La Moda

Where to start! I attend events Atleast once a month and these events require me to constantly buy new dresses. Well I always seem to have to get my dresses altered so finding a tailor who actually cared about making sure my dresses came out nicely was tough. Until a good friend recommended me to La Moda! I have been here plenty of times and never have I ever regretted it! The owner, Francois, gives his honest opinions and always goes above and beyond! If you want an honest and personable tailor… Francois is the tailor for you!

Had to get a suit tailored last minute and after reading the Unilocal reviews, decided to bring it in. Francois was extremely helpful and was able to tailor the suit for me from one day to the next.
I was extremely satisfied with the way the suit looked and fit afterwards. Will definitely be going back!

This was my first place ever to have something tailored. In specific, it was a marine colored bridesmaid dress for my cousins wedding that I had gotten from David’s Bridal. My aunt had recommended Francois and I am glad she did.
He greeted us with a smile when we walked in and was finishing up with another customer. Originally his location was smaller. And it was a lot more cramped in changing in the room. But after I changed, and came out, he walked around me asking how long I needed it to be at; in which I replied a bit short so we could see the heels. He told me to hold the pose with both of my hands around my waist (like posing for a picture). He simply marked the dress a few times all around with white chalk before announcing he was finished.
I was a bit astonished at how fast it was, but the time I went to reclaim the dress was quick! It was a moderately pricey, but to me, anything that needs to get hemmed a bit to a specific length requires its own work in time. My advice to whoever wants to give Francois a try like I did, is that you should do a couple months ahead of the event. So if it does not work out, you could at least work to see what it is you need, and what Francois could do.
I absolutely love love his change of location. He now is around the corner from his old place and has such a larger space! SO MUCH MORE ROOM!

I had recently been burned by the Mens Wearhouse suits and tailors (They STILL don’t get it), so I was really hesitant to trust just anyone.
Long story short, I had to buy a second suit, and decided to get it tailored by La Moda. I walked in and Francois helped me. He seemed to be really knowledgable, and even more importantly, he understood that I wanted a really modern slim fit.
He made a few marks, without any pinning, and hardly even measuring anything. It kinda freaked me out at first, but he came across like this wasn’t his first time, and assured that I would like the end product.
A couple days later I came in, and my cheap JF Ferrar suit fits wonderfully. He was able to tell exactly what needed to be done, and even accounted for the fact I had forgotten to bring in my shoes.
My only issue is that they don’t take credit cards for tailoring, and it was a little more money than I expected it to be, but you get you pay for in this situation.
Very highly recommended.

I had two custom shirts done here. One of mid range quality fabric, and one of high end fabric. They came back exactly as I had hoped in about 5 weeks and Francois even threw in a free tie with it.

«Meh. I’ve experienced better.» 2 stars summed it up perfectly.
Let me begin by saying my body is simply not made for off the rack shirts. My neck is 17 – 17.5″ for collared shirts, while my waist is 30″. This means that «slim» fit 17 or 17.5 shirts are going to look like I’m smuggling babies around my midsection. So, I took a shirt in to have this issue amended, and Francois seemed entirely confident that it would come out looking like it was made for me.
For the cost of $ 65 for a single shirt, I certainly expected as much.
It came back far sooner than expected, which is awesome. However, this could be standard practice, so I’m not going to place much stock in that.
The final results were underwhelming to say the least. Sleeves too long. Waist still too wide… in no way looking «made for me.» Granted, it was far better than it looked initially, but I’d expect the same takeaway from someone paying $ 5.
Now, I’m not critiquing that it wasn’t done perfectly on the first go. My issue is the why and how of it. The waist is my only concern, as shortening sleeves another half inch or slow is incredibly easy.
When I tried on the tailored version, the black woman assured me it could be fixed with little issue. However, the tailor (Latin woman I believe, NOT Francois), told me it could not be done, due to initial design issues with the shirt (darts on the back).
Now, that in itself is ok. The issue I have is that this was not an issue as I was getting it adjusted, nor was it even mentioned. Whether intentionally deceptive or not, it made me feel a bit snookered, which is never a nice feeling.
The interaction ended with my saying «well, that’s unfortunate, but what can you do?» Now, I’m not the type to haggle over relatively insignificant cost differences, so I wasn’t about to raise hell or make threats in an attempt to get the cost reduced by $ 10.
However, I would think a place that wants to maintain clearly unimpressed clients would offer some sort of «perk» as persuasion to continue frequenting that business.
Nope. All I got was an «I’m sorry we couldn’t make it work» from the gal who not 5 minutes ago said it would be an easy adjustment. Even better, she immediately proceeded to ask for the amount initially quoted in full.
I was left entirely unimpressed, while not angry, as I’m giving them the benefit of the doubt about the physical limitations of the shirt. I will say that it looks to be well made, but looks only go so far, to «meh» in this case.
It wasn’t enough to leave my shirt there to adjust it, as the location is slightly out of my way. I’ll leave it as is or take it to the tailor (who’s far cheaper) down the street from my house.
Now, perhaps the full custom route would yield better results, but for nearly $ 200/​shirt and $ 900+/sport coat, I’d need to see a plethora of success stories before even considering going down that road
Here’s a summary:
PROS:
–Francois. Seemed like a knowledgable individual. He did try to convince me of the wonders of going custom, which might bother some, but he’s a salesman to some extent and it’s to be expected. No harm, no foul
–Timeliness. I received my shirt far sooner than expected, though, as mentioned above, this good be a ploy. Again, the benefit of the doubt is given.
CONS:
–Cost. I must question the sanity of the «fair priced» reviewers here. Tailoring, and its costs especially, is a geographical thing. However, I have had similar work done in LA and Manhattan (not exactly known for good value pricing) for less money. That’s not to mention my local tailor, who provided better quality in my opinion for almost half the price ($ 35 v. $ 65).
–Final results. I won’t say quality because, as far as I can tell, the quality was solid. The final result, as mentioned was not. The limitations mentioned after the fact should have been noticed prior to taking on the project. This is something to be expected at any price point.
Knowledge. This refers only to the black gal who clearly did not know what she was talking about in regards to readjusting my shirt.
Professional Pride: This was the worst of it all for me. As a service provider, I feel you should stand behind your services with unwavering conviction. If for some reason, the services fail to meet expectations, you should do all within your power to rectify the problem. I shit you not, I’ve had longer than expected (unbeknownst to me in any way) waits at a Chik-​Fil-​A drive thru result in a free meal with free future meals promised. That is the kind of business practice that creates loyal customers. Here, I received, I’m sorry we let you down, but we’ll still take all your money. That is the kind of business practice that breeds «buyer beware» mentalities.
So, that’s a long winded way of saying buyer beware. MAYBE they’re far better than I experienced, but I’m not reviewing based on other reviews, and I was tremendously underwhelmed.
Accepts credit cards: but NOT for alterations.

