2/1 Where can I buy myself a suit that appropriate for going to interviews
and such? Ideally, this place should be reacheable by public transport
and have good deals for people on a low budget..
\_ How much do you want to spend? I have had very good luck at
places like Nordstrom Rack and Off Fifth, buying $800 suits for
$400. Marshall's also sometimes (rarely) has suits by designers like
Zegna, Armani, and Hickey Freeman. If you can spare $400 I would
start with those places. If you cannot spare $400 then buy a
nice blazer and a pair of slacks. Even getting a suit altered
can cost a couple hundred bucks.
\-er, i dont think that's the case unless you are undergoing
chiamorphication or something.
\_ A good tailor will charge > $100 for altering pants and
a coat both. Once I bought a designer dress for my gf
for $80 (Macy's super special clearance) and it cost more
than that to alter it, so it is true of women's clothing
as well. You don't want a chimp cutting apart your
suit. Yes, they cut it apart. It's not just hems.
\- I am not saying you cant spend $$$ to "pimp your suit".
i am saying you are probably a moron if you spend that
much on a $400 suit immediately after buying it.
one certainly would not expect to immediate spend
that much after buying a $400 suit. over the lifetime
of a nice suit, if you become increasingly chubular,
i suppose you may drop more money.
\_ If you spend $400 for a $1200 suit and then
another $150 on a tailor you have spent $550 and
you will look much better than someone who spent
$300 (+$50 to tailor) at a place like Men's
Wearhouse. The only thing worse than a bad suit is
a suit that fits poorly. You don't want to look
like you wore your dad's expensive suit, right?
\_ My Men's Warehouse suit fits perfectly. I get
complimented on it all the time.
\_ Perhaps you are the definition of average.
\_ The Men's Warehouse has pretty good suits at the top end. No one
will ever mistake one for a $4k Armani suit, but that isn't really
what you want for a job interview, is it? What kind of job are
you applying for?
\_ I recommend bargain-hunting for the top brands rather than
buying from Men's Wearhouse. The price will be the same and
the expensive suits will look better. Neiman Marcus also has
an outlet: Last Call.
\_ How much is a bargain suit from a top brand? I bought
the most expensive suit MW had and it was $400.
\_ A very good Armani can be had for $1000, including a shirt.
That's from Emporio Armani itself. $4000+ is only the couture
stuff, which you don't really need unless you're Jay-Z or a
mobster or lawyer or something.
\_ Do you mean Giorgio Armani? I didn't know Emporio did
suits (never seen one).
\_ Um... have you ever walked into an Emporio Armani store?
suits is just about _all_ they do.
\_ Um, what the fuck are you talking about? What are you
smoking and can I have some? -dans
\_ I'm not the previous poster, but I own a suit from Emporio
Armani, and it kicks ass. As one would expect, it's well
made, and (though this is more a function of the suit's
cut and my body shape) the fit is perfect. The price
range for suits at Emporio Armani appears to be
$1000-$2000 whereas Giorgio Armani suits appear to start
around $2000 and the sky is the limit. Also, I get the
sense that EA suits are a little bit hipper and edgier
than GA suits, which makes sense if you think about who's
got the money to drop on a $4000 suit. Seriously though,
if you're willing to drop over $2K on a suit, get one
handmade by a bespoke tailor like this guy:
http://www.englishcut.com
To the op: what matters more than anything else is the cut
of the suit, and how it looks on *you*. That said, the
quality and cut of suits seem to have a curve similar to
that of IBM notebooks. Spend less than $x and you get
crap, spend more than $x and you get something very nice.
In my experience, x is approximately 800 retail.
One argument I will make toward spending a little more is
this: in for a penny, in for a pound. Basically, $400 or
$500 bucks is not chump change. Why drop that kind of
money on a so-so suit for interviews that you wouldn't be
willing to wear for a date you'd like to impress? IMO,
it's worth spending the extra $300 or $500 to get a suit
that looks sharp. This is even more true if you're not
the sort that plans to own many suits. If you think
you're going to own six or seven suits a year from now,
get the cheapie one. If this is still the only suit
you'll own a year from now, bite the bullet, put it on
your credit card and pay a little interest. It's worth
it.
