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Charles Thywhitt not good value for money clothing anymore

post #1 of 30
1/3/12 at 3:57pm
Thread Starter 

Charles Thywhitt use to be such a great brand sadly they have fallen off the mark and are no longer on my list of top shirtmakers for value.

 

Product: The quality of thier shirt have diminished considerably in the following ways: the shirts are not preshrunk and shrink considerably when washed, the cuffs and collars are much thinner now and thus wear out faster then those


CT shits made say five years ago and wear out faster.The material is also considerably less durable then others Saville Row shirts are very durable and the collars and cuffs stay healthly for a while. I have a SR shirt which has lasted me twice as long as a CT shirt.

 

Price:The shirts themselves are overpriced when compared to Saville Row, TM Lewin and modern tailor out of the US, it has definately lost its value for money appeal
The sweaters are themselves overpriced when compared to similar offerings on Amazon and other British sites

 

The Fit: Very good range of fits much better than thier competitors

 

Unfair pricing: For overseas buyers BEWARE CT does not deduct the VAT when they sell you thier product, CT calls it fair pricing, you are paying approximately 24 percent more because you are charged VAT  plus duties on the inflated prices in your homecountry. If it is one way to ensure that you make British business uncompetitive its to make your products 24 percent more expensive than they need be.Is this really the way to keep Britain competitive.


Customer Service: If it is CT's one saving grace is that thier customer service and web presentation is excellent in my opinion, this adds to thier appeal as a web order shop for sure.

Delivery, average in my opinion but it depends if you are overseas or based in the UK.

 


Overall: I would say try other options especially if the fit is not an issue, if fit is an issue try modern tailor and see what you get back, I know I am going to try them.

 

If you can recommend any other sites with good overseas shipping I would appreciate.

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post #2 of 30
1/3/12 at 5:07pm

This is all from an Americans point of view?? 

 

I think CT is the best shirt money can buy at that price. (Maybe Hawes & curtis...) The fit is great, high arm holes, good sleeve widths at the wrist, VERY durable. I own at least 15 of the non-iron and need-to-iron shirts after trying various other brands and have decided I am a CT man for life. 

 

Am I saying they are the best shirts in the world? No. But at that price point, Yes.

 

I don't know how you can compare them with Saville Row shirts.. They aren't trying to be that. If I could afford 100+ pounds for a shirt then I would get them and be pretty upset with the quality of CT afterwards but I can't so CT works for me.

 

With regard to the tax, I can't comment, I have never bought CT shirts here (I live in NY) I get them when I go back to the UK.

 

This is a well worn out topic.

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post #3 of 30
1/3/12 at 5:18pm
There was already a tiny uproar here a while back when the tax change went through. I'm sure someone can find a link. People in the US should have been using ctshirts.com not the UK site anyways.

I like the CT shirts I have and will buy from them again.
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post #4 of 30
1/3/12 at 6:13pm
dude, these shirts are like $60. What are we really talking about here?

The shirts last just fine, fit pretty well, and look nice if you ask me.

Are they savile row? not a chance in hell. Do they cost roughly a third of most savile row shirts? hell yes.

I'm not gonna lie, I'm a pretty big CT supporter. I even have a few of their suits. Half canvassed and pretty sharp for $500.

Is it astor & black, of course not.
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post #5 of 30
1/3/12 at 6:56pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by Quadcammer View Post

dude, these shirts are like $60. What are we really talking about here?
The shirts last just fine, fit pretty well, and look nice if you ask me.
Are they savile row? not a chance in hell. Do they cost roughly a third of most savile row shirts? hell yes.
I'm not gonna lie, I'm a pretty big CT supporter. I even have a few of their suits. Half canvassed and pretty sharp for $500.
Is it astor & black, of course not.


In a good way of course icon_gu_b_slayer[1].gif

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post #6 of 30
1/3/12 at 7:07pm
I purchased 2 CT shirts mid last year on special and was very pleasantly surprised with them. Especially their tailored fit, which is the only OTR shirt for me that doesn't need any tailoring afterwards.

One point I don't care for is that they don't do gauntlet buttons, but you can't have everything I guess. Also, the materials/colors in the tailored fit are usually quite limited compared to their standard fit. Other than that, they are great for the money.
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post #7 of 30
1/3/12 at 7:16pm

I hate gauntlet buttons. (just googled what they are) I am a sleeve roller when relaxing and they slow me down!

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post #8 of 30
1/3/12 at 7:18pm
I purchased 4 during their $35 shirt sale over the summer. I think the fabric is pretty crappy, but the fit of the tailored fit is about as good as I've found OTR.
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post #9 of 30
1/4/12 at 1:49pm
Thread Starter 

Hi there

 

I am not an American and I am buying in a country that has VAT on imports, so when I buy anything I pay VAT on imports.

 

I am not sure if CT shirts have a legal entity in the US from which they distribute shirts from, they may do as they have a store in the US I believe.

