The right thumb of Steve Lulla, who will turn 75 in June, is nearly twice as large as his left thumb. It’s a physical marking of his lifetime stitching cloth as a master tailor.
His customers run the gamut from guys looking for alteration of a sports coat, to engaged couples finding the right fit for the wedding, to Kentucky Derby guests who want to dazzle, to the rich and famous.
The latter include the late heavyweight champion boxers Muhammad Ali and Greg Page, former pro basketball players Darrell Griffith and the late Felton Spencer, and Cathy Bailey, a former U.S. ambassador to Latvia and a major Republican Party fundraiser.
Another giveaway that Lulla, a native of India, is a prominent tailor is his own wardrobe. He wears a suit every day except when he goes to the gym. A shirt alone, made of 100 percent silk, may be in the $750 range.
“I may wear blue jeans and a T-shirt two or three times a year,” said Lulla, who lives in Louisville. “But I usually wear a suit every day. It’s my uniform, what I feel comfortable in.”
The trim Lulla likes fine clothing. He once made a “diamond collection” suit for a customer who paid $14,000. Such suits feature premium fabrics and often intricate details, such as half-carat diamonds.
His expertise covers small repairs and alterations to custom-made suits and gowns. The cost depends on the complexity of the job.
For all his customers, Lulla said, his desire is simple: “Make them look and feel good.”
Master tailors like Lulla differ from standard tailors. They have advanced skills in creating custom patterns and superior garment construction. They often possess decades of experience in pattern-making and tailoring techniques and usually are taught by a master tailor. They can handle the entire process, including designing, sewing and final fittings.
When Lulla studies a piece of clothing, his look is one of a skilled surgeon. People with such talent are a dwindling breed.
According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, data from 2024 suggest the number of professional, establishment-based tailors in the U.S. has dropped below 17,000. That is a 30 percent decline in the past decade.
Labor statistics do not provide the number of tailors in Kentucky, but there appear to be dozens of tailor and alteration shops across the state, with a high concentration of more than 60 in the Louisville area. Only a few provide the custom-made work that Lulla offers.
Members of the profession are aging, with many retiring, leading to a shortage of skilled labor. The median age for tailors in the U.S. is 54. That is 12 years older than the median age of the general population.
Lulla wants to keep at his profession as long as he can. He has come a long way.
Lulla’s Hand-Stitched Life
Lulla was born into a middle-class family in Pune in Western India on June 7, 1951. He was one of seven children. His father, Kishendas Lulla, was a homeopathic doctor, and his mother, Kamla, tended to the home. They had seven children.
Young Lulla was educated in Catholic schools. His father demanded that he learn English and never talk about religion to avoid arguments. Steve Lulla is Hindu.
Lulla was “an OK” student in school. He graduated from high school at 16 with the goal of going to America.
In Pune—a city about the size of Louisville—Lulla had started working at age 13 in a nephew’s store. He became fascinated with clothing. He attended a tailoring school, even though tailoring is a menial job in India.
He then worked for a tailoring shop in Pune for his cousin. “[The cousin] had a friend in England who knew much about tailoring, but I had no money to go,” Lulla said. “But they paid my way, and I studied hard in England for three months. I worked 14 to 16 hours every day.”
Lulla next studied leather in Italy for two weeks with money earned in England and then returned to Pune. He applied for a visa to America. His 1970 plane to the States was supposed to land in Oklahoma City, where a brother lived, but it took him to Louisville. He later got a tailoring job in Oklahoma City, but he had “fallen in love” with Louisville and returned in 1973.
His first job in Louisville was as a clothes salesman for the downtown Levy Brothers store, what many know today as the Old Spaghetti Factory building. He soon was transferred to the Levy Brothers Bashford Manor store and became its No. 1 salesman, selling 21 suits in a week.
In 1974, Lulla opened his own tailoring shop in the basement of a store in the Brownsboro shopping center. Called British Custom Tailors, it moved to its current location in the shopping center in 1980.
Lulla got a strong financial boost from custom work for the late Florence Kerman, wife of the late Edwin Kerman, an optometrist and founder of both Monfried Optical and Louisville Optical Co.
Others recognized Lulla’s expert quality and signed on as customers. He embarked on a journey that would lay the foundation for a legacy of craftsmanship and family tradition. His skills were passed down to his children and grandchildren. Lulla’s son, Avi, worked in the store and developed a strong relationship not only with customers but with high-quality fabric suppliers in Italy and London.
The business crafted custom-made clothing and made repairs and alterations for generations.
Tragedy struck in 2019, when Avi died. A large photo of him as a tailor hangs in the British Custom Tailors store today.
The first Brownsboro Road location now is owned by Dillon Lakhwani, Steve Lulla’s grandson and the third generation to work in the family business.
In 2019, Lulla opened Oxford Tailors, located in Middletown on Shelbyville Road. He works mostly at Oxford, but sometimes, he can be found at British Custom Tailors.
“My grandfather is a legend in the tailoring business,” said Lakhwani while taking a pause from fitting a bridal gown. “He is so organized when he does a job. He is a master.”
A Thread Master
Lulla’s attention to detail landed him the business of monogramming the boxing shorts of fighters Ali and Page and University of Louisville athletes such as Spencer.
“I never got to meet Ali, but I got a picture of him. Page I met. Very nice guy,” Lulla said. “I remember Felton Spencer [a 7-foot center for the University of Louisville and in the NBA] had to bend down when he came through the front door. He was so tall.
“And Cathy Bailey once needed an outfit for a meeting with President Bush, the younger one.”
Lulla’s business dips a bit, he said, in January and February and picks up in mid-March. Peak times occur for the Kentucky Derby, proms, graduations and weddings.
Julie Khackatori, an Iran native and seamstress at British Custom, has worked with Lulla for years. “He’s nice—very good person,” she said. “I love him. He knows his business.”
Justin Crabtree has worked with Lulla at Oxford Tailors since October 2021. He is a tailor and fashion designer and a close friend of Lakhwani, who introduced Crabtree to Lulla.
“Steve Lulla has shown me so much. He knows so much about wardrobes. He just does not do shoes,” Crabtree said. “He’s so compassionate toward everyone. He’s the perfect mentor. I hope he stays around here forever.”
That is Lulla’s plan.
“As long as the Lord gives me the ability, I want to keep on doing this. I don’t golf. I’m not a big club guy. This I know how to do,” said the master tailor with the big thumb and the nice silk shirt.
Oxford Tailors
Middletown Plaza
12300 Shelbyville Rd
Louisville
502.807.1928
oxfordtailors.com
British Custom Tailors
4814 Brownsboro Center
Louisville
502.885.5401
bctailors.com