Mr. Christopher Aaron Smith is a native son of Detroit, Michigan, and a graduate of the prestigious Cooper School of Tailoring. With over 46 years of experience, he is recognized as one of Washington, DC’s few remaining Grand Master Tailors, a title reserved for those who have a minimum of 35 years of experience and have apprenticed under multiple Master Tailors from a variety of cultural traditions. He trained under five Grand Masters and more than a dozen Master Tailors. Today, with only three master tailors of this caliber located in the Washington, D.C. region, Mr. Smith stands as a leader among his industry peers and is respected for his technical proficiency and seasoned wisdom.

Mr. Smith also trained under disciplines from British, Italian, and Korean traditions. This cross-cultural apprenticeships blended European handwork with practical American design. He also trained with under the ‘Chicago Way,’ a distinct American tailoring tradition that emerged in the mid-20th century. It was heavily influenced by Italian, Greek, Jewish, and Eastern European immigrants who brought with them Old World techniques. It was shaped by the city’s immigrant working-class roots, Midwestern pragmatism, and a strong commitment to craftsmanship over flash.

The art of tailoring is very much alive and well. He has a lifetime membership to the Custom Tailors Designers Association (CTDA).

A Young Tailors Beginning

Mr. Smith began sewing, designing, and tailoring at the age of 14 after a near-fatal accident changed the course of his life. During a year-long recovery after being struck by a drunk driver while bicycling, his uncle gifted him a sewing machine to keep his hands and mind busy. What began as therapy quickly became a calling. When he regained the ability to walk again, he quickly transformed his mother’s basement into a workshop, complete with custom-built cutting tables, handmade clothing racks, and his passion for tailoring took root. Soon approaching the age of 15, Mr. Smith eagerly enrolled in the Cooper School of Tailoring, one of the most rigorous tailoring schools in the country at the time. From 1953-1985, the school trained three generations of American master tailors and Mr. Smith was one of the youngest and most devoted students. Mr. Cooper was a legend in the tailoring industry; he served as a father figure and closely mentored Mr. Smith during his studies. Each generation of students would have carried the Cooper legacy into their own tailoring businesses across the American tailoring industry, which contributed to a widespread and respected profession network. The school’s curriculum emphasized a technical mastery and students were expected to uphold the craft for at least 35 years before gaining the title ‘Grand Master Tailor.’