First Suit EVER! Need for an interview

Soon I will be going on what are some of the most important interviews of my young life. I never had a suit before and am now in need of one very badly. I am not sure where to start - there are way too many options. The other day I went to Nordstrom and the suit that fit the best, according to my parents and the nordstrom guy, was an Armani Suit worth $1900. That is out of my budget - which is currently hovering around $1000 +/- 200. I am confused as to where I should go to make the definitive purchase. I have heard good things about Mr. Ned and other taylors in NYC - I am very close and it shouldn't be a problem paying these tailors a visit. Would that be the way to go rather than Brooks Brothers (they are having a sale) or stores like Nordstrom, etc? Furthermore, I have wide shoulders and am kinda on the skinny side - this causes problems with many suits that I tried on in Nordstrom. I was also wondering what you guys think the ideal color is for an interview suit - I do not want to wear black as that is the choice of most applicants. I want to stand out a bit. White shirt? Red tie? Please help. Thanks.

If you want the quick answer, get a charcoal 2-button suit, white shirt, some sort of simple navy striped tie. Or a navy 2-button with a light blue tie. Do not go to Brooks Bros. with your build, do not spend $1900 on Armani. I'll let someone more knowledgeable give you a brand recommendation, but with your budget you shouldn't have any trouble finding a near-perfect suit.

Thanks Brian. Are two button or three button the way to go? ALso, isn't charcoal too bland looking? I was leaning more towards a navy-ish color. Still debating on stripes though.

I personally would go for navy.

Avoid black like the Plague (pun intended).

Are you in NYC, or somewhere else in the Tristate area?

Navy... go for it i think it nice deep navy suit with white and nice red tie would be fine... well think about what job your taking, since your about to spend 1000+- dollar
for the suit, i would rather see what the people who are successful in that field wearing, not the brand just the look, looking like the people who are successful in that field would make your boss see that you got the potential... but just dont try to look like a ganster with black suit black shirt and red tie be sure to look nice but not to shiny and it would make your boss feel like your overconfident and cocky... make sure to SHINE YOUR SHOES... small detailed help, everyman could buy thousands of dollar worth on a suit but if they're wearing rip dirty old shoes the whole suit would ugly no matter what...

btw find an outlet store (nice store though like zegna outlet or hugo boss, or barneys...etc)

Originally Posted by GuP

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I was also wondering what you guys think the ideal color is for an interview suit - I do not want to wear black as that is the choice of most applicants. I want to stand out a bit. White shirt? Red tie? Please help. Thanks.

How do you know what other applicants will wear before you get there? They may also think the same as you and everyone will wear grey....

Seems a bad start to an interview - remember the apocryphal story about the candidate being interviewed over dinner, put salt on his soup and did not get the job because his interviewer noticed that he had not tasted it first.....

Thanks for the suggestion guys - Keep em coming!

Steve B. - I am in NYC!

loastandconfused - This interview is for a residency position in a hospital. My boss or the people that interview me would be doctors - mostly older docs. I would guess they are more conservative and old school.

GBR - I have friends who have graduated who told me that most applicants wear BLACK and to avoid it. But you are right - I won't know till I get there.

I think navy is definitely the way to go now.

Can you guys recommend a store - should I head up to Woodberry commons since they have a zegna outlet? Or should I hit up Barneys in NYC first? Or go bespoke with Mr. Ned?

I also need shoes - i wanted to get a pair of allen edmonds as I have heard they are great bang for the buck and look nice. Any particular model from AE that you guys would recommend? What about other brands of shoes? My budget for shoes would be $200 +/- 200. I would rather not go over 300ish for the shoes.

Originally Posted by GuP

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Thanks for the suggestion guys - Keep em coming!

Steve B. - I am in NYC!

loastandconfused - This interview is for a residency position in a hospital. My boss or the people that interview me would be doctors - mostly older docs. I would guess they are more conservative and old school.

GBR - I have friends who have graduated who told me that most applicants wear BLACK and to avoid it. But you are right - I won't know till I get there.

I think navy is definitely the way to go now.

