How custom tailor measurements work.

Local South African designers work at a scale where every piece is either made-to-measure or micro-batch cut. That is what makes their work worth paying for — but it also means the vendor needs the exact centimetres of the person the garment is meant for. Standard size labels vary enormously between brands, and vanity sizing hides real fit issues. So we ask for the numbers instead.

Every product page shows exactly which measurements the vendor requires — this list is defined by the vendor when they list the garment, so it varies. Common examples:

• Chest / bust — measured horizontally across the fullest part, arms relaxed at your sides.
• Waist — measured at your natural waistline (usually just above the belly button).
• Hips — the fullest part of your hips and seat.
• Shoulder width — from the tip of one shoulder bone to the other, across the back.
• Sleeve length — from shoulder tip to the wrist bone, arm slightly bent.
• Inseam — from the crotch seam down to the ankle bone.
• Total length or skirt length — from the highest point of the garment (neck or waistband) to the desired hem.

• Use a soft, flexible tailor's tape — not a metal builder's tape.
• Measure over close-fitting clothes (or no clothing) — never over a hoodie or coat.
• Keep the tape parallel to the ground, not slanted.
• Do not suck in your stomach. Stand naturally, feet shoulder-width apart, arms relaxed.
• Get a friend to measure your back and shoulders — you cannot do those reliably alone.
• Round to the nearest whole centimetre. Vendors add ease themselves.

Your measurements are stored against your order in an encrypted MongoDB document and are only visible to the vendor fulfilling that specific order, and to SA Fashion Mall administrators for audit / dispute purposes. They are not shared with any third party and are never used for marketing.

Once your order is completed and funds are released, your measurements remain associated with that order for a two-year period as required for tax and consumer-rights record-keeping, after which they are purged.

Once you have paid, your measurements are locked with the vendor — because the tailor may have already cut the cloth by the time you realise. If you catch a mistake within the first hour of ordering, contact the vendor directly through the messaging thread linked from your order and they may be able to adjust before cutting.

If you receive the finished garment and it does not fit because our measuring guide let you down (not because the vendor cut it wrong), we cover the return-and-alter cost as an SAFM Fit Guarantee. If the vendor cut it outside the numbers you provided, they cover it.