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Suit brand hierarchy, what's the difference?

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#23 ·
hiker said:
Thanks for all your thoughts. What do you think about online custom suits like indochino or black lapel compared to nordstrom or men's wearhouse half canvassed suits?
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Go to a store where someone can fit you and you can try things on. I've done both and will never do online for suits/jackets again. The coat I bought turned out okay but the ending fit is much better in person. And if your online doesn't go well...just browse this forum and you'll see.

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#24 · (Edited)
hiker said:
Thanks for all your thoughts. What do you think about online custom suits like indochino or black lapel compared to nordstrom or men's wearhouse half canvassed suits?
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I second Mr. Dana's sentiments in regards to online MTM. I too looked into it at first, just to see, and after reading some stories I decided against it. Just as never behind stated there is no better way to search for a suit than trying them on and seeing what best fits your body.

In regards to the half canvassed suit options of Tailored Brands (the parent company of Men's Wearhouse and JAB). If you wait for an inevitable sale and buy their higher end model line (Joseph Abboud, Signature Gold, Reserve) you will get a decent half canvassed workhorse suit that if not abused and properly cared for could last you 7-10 plus years. In fact if you want to go with a made to measure option both of these companies are a great and affordable place to start with that adventure. The other thing I like about it is if you do purchase the MTM Joseph Abboud line at Men's Wearhouse or Custom Reserve line at JAB you are getting a garment made right here in the United States in Bedford Mass. I would say if you have a fairly standard body type and drop between chest size and trouser you could find a much better price buying off the peg than going MTM at not just these two stores but pretty much anywhere listed previously above.
 
#25 ·
Rarely mentioned here but my first other than JAB I ever purchased was a local men’s store Jack Victor. Shoulders are a bit boxy but I find the construction good for the price point and a good men’s store will fit you properly for the suit. I believe they are the “store”brand for many independent stores. If you can wait, a Samuelsohn on sale is the way to go, I have purchased 2 for less than 400 each


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#28 · (Edited)
I purchased a navy blue and charcoal Samuelsohn for $325 each.

Joseph Abboud Made in USA (Mens Wearhouse) for $135 each last Christmas. They had a sale recently with the same for around $100-150. They're half-canvas amd wear pretty well.

Ebay is good for deals, but requires patience.

My nicest suits are the most expensive (belvest & isaia) though it's probably diminishing returns.
 
#30 ·
Jgarner197 said:
I will second the mentioning of Samuelsohn. If you keep your eye out on Saks or Saks Off Fifth you should easily be able to pick up a suit for under 1k. In fact earlier this year I seem to recall a fellow member bought a few around $300 ish on discount at Saks. If you have a fairly easily attainable size and you can find something similar in price I don't think you could do much better than Samuelsohn.
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Thanks!
 
Discussion starter · #33 · (Edited)
akwmek said:
mens wearhouse sells joseph abboud suits, which is half canvass, italian wool, and made in usa, can be had for 300 or under
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Talked to Men's Wearhouse over the weekend. My local one said they don't have half canvassed suits (not to say that others won't). Unless Joseph Abbouds are all half canvas and the guy just didn't know what he was talking about?

Also looked into Joseph A Bank, but their shoulders seem to be pretty thick...
 
Discussion starter · #34 ·
jm22 said:
I purchased a navy blue and charcoal Samuelsohn for $325 each.

Joseph Abboud Made in USA (Mens Wearhouse) for $135 each last Christmas. They had a sale recently with the same for around $100-150. They're half-canvas amd wear pretty well.

Ebay is good for deals, but requires patience.

My nicest suits are the most expensive (belvest & isaia) though it's probably diminishing returns.
Click to expand...
Did you get the Samuelsohn online through Nordstrom, or in the store? The guy at Nordstrom said they never carried them. All the Samuelsohn ones online are pretty expensive. Guessing I just need to hit the after Christmas sale?
 
