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Maybe you business dudes/gals can weigh in on this.
I have a cheapy Pierre Cuomo black suit from Men's warehouse. It isn't horrible or anything, but you can tell that it is not of the highest quality. I think it cost $200 (with tailoring and everything). So, I am looking to start building up a decent suit collection and I am unsure how to proceed. I want five better quality suits to replace this one that I have. What is the best "price vs. quality" label and price that I should go for? Obviously, with $200 a suit you get what you pay for. But, I also think that $5,000 a suit is utterly ridiculous. Should I shoot for maybe $750 a suit? That's what a lot of the Brooks Brothers suits were at.
I got a $100 K&G mens suit and it suits me fine for job interviews only, as I never work in a suit. Sometime I look at expensive mens suits and just laugh as they look the same as stuff in a thrift store. Mens suits are all the same and boring, but try crossdressing and you run into the incredible beauty and variety of women's skirt suits! You even can find beautiful skirt suits as cheap as $59 new [on sale].
A good place to start learning about men's clothing is Ask Andy About Clothes.
ASK ANDY ABOUT CLOTHES
In general, people at Ask Andy don't think that highly of the clothes at Joseph A. Bank, and are almost universally scornful of Men's Warehouse. Because Bank is almost constantly having sales you can sometimes get excellent deals on some of their better lines, particularly the Signature Gold series, where you'll get a good suit and a good price.
Another good starting point is Brooks Brothers, particularly if you get there at sale time, and I think they have a big sale coming up as of January 1.
As important as the fabric, styling, and quality of construction is fit, to it's important to make sure you get a good fit, even if you must spend some money on tailoring.
To get great American-made suits at a higher price than you may be thinking of, consider Oxxford. A bit lower in price and quality, generally speaking, is Hart, Schaffner, and Marx.
To save money and get what I haven't seen, but I've seen described with glowing praise for the price, contact Jeff at Wizard of Ahhs. Among other things he's known for service and for being accommodating, doing things like putting suit coats together with trousers even if they didn't come together.
Check Macy's and outlet malls if you want a good deal on designer suits. For Macy's it's more of when you shop.
You don't have to buy a full suit either, you can find separates that can be mixed and match, especially if you're an odd size.
I like Calvin Klein and Kenneth Cole (from a woman's perspective) but not everyone can pull of their suits. I like the clean, chic look.
In all reality it really depends upon what you're looking for. Are you looking for a traditional look? An updated classic, or modern? Two or three button? Where are you located? Do you intend to travel? Are they mainly for work, or do they need to be versatile for both work and play? If you just want an average run of the mill, but descent suits, you can look at Nordstroms. Loro Piana is a good entry level, as mentioned above Hart/Marx, BOSS has a few descent designs depending upon what you need or are going for.
Really have you looked into bespoke suits? It really isn't as much as you may think, especially in this economy, and you will have a tailored and easily workable base from which to start with. Two suits, a couple of trousers, and usually three to five hand made shirts with four to five ties will more than get you started on the right track. However, now you've come to the most important base item...that's right the ladies know what it is...the shoes. Next are the accessories, but you've got a few things to think about first.
These would be your average traditional suits that would fit in at an office, funeral, or special event. I'm not looking for trendy, chic, and modern. I'm no metrosexual.
Thanks for the advice and such. I will check out those web sites.
Learn what attributes the top quality stuff has... then when looking at lesser priced lines, see what the differences are. Then make a decision on which line has the most quality features for the money you have to spend.
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