A stitch in time

Shelves of shirts and racks of suit coats and pants greet customers at Steve’s Tailoring & Men’s Wear.
Amid the coats and trousers is a table full of ties and another surface displaying
cufflinks. In the back of that showroom is a counter at which a wedding party can rent their tuxedos — tailored for a fine fit, of course.
“Got to make sure the groom looks good. All eyes are on the groom,” said smiling shop owner Steve Antoniades, who greets visitors in — what else? — a finely tailored suit.
Antoniades runs the custom tailoring shop with his mother, Athena, a trained dressmaker. “My mother is an amazing seamstress,” said her son. “I’d put her up against any seamstress.”
“If you like to do your job,” she reasons with casual wisdom, “you do your best.”
For years she worked alongside her husband, also Stephen Antoniades, who passed away last year at age 80.
 The elder Antoniades was one of the last working master tailors in the area, a man who learned how to make suits from scratch — measuring, cutting and sewing the cloth into a garment — while training in Greece in the 1950s.
He then brought the skills with him to America in 1967.
“Most tailors don’t learn everything. They become a master at making slacks, or vests, or coats,” said the son. “My father learned how to make everything, even topcoats.”
Today, tailors such as Antoniades make alterations to ready-made or fit customers with made-to-measure suits.
“Everything in the front of the store is ready-made — a generic size for a man’s body,” he said. “For $295 to $395 you get a phenomenal suit that fits well and you get most of the tailoring.”
For an even more tailored look, some customers choose  made-to-measure garments.
“We’ll take the measurements first, then we’ll go through the books and pick out a fabric, and then we’ll discuss the style,” said Antoniades, who said he has made suits for many area corporate executives. “I’ll ship the fabric with the measurements to the company, where they’ll cut the fabric and make the suit and ship it back to me.”
A final fitting and minor alterations are done at Steve’s Tailoring. A made-to-measure suit can be tailored by Antoniades for between $850 and $1,600.
“Even my father, who was able to do this — make a suit from scratch — came to the realization that this was the way to do it in the United States.”
Antoniades’ business seems to have transcended harsh economic times in an era when men are not always suiting up in fine fashion for work.
“People today are more relaxed and not as concerned about the way they look, which is unfortunate,” said Antoniades, who often labors at a sewing machine in the back of the shop in a suit, noting that a well-fitted suit is comfortable no matter what the task.
Although the shop’s hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays and 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, Antoniades usually arrives by 9:30 in the morning and usually is not gone before 7 at night.
Not all of that time is spent at the 70-year-old sewing machines that were kept in use at the shop through the decades because they were faithful and dependable to the family.
“From a tailoring standpoint, you probably have six tailoring hours a day. After that your eyes get funny.”
So, other time is spent in suit fittings, and tuxedo rentals, or selling tailored shirts and accessories. Antoniades even has a line of  custom-made ties named Stavros, Greek for his name and his father’s.
Antoniades, who started coming to his father’s tailor shop when he was 4, was trained in tailoring at the University of Akron and gained experience in other venues. He returned to Steve’s tailoring in 2000.
Now, at a time when the skills of a tailor and a sense of fashion seem increasingly rare, he may have two opportunities at home to continue the family business. He and his wife, Kelly, have two daughters, Alexi, 7, and Eliana, 8.
“My oldest daughter, she’s into fashion. She can put together some unique outfits,” said Antoniades. “My youngest daughter loves sewing.”
So perhaps someday they’ll continue the female influence at Steve’s Tailoring. Although the shop specializes in men’s suits, “we take a lot of pride in working with women’s clothing,” says Antoniades.
“Again, my mother is an amazing seamstress — anything from ladies bluejeans to wedding gowns.”
Antoniades has tailored his share of uniforms, as well — military, firefighter and law enforcement. And with Canton’s proximity to National Football League and National Basketball League franchises, he has tailored the clothes of several athletes, including Hall of Fame enshrinees.
He is considered “the preferred tailor of the Pro Football Hall of Fame,” he notes with well-deserved pride.
Even a Santa suit has been seen hanging at Steve’s Tailoring, awaiting alterations.
“He’s a regular customer,” said Antoniades. “Every year I’m the tailor for the big guy.”

Steve’s Tailoring and Men’s Wear
1325 Cleveland Ave. NW
Canton    OH 44703
330-455-1499
Hours: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays and 9 a.m. to noon Saturdays; closed Sunday.