits in Melbourne apart from a select few.
I was also unable to afford my own suit and never wore a suit to work even though I was working as a made to measure tailor because I was paying for uni. We were working doing alterations on sewing machines out the back and the focus was on the sales of suits and not so much how it’s made.
I really wanted to craft something myself so I could learn as much as possible. Celebrate the role of the bespoke tailor which so many people are curious about.
What’s your favourite thing about creating wedding suits?
One of my favourite things is the transformation you see when someone puts their suit on for the first time. Many of my clients don’t spend huge amounts of money on clothing unless it’s for a special event. Seeing their reaction when they see themselves for the first time is always rewarding.
A MR CUFF suit will be done in stages, and so the client will see their suit come together, learn about how it’s made and really feel how different bespoke really is. It’s special because it’s handmade for that person.
Being able to share in the experience which is so rewarding. I made our suits for our wedding in 2019. I’d seen a lot in the industry and knew I could make something really special for my fiance. It also meant we could do it our way.
I left my suit the week before the wedding as I had done everyone else's outfit for the day.
What is one thing you’re looking forward to seeing in wedding suiting this season?
Made in Melbourne. I want to see things be more iconically Australian. Have clients asking:
Who is making your suit?
Is it made in Australia?
And how it is supporting the local industry in Melbourne?
Italian suits are no different from Australian suits, you just produced a lot of carbon to get it here and sent your money overseas. Same if the suit is made in China. Tailors sit on sewing machines making garments, not have tape measures around their necks. That’s a fitter. If I put an Australian suit next to an Italian suit could you pick? What makes them different?
If your suit is being made in a factory in a different hemisphere then it’s not sustainable, it’s not Australian, and often you find people shift the focus onto the fabric and skip talking about the suit and how it’s made.
There are soooo many good tailors in Melbourne that work other jobs because the demand isn’t there. However in a city that is redefining the dapper movement in Australia that needs to change. I’d like to see wedding suits being made in Melbourne, by tailors who keep that knowledge and craftsmanship alive. European styling inspiration doesn’t consider the Australian lifestyle which is totally different.
More Tailors,
Less overseas manufacturing to get a cheap suit.
More transparency so that bespoke means bespoke because a “bespoke” experience isn’t the same.
Pieces from MR CUFF’s latest collection - Sartorial, are pictured above.
You can find more of MR CUFF on the Theodore directory or by visiting mrcuff.com.au or on Instagram at @mr_cuff_bespoke
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