#36 ·
hiker said:
Talked to Men's Wearhouse over the weekend. My local one said they don't have half canvassed suits (not to say that others won't). Unless Joseph Abbouds are all half canvas and the guy just didn't know what he was talking about?

Also looked into Joseph A Bank, but their shoulders seem to be pretty thick...
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Yeah, he didn't know what he was talking about, which is an issue.
All of the Joseph Abboud suits (nested suits, suit separates, and custom) are half-canvassed and made in the US. Many (not all) MW stores also carry some Jack Victor suits, which are half-canvassed and made in Canada.
Other Joseph Abboud products are not made in the US (dress slacks, sportcoats, shirts, casual wear), though I believe the sportcoats are still half-canvassed - I can't confirm that offhand.

Jos A Bank suits do tend to have very structured shoulders, which may or may not fit you well. The Abboud suits are soft shouldered, which is generally preferred, though YMMV.
 
Discussion starter · #37 ·
TheBarbaron said:
Yeah, he didn't know what he was talking about, which is an issue.
All of the Joseph Abboud suits (nested suits, suit separates, and custom) are half-canvassed and made in the US. Many (not all) MW stores also carry some Jack Victor suits, which are half-canvassed and made in Canada.
Other Joseph Abboud products are not made in the US (dress slacks, sportcoats, shirts, casual wear), though I believe the sportcoats are still half-canvassed - I can't confirm that offhand.

Jos A Bank suits do tend to have very structured shoulders, which may or may not fit you well. The Abboud suits are soft shouldered, which is generally preferred, though YMMV.
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Very helpful, thanks Barbaron!
 
#40 ·
My Dilemma had some of the items answered in forums but I wanted to write to see what you or whoever answers may specifically say...

I work as a sportscaster in NY. I have a wide variety of different roles and gigs I do, but I'm not on ESPN yet.
Basically I need (and have needed) like 6-8 suits ASAP.

I have spent a good amount of time researching and talking to salespeople recently, from going to Karako Suits, visiting Suit Supply, Indochino.

I didnt buy suits for like 6 years basically because in Sept 2013 I was in a really bad car accident so couldnt go to the gym, then 2 yrs later suffered a shoulder injury from the rehab, so I just wasnt myself in terms of body gaining 5 lbs or so. So I've been efforting dropping that weight ever since as well as better shape by finally consistently GOING to the gym and feel I am finally ready to buy a load of new suits to have not just for on-air work but just to be seen well.

Indochino looks great in person and their online sales of the low $300s looked enticing. Suit Supply definitely had excellent quality with everything being half canvassed, but their cheapest would be around $400 per on the best deal of the year. I have not investigated Men's Wearhouse or Joseph A. Bank because I figure those are at best even with Karako Suits and they cannot beat the price of Karako so that would be a waste of time.

My current path I am leaning towards is doing the Karako Suits direction...
1- the price currently for their Executive Level suits is down to like $299 (these are usually $500).
I spoke to an associate + facebook chat with whoever manages that, and they would give me Buy 1 get THREE suits free (they did this sale once, I inquired about it and they said theyd do it for me since I work in TV)
2- the executive level suits are 150s wool. I was just in essentially researching everything the other day. They also have 120s that look pretty good that are slightly cheaper. The name of the brand that nearly all of their Executive line are is called Naldini.
3-My guess is that the Karako suits, even Executive level, are all Fused suits -unless you have heard otherwise? I couldnt find this info out online, they dont seem to give out that info in a suit description.
Hopefully there are some New Yorkers/NJ on here that have shopped at Karako before.

A more recent effort is towards investigating Suit Supply's frequency of online outlet sales and seeing how low do they exactly go, they allegedly do not have any sale prices EVER. And being in NY I can go into the Indochino store, get measured there and order right off the computer there with a salesman's assistance.

In balancing Volume of Suits, Quality, and Price, (will spend a little under $700 and come home with 8 suits). For outsiders I'm sure that seems stunning, but at Karako it's possible.
What is your advice?
 
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