Francois did an excellent job altering my husband’s suit. We came here through a recommendation from a friend and was not disappointed. It’s really hard to find good place to get your clothing alter and we have now found one. We’ll be back soon for sure as I’m petite and always need to have clothing altered to fit correctly and Hubby always need his suits altered.

Saw all the great reviews. Came in to have a new suit altered. I thought I’d let out the jacket a little, adjust the sleeves, get the pants hemmed and the waist/​seat let out. For full disclosure, the suit is a size that would have fit me a few years ago (Italian size 50 jacket with a 50 pant waist versus the 51 jacket with a 52 pant waist I need now) but not after all the beers and BBQ I’ve enjoyed recently. Anyway, Francois was nowhere to be seen and a woman helped me. She marked the pants I could barely button and said they would be fine, but when I put the jacket on, she said that there’s no way to let out the size of an off the rack suit — it’s not possible — in her experience you can only make a jacket smaller… I politely questioned it a little, but didn’t push it as I didn’t want to risk having this tailor do something they’re not comfortable with or qualified to do and end up with a destroyed suit and some type of hollow apology.
Not that it should matter, but this isn’t a cheap suit. In fact, it’s at a price point (not that price dictates quality or whether an item can be altered to the next size) for off the rack suits where you might consider getting one custom tailored with a really nice fabric instead. Sorry for being vague, but I’m not into bragging on Unilocal.
I’ve had multiple suit jackets (20+) expertly let out/​taken in that now fit like a glove in the past by my former tailor that just had to retire. Again, not mad at La Moda, just disappointed that they couldn’t do something that a bespoke tailor should be able to do. I was courteous as I left La Moda wishing them well. Just surprised at my experience there.
I then went to another tailor known on the interwebz for their high end bespoke suits and shirts, but said they were happy to make alterations to my suit if they could. I tried on the suit, they poked and prodded, they opened up the lining to make sure there was enough cloth to make it fit and they said it would not be a problem and I’ll be happy with the results. It’s not going to be cheap (I expected this work to be expensive and would have had no issues paying La Moda/​Francois the same amount), but the other tailor guarantees the work will come out perfectly.
Looks like I found my tailor for my suits, now just have to find one for simple things like jeans, shorts and shirts.

I don’t know anything about their custom made suits. I only do my shirts there and let me tell you something Francois is the best! He knows what he is doing. I found him on Unilocal he had 5 star reviews so I tried his service and never regretted about it so far. I diffidently recommend you this place if you are looking for professional tailoring.

Francois’s team at La Moda did an amazing job on my wedding dress alterations for a really affordable price! Friendly people and professional tailoring is what La Moda is all about! I’m so thankful for their services and will definitely use them for all of my tailoring needs!

I wear suits for my business every single day, including the weekends. I recently dropped off some Ted Baker pants to a new suit I bought and we scheduled the next week for pick up. Well this morning I called at 9am and asked if they could be ready TODAY. Francois not only said he would make that happen for me, he did it without hesitating. I feel SO lucky to have a tailor like him in my life now and he really SAVED THE DAY. Thank you so so much La Moda, you deserve all the 5 star Unilocal you will get!

