Whats the best "deal" out there in MTM? To some people MTM is a luxury but to some with huge drops its almost mandatory. Whats the best deal out there for people who have to get this done for suits that need to be workhorses.
Best MTM bang for your buck?
Butkusrules
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Whats the best "deal" out there in MTM? To some people MTM is a luxury but to some with huge drops its almost mandatory. Whats the best deal out there for people who have to get this done for suits that need to be workhorses.
More "bargain bespoke" than true MTM, consider W.W. Chan, one of the most eminent of Hong Kong tailoring firms. They do U.S. tours three times a year. Once they have had a chance to tweak your pattern a time or two, you are essentially getting true bespoke that some customers have told me compares favorably with some of the famous Savile Row firms. Prices for a two-piece suit start around $1,100.
Hemrajani Brothers runs a similar operation. I think they are little less expensive than Chan. I have no experience with these people but I have met Joe Hemrajani, who impresses me as a knowledgeable, pleasant gentleman.
Andy reports favorable experience with Bob Chawla of Gino's Tailoring based in Thailand. Not the equal in quality to the foregoing firms but about half the price.
Hemrajani Brothers runs a similar operation. I think they are little less expensive than Chan. I have no experience with these people but I have met Joe Hemrajani, who impresses me as a knowledgeable, pleasant gentleman.
Andy reports favorable experience with Bob Chawla of Gino's Tailoring based in Thailand. Not the equal in quality to the foregoing firms but about half the price.
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Although far from perfect I love my suits from English American Clothiers in Westminster, MD (Baltimore). I order them from a small shop in the factory that doesn't advertise and keeps prices low. Full canvas construction, great fit, cool details, and the capability to take almost any fit or styling request into account. Two piece suit from Holland & Sherry worsteds for about $900 out the door.
Is this the same factory H.Freeman uses?
Their MTM is a good value too.
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I've met with and bought shirts, jackets and slacks from Joe Hemrajani and have nothing but compliments for him and his work. I've thought of buying high end brands on sale at a lower price, but once you have the hand made article, made from the fabric you want and fitting the way you want, nothing else seems worth the bother.
Check out his website https://www.mytailor.com/. When they visit the states they have many more fabric selections than are shown on the web site and are able to make valuable suggestions regarding your purchase.
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Ok, here I go again with my endorsement of Astor & Black (www.astorandblack.com). They have reps all over (including Chicago) and make a terrific suit. They'll come to your home or office for a free consult/fitting. I got one fully canvassed with Zegna fabric for under $700. At least check out their website and click on "standard suit features". Look it over. I own several MTM suits. This one was the least expensive and may even be the nicest. More to come, indeed!
I recently got a few shirts from Joe Hemrajani, and found the fit to be pretty good, I think. And they were very good and tweaking the pattern according to my tastes after I had a chance to try on the initial shirt they made. And they're not all that expensive, either, really. So why bother getting a more expensive RTW shirt? There's not much need.
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There are a couple makers that I have heard good things about. One is Coppley, which is based in Canada. You can get a basic solid or pinstripe fabric for $795 out the door. Another is John H. Daniel, an American company in Knoxville. They have several fabrics under $900. I'd probably also recommend Hart Schaffner and Marx. I've never talked to a store that does MTM through H. Freeman, but one of the local shops carries their OTR collection and they appear to be a good value as well. H. Freeman does have a good separates program for the slightly hard to fit customer.
It should be remembered that each MTM program has specific silhouettes. What kind of cut you are interested in? Neither tailoring companies mentioned above will provide you with a genuine Italian cut, if that's what you are after. Most are traditional American, with Asians being more versatile. If you are looking for english cut suits, look elsewhere.
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I guess I'm looking for a trim/atheltic conservative cut if there is such a thing. While the Italian shapes look great on me especially Luciano Barbera they are not appropriate in court-at least for what I am trying to convey. I had a BB MTM done by Martin GreenField and he a made a nice tight yet conservative cut for me. But at close to 2k for a suit I cant afford to stock up and truth be told the suit isn't all that well constructed. I don't know if its the Chicago BB tailors that fiddled with it after it came from the factory or if it was just poorly made but it seems a bit on the sloppy side. In any event its my 1st and only MTM so I want to test the waters so to speak.
Then you can try one of the Asian tailors, or as mentioned above, Coppley or HSM.
Although I don't have a first hand experience, I've also heard nice things about Samuelsohn.
All these can provide you with MTM at a relatively lower cost.
However, with Asian tailors you have to wait for their visit and the first suit may need several interactions and can take quite a long time. With other companies, it depends heavily on who is taking your measurements and as in your BB episode, who is tweaking the suit after it arrives from the factory. Most department stores do not have highly skilled personnel.
Another option I can think of - in case you travel to NYC, you can try one of the cheaper custom/MTM/ tailors.
Although I don't have a first hand experience, I've also heard nice things about Samuelsohn.
All these can provide you with MTM at a relatively lower cost.