 

Saying that the American prices on the website do not reflect the changes in currency when compared to pound sterling, its overpriced

 

I own about a dozen CT shirts, which I purchased about 6-7 years ago and I have recently made purchases from thier website in the past two years, what I am saying is that compared to the quality of thier shirts 6-7 years ago these feel like they wont last 2 years especially on the cuffs and collars which are thinner by comparison.

 

Price pointwise at 25 quid a shirt they are overpriced by 20% when compared to other websites eg Saville Row, (meaning the saville row company). or modern tailor,tm lewin.

 

The range of fits is great for me this is one reason I have continued to buy from them even though the product quality has diminished.

 

For me if TM lewin could come up with a slim fit or fully fitted detachable collar shirt for sure I would buy it because it will last longer and be more durable, I hate the fact that a year after wearing some of CT's shirts the collars and cuffs have started to fray even for the more expensive sea island cotton and 180's

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post #10 of 30
1/4/12 at 1:55pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by davesmith View Post

I hate gauntlet buttons. (just googled what they are) I am a sleeve roller when relaxing and they slow me down!

x2

But I was under the impression that TML had non fused collars, while CT does. Not saying this is the deciding factor, but it is important to me.
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post #11 of 30
1/4/12 at 2:20pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by razl View Post

I purchased 2 CT shirts mid last year on special and was very pleasantly surprised with them. Especially their tailored fit, which is the only OTR shirt for me that doesn't need any tailoring afterwards.
One point I don't care for is that they don't do gauntlet buttons, but you can't have everything I guess. Also, the materials/colors in the tailored fit are usually quite limited compared to their standard fit. Other than that, they are great for the money.

+1 on everything. Since I don't have the time to iron my shirts and won't pay to have them pressed, I buy non-iron shirts. I haven't found any tailors who make shirts using non-iron fabrics and CT is the only vendor I've found who sells RTW non-iron shirts with a 15.5" neck and 37" sleeves (I have them modify the sleeves to my 36.5" length). I only wish that I'd found CT before building a collection of MTM Brooks Brothers shirts at $162 each. These two seem to be my only choices for non-iron shirts and CT wins out over Brooks MTM on price and, surprisingly, on fit. I wish shipping to the US were faster and I, too, miss the gauntlet buttons (though I'm a sleeve-roller most of the time).
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post #12 of 30
1/4/12 at 2:33pm
^ I agree with all of this as well, except that I can't find their tailored fit shirts with a 15.5" neck and a 36" sleeve. I just checked their website and they only have 2 shirts that match these criteria, but it costs $12.95 extra per shirt to get the sleeve length to 36". All their other fits (classic and slim fit), have a 15.5/36 available as a standard option. Why can't they offer this same option in tailored fit? If they did, I would probably start buying CT shirts exclusively.
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post #13 of 30
1/4/12 at 2:34pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by razl View Post

One point I don't care for is that they don't do gauntlet buttons
Quote:
Originally Posted by davesmith View Post

I hate gauntlet buttons. (just googled what they are) I am a sleeve roller when relaxing and they slow me down!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Achilles_ View Post

x2

I wear a coat to the office, but I hang it up when I arrive - so I'm just wearing a shirt for the day. For my barrel cuff shirts, I prefer to leave my cuffs unbuttoned but my gauntlet buttons buttoned. It let's me get the semi-open-but-not-rolled-up look, or even instead of a full roll up, just flipping the cuffs back (I can hear the "egads!" from the crowd). Sans gauntlet buttons you either have to have your cuffs buttoned or roll up past the gauntlet.

Anyway, that's why I want 'em.
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post #14 of 30
1/4/12 at 2:49pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by razl View Post

I wear a coat to the office, but I hang it up when I arrive - so I'm just wearing a shirt for the day. For my barrel cuff shirts, I prefer to leave my cuffs unbuttoned but my gauntlet buttons buttoned. It let's me get the semi-open-but-not-rolled-up look, or even instead of a full roll up, just flipping the cuffs back (I can hear the "egads!" from the crowd). Sans gauntlet buttons you either have to have your cuffs buttoned or roll up past the gauntlet.
Anyway, that's why I want 'em.


wow- Very good reasoning!!

 

I have shirts from the Saville Row Co., the slim fit isn't so slim and the quality of the cotton isn't as good as my CT shirts.

 

never really used T.M. Lewin but from reviews here it seem CT wins the competition.

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post #15 of 30
1/4/12 at 2:52pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by davesmith View Post

Quote:

I have shirts from the Saville Row Co., the slim fit isn't so slim and the quality of the cotton isn't as good as my CT shirts.

never really used T.M. Lewin but from reviews here it seem CT wins the competition.

I have some SRC shirts as well, I love the gingham ones I have, except the contrast lining. (meh, it's ok for super casual summer wear) The solid colored ones are quite crappy. Then again i got them for $15 a shirt shipped so I won't complain.

I always thought TML won the competition here on SF laugh.gif

Honestly, I think it's worth trying both if you can
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