Francois was great.
I can’t comment on his custom-​made shirts and suits yet, but he took my $ 250 H&M suit and turned it into a fantastic looking suit. He cinched the waist, took in the back, hemmed the sleeves, hemmed and tapered the pants, and man, does it look good. I can’t compliment him enough on how good the pants look.
Also, I busted a seam on my pants (an original seam, not an area that he worked on), and he sewed it back up for me for free!
His pricing on the whole suit, i thought, was very fair for the amount of work that had been done to it, and i love the suit. I’ll be going back to him to fix up my other suit, and hopefully for some custom work too.

Francois is brilliant! I mean really really good! My boyfriend took two suits to him to be tailored and let me just say AMAZING! Had to do a total reconstruct on both the pants and the jacket and both look so good! Definitely worth the price, which really isn’t all that bad for the quality of work!

Francois is the best tailor in San Diego.
It is now possible to buy outstanding clothes through internet retailers at outrageously low prices. However, one needs a good tailor to make them look good. Francois fits the bill.
Yes, he is expensive, but adding his tailoring to the cost of suits costing 15 to 25 percent of what they would cost retail results in the cheapest high quality outfitting one can get.

Damn, my husband looks good. Really, really good. He had a suit that was pretty boxy on his frame (he’s 6’4″ and slim) and La Moda was able to take the suit and give it a more modern, slim fit. The stitching is impeccable and it looks like a custom made suit. The pricing was completely reasonable too.
Thanks to this place my hubby was able to turn a boring suit into something hot!

Great guy, and an excellent tailor.
I’ve taken several pieces of clothing here, and I’m always happy with the results. Francois has an eye for the details, and gives good, honest advice on what needs to be done. If it’s any indication of his quality, Burberry sends the clothes that need tailoring here.
The prices are higher than other tailors around town, but if you really care about quality work, bring it here.

Finally, a good tailor!
Having trouble finding fitting pants, I’m always in need of a good tailor. I’ve used many different ones all over town and Francois has exceeded the quality of work from all the others by a long shot. There’s really no other place in San Diego I trust anymore. Thank you for providing the high quality tailoring that one expects!

The truth is, I could have gone to many other tailors to get my dress pants and blazer tailored and paid less. However, the craftsmanship of the finished garment would not be the same.
First off, I am very petite — even Francois agreed with me! Finding a pair of dress pants that fit perfectly is nearly impossible for me. I brought in a pair of dress pants that I bought four years ago, which were ill-​fitting so I always wore them with a belt. Francois took inches off the waist and hips, then created a straight-​leg streamlined cut. The pants were originally an unflattering flared/​bootcut style, but he changed the entire shape of the pants into something more flattering and tailored for my legs! I could not believe how amazing the pants felt on me. I dreamed of a day that I didn’t need a belt to hold up my dress pants, and where the pants had enough structure to contour my legs in a flattering way. I’ll admit that I only paid $ 25 for the dress pants, and $ 50 to tailor it. However, these pants felt and fit like a dream, thus the quality of the tailoring FAR outweighs the cost. For the amount of work I needed done to the pants, the cost is affordable.
I also brought in a blazer that needed to be taken in. Fortunately I only needed the sides taken in (fitting in the arms and shoulders were fine), but it still required a bit of work because a lot of fabric had to be taken off and the the blazer was fully lined. I also requested that he redo the shape of the blazer in order to contour my slim waistline. Francois explained to me how much would be taken off and the process of how he takes in the material. After trying on the finished product, I was once again amazed at how he could take a boxy, shapeless blazer and change it into a nicely fitted one!
Francois’ tailoring is impeccable — I couldn’t even tell that my pants or jacket were taken in at all! Originally I only planned on tailoring the jacket, but brought in the pants to see what could be done along with a price quote. He wasn’t insistent or pushy in any way, and walked me through with how the clothes should fit. Generally I’ve been to female tailors in the past, but Francois was a complete gentleman in every way. He also does custom tailoring, which I’m hoping to someday afford so that Francois can make me a whole wardrobe of business wear. If you need custom suiting, La Moda is definitely the place to go! Don’t settle for less because he uses quality material and it is hand-​made to your body.

Suits, suits, suits! Francois is an expert of his craft. I came into La Moda and Francois was nice and incredibly helpful. He’s knowledgeable on all current trends, all you have to do is tell him what you want and he’ll make it happen. When I received my suit it fit amazingly well and was better than I expected. It looked like new.
Francois has opened my eyes to the world of tailoring. From now on I think I’ll be bringing everything to get tailored. Good-​bye baggy clothing.

I’ve tried several tailors in town and now that I’ve found Francois at La Moda I won’t be going anywhere else. Not only is he the nicest guy and very efficient, his tailoring is spot-​on perfect. He knows what he’s doing and suggests options and tweaks where needed for things I didn’t even think about.
You can tell he cares about his clients and is a bit of a perfectionist. He has even moved buttons for me quickly while I wait since it’s an easy enough job. He even makes custom suits and clothes although I haven’t tried that with him yet.
Once you go here you won’t go anywhere else.