However, with Asian tailors you have to wait for their visit and the first suit may need several interactions and can take quite a long time. With other companies, it depends heavily on who is taking your measurements and as in your BB episode, who is tweaking the suit after it arrives from the factory. Most department stores do not have highly skilled personnel.
Another option I can think of - in case you travel to NYC, you can try one of the cheaper custom/MTM/ tailors.
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It should be noted that true made to measure lines like Coppley and John H. Daniel don't just have one cut for their suits. I believe Coppley has 4 different cuts and JHD has 3. If the bottom line is the most important factor to you, I would take a look at these 2 companies.
My opinions on better quality and style MTM...
What is the price point you consider a good deal? Obviously the $2K BB is steep.
I prefer Samuelsohn. Have you read Jeffreyd's thread about the difference between Canvassed, half-canvassed, and fused? Very informative. With the suggestions made in earlier posts, you will be making a choice between fused or canvassed. I think it is outrageous to spend $700 on a glued suit. They might appear more crisp, but I think they lack the comfort, style and hand of a basted fully canvassed suit.
Samuelsohn MTM starts around $1100 and they are my suitmaker of rpeference for both MTM and OTR. I have only their fully canvassed suits and sportcoats. The A & B range of fabrics are mostly 100s to 110s. They have maybe four silhouettes. The Alton model is probably their most up-to-date trim model. I have one and it is my favorite. Their quality is on par with Hickey Freeman, yet the Samuelsohn may have a bit less handwork.
Hickey Freeman makes a fine suit, too. More expensive and a bit more up-to-date, at least in the Madison model. Hickey Freeman also offers a wide selection of Loro Piana fabrics at a variety of price points. My educated guess is that an MTM Hickey Freeman will start at around $1300. Zegna is similar in quality and is more expensive.
The aforementioned Copley, John Daniels, H. Freeman, and the HSM are all lesser quality suits.
In my 26 years of serious suit ownership, I have had almost everything mentioned above. In the past 12 years my suits choices have been narrowed to Samuelsohn and Hickey Freeman. The next step up from here in quality would probably be Oxxford, Brioni, Belvest and some other esoteric names I can't immediately recall. Those would all breach the $2K - $3K mark.
It all comes down to figuring out what you prefer and what you are willing to spend for it.
What is the price point you consider a good deal? Obviously the $2K BB is steep.
I prefer Samuelsohn. Have you read Jeffreyd's thread about the difference between Canvassed, half-canvassed, and fused? Very informative. With the suggestions made in earlier posts, you will be making a choice between fused or canvassed. I think it is outrageous to spend $700 on a glued suit. They might appear more crisp, but I think they lack the comfort, style and hand of a basted fully canvassed suit.
Samuelsohn MTM starts around $1100 and they are my suitmaker of rpeference for both MTM and OTR. I have only their fully canvassed suits and sportcoats. The A & B range of fabrics are mostly 100s to 110s. They have maybe four silhouettes. The Alton model is probably their most up-to-date trim model. I have one and it is my favorite. Their quality is on par with Hickey Freeman, yet the Samuelsohn may have a bit less handwork.
Hickey Freeman makes a fine suit, too. More expensive and a bit more up-to-date, at least in the Madison model. Hickey Freeman also offers a wide selection of Loro Piana fabrics at a variety of price points. My educated guess is that an MTM Hickey Freeman will start at around $1300. Zegna is similar in quality and is more expensive.
The aforementioned Copley, John Daniels, H. Freeman, and the HSM are all lesser quality suits.
In my 26 years of serious suit ownership, I have had almost everything mentioned above. In the past 12 years my suits choices have been narrowed to Samuelsohn and Hickey Freeman. The next step up from here in quality would probably be Oxxford, Brioni, Belvest and some other esoteric names I can't immediately recall. Those would all breach the $2K - $3K mark.
It all comes down to figuring out what you prefer and what you are willing to spend for it.
Still, if the OP was looking for a true Italian or British cut, these were not the best choices. For a traditional American silhouette though, they are good alternative.
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Yes. Very good value. Definitely an American cut but thats ok by me as I am stillable to get a supressed waist, side vents, and high armhole...
I'm a new person to this forum. I found the site when I was doing some research for some new MTM suits. So, I'm throwing my .02 in. I have a number of Copley suits that ended up being in the $1100 range. And everyone is quite complimentary of the fabric, and cut. I also recently got some items from Astor and Black. And although, there is a drop off on the quality from the Copley --- the price point is very hard to argue with ($600). I sent a Copley suit with them, and they matched the cut exactly. I agree completely with Beau on his response. But I mention the A&B b/c I enjoyed the flexibility of some of the options (built into the cost). It's allowed me to be a little more creative with my suits choices and selections.
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I guess they ought to! I actually don't mind "advertising" for someone who has given me fantastic service. If you don't like my mention of the firm, skip over my posting next time.
I received a couple of follow up emails, and thought I would clarify. I'm not sure a regular person would notice a difference in the two suits. But for this audience there is one. I'm not sure the average person on the street would notice a difference between the two suits, but the price point, and the options got my attention. hope this helps.
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