Chapter 36: Master Tailor

25 January 2024 marks the 18th Anniversary of my father's passing. He left us in early 2006 (Read here), and had he been alive today, he would be 96 years old.

On 1 June 2022, my older brother shared a photograph that stirred many memories - a group shot from a grand reunion held in 1967 for alumni of the Boog Tsin Tailor Training College. My father was among them, a proud graduate of that institution.

At the peak of his tailoring career, my father was widely respected as a master tailor - a reputation that would become his enduring legacy. He worked at Chu Chu Tailor, one of the most well known tailoring shops in the old town of Kota Kinabalu. Yet his craft didn't end there. He was frequently approached by clients from all walks of life - teachers, students, pastors, working professionals - for customed-made clothing during his spare hours.

Spare hours, however, were almost non-existent. He worked tirelessly, nearly seven days a week, reserving only Sunday mornings for church. Each evening after dinner, he would sit down at his sewing machine and continue tailoring until 10pm. It was a rhythm of relentless discipline and devotion.

Despite the long hours he poured into tailoring, the drive just to earn a bit more for the family never left him. In the early mornings - often before sunrise - he and my mother would go rubber tapping to supplement the household income (Read here). It was a physically demanding job, but they took it on without compliant, motivated by their desire to give us a better life.

For his private tailoring work, my father accepted a wide range of orders - pants, long-sleeved shirts, student uniforms, tuxedo suits, and occasionally, ladies' dresses. Yet I believe the work he was most proud of was being commissioned to create nearly all the pulpit gowns worn by the pastors and reverends of the Basel Christian Church of Malaysia. That assignment wasn’t just a job—it was an honor.

Throughout his career, my father also mentored aspiring tailors. One of them was my eldest brother, who had to leave school after completing primary education due to illness. To help him find purpose and keep him engaged at home, my father began teaching him the art of tailoring. Once he gained confidence in the craft, he became my father’s assistant, helping fulfill many of the private orders.

In those early days - before buttonhole sewing machines were available - every button and buttonhole was sewn by hand. My mother handled this delicate final step before the garments were delivered to clients. It was a quiet but essential contribution to the family business.

My father wasn’t a smoker, a drinker, or a gambler. He lived simply and honorably, dedicating his entire life to being a good husband, a loving father, and a tireless provider. Like many traditional Chinese men of his generation, he wasn’t outwardly affectionate. But we never doubted his love. It was written in every stitch he sewed, every early morning he rose, and every quiet sacrifice he made for our family.

A photo from the grand reunion of Boog Tsin Tailoring Training College held in 1967. My dad is in the back row, standing second from the left.

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In April 2022, my youngest brother shared photos of the Single-brand sewing machine that was once used by my father. After doing some research online, he discovered - based on the serial number - that the machine was manufactured in 1945. Originally, it operated with a foot pedal and belt mechanism. Later, a motor was added when Single transitioned to producing electrically powered machines, significantly reducing the manual effort required to operate it.

Remarkably, this nearly 80-year old machine is still in working condition and remains in the house my parents last lived. Today, it stands as a cherished vintage piece with both functional and sentimental value.

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An old photo shared on Facebook captures Jesselton - now known as Kota Kinabalu - in the 1960s. The photo was taken from Jalan Harrington (now known as Jalan Istana), just a short distance from the existing Jalan Dewan/Jalan Padang. On the left side of the photo is a row of timber shoplots, one of which was once occupied by Chu Chu Tailor (楚楚洋服). Other notable outlets in the row of wooden shops were Tung Nam Book Store (东南书店) which was next to Chu Chu Tailor and another nearby shop called Monmin Glass and Aluminum (文明镜庄).

A railway track ran alongside the tarred road in front of the row of timber shophouses. The line stretched from the seaport all the way to Tenom in the interior. The small timber hut on the left was used by the guard to operate the boom gate, stopping traffic whenever a train crossed the road.

Another old photograph captures the side and rear views of the same row of timber shophouses that once stood at the heart of Kota Kinabalu. From the Chinese signboards, common in that era, the corner lot housed 华隆貿易公司 (Hualong Trading Company), operated by the family of my primary school classmate, Lee Thien Fook, whom I met again in 2015 (Read here). A dental clinic, 王鴻飛牙科 (Wong Hong Fei Dental Clinic), was also located along this row and was well known in those days.

This entire stretch was eventually cleared to make way for the construction of the Kota Kinabalu City Library and the Dewan Bandaraya Kota Kinabalu (DBKK) complex.

Most of the displaced businesses were later resettled in newly built shoplots nearby. Tung Nan Book Store relocated to a reinforced-concrete shophouse along Jalan Gaya, where it continued serving customers before finally closing its doors on 31.03.2017 after more than six decades in operation.

Chu Chu Tailor, which moved to Kampung Air, ceased operations even earlier, fading quietly from the town’s commercial landscape even before the Tung Nam Bookstore’s eventual closure.

Meanwhile, Monmin Glass & Aluminium, which relocated to a new shoplot in the adjacent row next to Chu Chu Tailor in Kampung Air, still remains in business today. Its flagship building is now located at the SEDCO Industrial Estate Kolombong, continuing a legacy that stretches back to the early post-war years.

The disappearance of bookstores and tailoring shops mirrors wider global shifts shaped by the internet, industrialisation and now AI. Clothing production has largely moved to mass manufacturing, while reading habits have steadily transitioned from printed pages to digital screens. Yet the trade of aluminium and glazing works for buildings remains very much in demand - evidenced by the continued presence of Monmin in the local industry.

Today, the tailoring shops that once flourished from the 1950s to the early 2000s have all but vanished. Even Chu Chu Tailor, later run by the founder’s son, closed many years ago. Its former premises in Kampung Air have since been converted into a 4D lottery outlet.

I still recall that during my primary and secondary school years, many of my classmates’ fathers were tailors. Now, I cannot name a single man in the profession. What was once a male-dominated trade has gradually shifted, with the craft today more commonly practised by women.

My father, who worked in the labour-intensive craft of tailoring, belonged to a generation of master tailors commonly found from the 1950s to the 2000s - a breed of craftsmen whose skills now form part of living history.

The former premises of Chu Chu Tailor in Kampung Air are now
occupied by a 4D lottery outlet.

Current flagship building of Monmin in Kolombong.