Re: stores, I totally support the earlier recommendation
for department store outlets like Nordstrom Rack because
prices are discounted considerably from retail. On the
other hand, I'd say consider the Men's Wearhouse to be an
absolute last ditch bottom off the barrel option, I have
never found a suit that fits me well there. One other
suggestion, check out Kenneth Cole. I find that their
selection varies wildly, but when it's good you can find
some pretty stylish, well cut suits for a reasonable
amount of money (price range $400-$800 iirc). To sum up,
Store ordering in terms of style/quality/fit (highest to
lowest):
Emporio Armani > Kenneth Cole > Department Store Outlet >
Men's Wearhouse
As I look at this, I realize that the ordering by price is
the same :)
-dans
\_ Emporio Armani is the low end Armani store more
geared to casual clothes and youth-oriented trends.
No, I have not been in one. I would not mess with
it when I can get Collezioni at an outlet for
less than $1000. Black Label is the couture line.
There is actually a Giorgio Armani outlet in
Cabazon but this doesn't help the OP.
\_ Armani has at least three lines. I believe you are
thinking of Armani Exchange. BTW, I think a men's
fashion debate on the motd is both hilarious and good.
Is this the first time this topic has been
introduced here?
\_ No, A|X is the lowest. The lines are A|X,
Emporio, Collezioni, and Black Label. There is
also "Mani" which sits somewhere around
Emporio ($800-1200). However, I have yet to
see an Emporio Armani suit at a dept. store.
You usually see Mani and Collezioni. Black
Label is sold at the boutique only.
\- If you buy a Mani suit with a friend,
you can call it "Our Mani Suit". --psb
\_ As with the above poster, I think you are confusing
A|X (for the nerds in the audience, no, this is not
AIX the IBM unix) with EA (reasonable enough given
your professsed ignorance). I guess I could
describe EA as casual if I used country club attire
as the baseline for casual. And, as I stated above,
I prefer EA precisely because the cuts are edgier
than the Giorgio Armani line (missing from the list
above, sold only in the boutique) and the Collezioni
line. If dressing like a middle-aged investment
banker is your thing, more power to you. I see no
need to spend more than $2K for an assembly-line
made Giorgio Armani or Collezioni line suit when I
can get something hand made from scratch for that
kind of money (though $2K is low-balling something
made from scratch somewhat). -dans
\_ GA is the Black Label. If you read Armani's
own statement you will see that EA is
designed to be casual wear as opposed to
formal. Yes, this is for people for whom
casual is not jeans and a t-shirt.
\_ Yes, the term for this is market segmentation.
Were Armani to suggest otherwise, all the
folks dropping $4K for the GA line would stop
doing so and opt instead to spend a mere
$1-$2K for the EA line. -dans
\_ And you wear your $4k suit to a job interview?
What kind of "work" are you in? Are you a drug
runner?
\_ Hypothetically speaking, if I was running drugs, or
doing anything else illicit that would require
getting my hands dirty, I wouldn't be doing it in a
$4K suit that would a) call undue attention to me
and b) possibly get bloody and need to be disposed
of, talk about a waste. And, yes, there are
interviews where a $4k suit is perfectly reasonable,
though no technical job comes to mind. Of course,
wearing any suit to a technical interview strikes me
as odd, as I stated below, sometimes I don't even
wear pants. -dans
\_ Whew. I feel a lot better now about your
level of common sense. Though I kind
of hoped that you had a job where wearing a
suit like that made sense. -bored coder
\_ Sometimes I do. :) As an aside, interviews
are sometimes just power contests, and
outdressing your interviewer can give you an
edge. This is particulary true when the
interviewers will be below or parallel to you
on the org chart if you are hired, it's rare,
but it is done in some organizations. Of
course, as the schmuck below indicates, paying
too much attention to your grooming and dress
can actually work against you in a technical
interview. Of course, many nerds don't
measure power by how you dress. -dans
\_ Are you a new grad in a technical field? In that case, just any
suit will do. No one really cares all that much how you're dressed.
\_ May as well get a nice suit to have for weddings, funerals,
and so on.
\_ It sounds like the OP is budget and transportation
constrained. In that case, a better optimization might
be to get what is easy now (which is likely to be on the
cheaper end of the range) and then worry about a more
permanent suit solution later (when he has a job and
therefore more income).
\_ Actually, you are right.. I am not applying for any jobs right
now. I already have a job. But it would be nice to have a suit
for occasional social activities and other events, like
interviews, that might require one. -OP
\_ You wear suits to technical interviews? Dude, sometimes I
don't even wear pants.
