BQ Yan Tailoring — Local services in Sydney

I have utilised Alterations and Tailoring Services for more than 20 years. I have visited about 80% of the CBD Alterations services available around Sydney CBD, either through trialing their services, or enquiring about their services and prices, only to be put off by their exorbitant prices or lack of customer care and service, and believe me, many tailors fall into these last two buckets unfortunately.

Recently I needed to change my tailor again because the last one I used up at Wynyard Station, made a terrible and unforgivable mistake on my dress and ruined a $150 dress I bought overseas by accidentally cutting the dress into the length of a long top. They attempted to sew the cut-off portion back on but of course it is ruined as it is cut and there was no compensation for the dress itself. Washed their hands clean.

I utilised BQ Yan Tailoring more than 10 years ago when its original owner was here but then they retired, I went elsewhere as I thought the entire shop shut down. Through a random Google search last week I found this shop was still very much there and through a physical visit, I met the lovely Anna who had worked for BQ Yan as an assistant for many years before she took over the shop.

I am not kidding when I say Anna is truly the BEST Alterations Service and Tailor you can find in the CBD on ALL Levels.

No. 1 - She has the CHEAPEST PRICE. Believe me when I say this. She does not rip customers off like the ones in Westfield Sydney at LookSmart or the ones in the Dymocks Building (there are quite a lot there).

No. 2 - She is a HIGHLY TALENTED and dexterous seamstress. She has been in this business for more than 35 years and I have seen a lot of alterations work done on my clothes - I alter things at least once a fortnight and I have to alter everything I buy because they do not fit me and I want them to be perfect. She has done the best job so far. No job is too hard. Other tailors tell me 'No, I cannot', or 'No the job is too hard', or they say yes and then charge an arm and a leg.

No. 3 - Anna is LIGHTNING FAST. In one week, she already altered more than 30 items for me. The joker tailor behind the Drycleaners in Hunter Connection told me to come back in January to alter 8 items. He said he could not even do 3 simple jobs in one week then totally ignored me when I asked him when. And he was more expensive, charging 25% more than Anna.

No. 4 - She is a VERY GOOD PERSON AND A GENUINE HONEST LADY. I have not met a seamstress so authentic, so nice and genuine. She takes all the time in the world to look after her customers and she is incredibly grateful and polite to take your business, unlike the other ungrateful tailors that you see dotted around the CBD.

No. 5 - The building is in a nice quiet and extremely convenient place around the corner from Pitt St Mall, in a building next to the H&M Flagship store. The store is large, peaceful, quiet and clean.

No. 6 - Anna is open Monday to Saturday from 10am to 6pm, and to 4pm on Saturdays. She works hard and she is so conveniently available at hours suitable to busy workers like me. I appreciate her diligence and hard work.

She has even informed me that she is coming in on Sunday just to finish another bag of alterations for me. When there were a couple of items that were altered not quite the way I wanted it, she has taken it back and redone the job free of charge.

To conclude this review, I have entrusted more than 150 of my dresses and garments to Anna to alter in one week of meeting her. This goes to show the level of trust and comfort I have in Anna, her skills, her services and as a human being.

Pinning and trying on so many items, I have spent hours at her store this week chatting to her to get through everything I needed to alter, and I can attest to the fact that she is an honest lady and she is totally trustworthy. All the customers I have met walking in and out of her store are very lovely and love her work.

I will not be going anywhere else until she decides to shut the shop! You would be very foolish to go...

Have been looking for a good and reliable tailor for years. Finally found one. I needed a repair on a pair of pants. Googled for a tailor in CBD. There popped Anna's shop with impressive reviews. It turned out Anna is every bit what the reviews say. She is very good at her craft and the quality of her work is worth more than what she charges. On top of that, she is friendly, accommodating and helpful. She enjoys her work and helping people. What a combination! People like her is rare to...

Dropped off a brand new white blazer for alteration and when I picked it up and it was stained. The blazer had never been worn and still had tags…. She originally tried to hide the mark after putting the jacket down, flipping the lapel over. When I asked how it happened, she pretended not to see it. Eventually she said I must have dropped it off stained and I should take it to a dry cleaner. Clearly she had tried to wipe it off as there was a watermark...