\_ I agree, I generally am a little wary of people who
show up for a coding job wearing a suit (unless the
person is right out of school, in which case I'll
overlook it as inexperience).
\_ Try Macy's. They have decent suits for $250-$450. You
really don't need anything more.
\_ Quite seriously, if you showed up for a job interview
wearing an Armani suit, I would not waste my time
talking to you. That is why I asked what job you were
applying for. I don't even think investment bankers
wear suits like that, but I know for certain that
programmers and sysadmins never do. These people telling
you to spend thousands on a suit are idiots and know
nothing about the business world.
\_ How the fuck would you know what kind of suit it was?
Are you saying that if someone's suit actually fits
and looks like it might be real wool you won't hire
them?! What a dipshit! You wouldn't know Armani anyway,
so don't worry about it.
\_ Actually I would, but go ahead and tell yourself that.
I own some nice clothes, too, I would just never make
the mistake of showing up for an interview as a
programmer in clothes nicer than the CEO wears.
Any well tailored suit will fit properly, unless
it is total junk. Remember this guy said he was
"on a low budget."
\_ You would *not* know an Armani suit if you saw
one. You might think it's a nice suit and even
guess it is European by the cut, but you would
not know. Wouldn't it be stupid to be wrong and
lose out on a good candidate because of your
insecurity? When I interview I expect candidates
to look nice. That doesn't mean Armani, but
it certainly won't hurt.
\_ Many CTO's write code and also have to shill to VC's
with the CEO. Being able dress as well or better
than the CEO is an asset for any executive level
possition.
\_ Yes, if you were interviewing for the position
of CTO, you would want to wear a very nice suit.
Maybe even a $4k suit. But that is not what
the original poster is doing. At least, I am
almost 100% sure of that.
\_ #t
\_ The last suit I bought came from Brooks Brothers. It fits nicely,
looks good on me, and I'm happy with it. They also don't charge
extra for alterations. If you're looking for something in a
relatively conservative cut, you can get to their Union Square
location by BART. While you're there, the Macy's Men's store in
Union Square also has a good selection of suits. I've heard
good things about Jos. A. Bank, which has a location in
Embarcadero Center and gets compared to Brooks Brothers a lot,
but I haven't been in one of their stores yet.
\_ Brooks Brothers used to be well-made, but is now crap made
God-knows-where. Macy's good suits like Hugo Boss, but you will
pay too much. Go to the outlets where you can get quality
God-knows-where. Macy's has good suits like Hugo Boss, but you
will pay too much. Go to the outlets where you can get quality
suits for 50% or less of retail.
\_ I wouldn't call Brooks Brothers crap (thought I haven't
looked in a year or two), but it is overpriced for what you
get. Also, as the PP said, BB suits are cut conservatively.
This is a nice safe bet for the OP if he can't distinguish
between hip and tacky, but as I said above, in for a penny,
in for a pound. If OP has any fashion sense (or any friends
with same), go for something with a little more punch. That
said, I really like Brooks Brothers ties, particularly the
ones in solid colors. -dans
\_ BB is now crap made in SE Asia or something like that.
There was a time when it was the de facto standard.
\_ I agree spend $800 or more and get a nice well-made suit.
If you end up buying from a place like Macy's you can get
a discount of 10-20% (depending on their current promo,changes
weekly) if you open up a macy's charge card account. Save some
serious money there. Also they should be free alterations and
make sure they give you a suit-bag
For Men's Wherehouse or other discounters, make sure the suit
is well-made...even if it's a brand-name for some reason the
stitching is not right...make sure you have a 2nd opinion and
look at the suit from all angles. A good suit makes you look
and feel good. Makes you look sharp and the women like that.
Esp. if you normally dress Berkeley/CS/geek/frumpy-like
most of the time, when you surprise her by wearing a
suit on a nice date in the city to see some high-culture
artsy shit, and chi-chi or frenchy foodie place, you'll
get some that night. Also make sure you have good shoes,
belt, socks boxers, and undershirts. Don't skimp.
\_ Right boxers? obreddwarfreference.
\_ I wouldn't worry about the socks, boxers, and undershirt, but
the belt and particularly the shoes are really important.
Kenneth Cole does really nice shoes, though sometimes they can
be pricey. Steve Madden shoes are cheaper, but you have to be
careful because some of them look it, and even if you find a
good looking pair of shoes, they won't last more than a year or
so with regular wear.
-dans |
http://csua.com/feed/