Can you guys recommend a store - should I head up to Woodberry commons since they have a zegna outlet? Or should I hit up Barneys in NYC first? Or go bespoke with Mr. Ned?

I also need shoes - i wanted to get a pair of allen edmonds as I have heard they are great bang for the buck and look nice. Any particular model from AE that you guys would recommend? What about other brands of shoes? My budget for shoes would be $200 +/- 200. I would rather not go over 300ish for the shoes.

You have a relatively fat 1st suit budget - for the first suit my advice is to buy retail get the thing done right - going forward once you understand how you like a fit - you an buy like we do at a deep discount. right now it sounds like you don't have that level of understanding. not a problem.

go to barney's get an RL (Cornellianni) 3 button navy NO PINSTRIPE, for $1,195 have the tailor fit you, suppress the jacket's waist, 1.75" cuffs etc. get a plain black belt with an understated chrome buckle (do not get brass) and get a pair of cap toe style black lace ups. for the WHITE shirt - let them help you try a few on Zegna shirts are nice and slim with great collars at a good value, and with that look you can buy 3 ties for three days of interviews... the ties should be SIMPLE do not let the salespeople sell you a busy tie. solid powder blue for your interview.

I used to be an AE addict - i went through 10+ pairs... truly. they are fine starters. i am onto the purple label EG's now, but only on steep sale through polo.com. so, yes AE's are fine... limited but fine. go to AE try them on they buy online from out of state and get free shipping and no tax - my fave seller is http://www.theshoemart.com/cgi-bin/c...rowse_vendor=1

Last time I was at Century21, they had a rack of Isaia suits for $1000. They may be picked over by now, as it was a couple of weeks ago. But they had more than a few simple navy 3-2-roll suits with flat front trousers, in a medium-weight, hard-finish wool. I didn't really notice the type of fabric as I just glanced at them.

Good luck on your interview. You've got a lot of experienced help with your wardrobe here.

You don't mention a time frame for when the interviews will start- will you have enough time to go the bespoke route? The last thing you want to be worried about is getting a suit delivered on-time.
Can't go wrong with a Navy suit (solid), white shirt, red or other conservative tie. Then the focus is on you, not the clothes.
One place to check in NY is LS Mens in mid-town. They usually have conservative suits like Hickey in stock at about $500 (can be a little hit or miss for solids) and they do tailoring. I have had good luck with them over the years for the basics. They also have a MTM program which I haven't used and can't comment on.
Shoes, my preference is a basic black cap-toe for the interview suit. There is a shop on 34th (Benedtti's?) between 7th and 8th that sells Alden and A-E that gave me excellent service and good (not great) prices on both. I walked in "just looking" and walked out with three pair's of shoes- the A-E's were about $180. You can do better price-wise if you have time to shop around but I liked the service...
While you are out looking for all of this remember that this is not your last suit...just needs to make you comfortable so you can do your best in the interview. And for what it is worth, you don't want to be referred to as the "fancy suit guy" after you leave the interview.

your FIRST suit....I know this is counter to what others might advise you, but have you thought about just going to Jos A. Bank or similar store, and buying a solid navy blue or charcoal midweight suit? Flat front trousers probably better for a young person these days, one or two vents (two vents preferable) in the jacket.

+ Get it tailored by a competant tailor, not at the store. Ensure that you have ONLY A SLIGHT BREAK IN THE TROUSERS, and that you show 1/4" of shirt cuff at the sleeves. Ask that buttons be attached at sleeve so that all "kiss," all buttons must touch in the row on the sleeve, all areas of the suit are fitted by the tailor (neck, the upper back, body, pants and sleeve length most important. Ensure the jacket neck does not stand away from your own, for example)

+ Use money from your budget to get one or two good pairs of shoes and cedar shoe trees. Highly recommend Allen Edmonds captoes, and a proper belt to match your shoes. I own two pairs of black shoes, because I wear them much more often than the brown-- and you can't wear shoes two days in a row.

+ Buy three or four good shirts (two white, two light blue [or one striped] nice looking cotton, from Paul Stuart if at all possible (or Brooksbrothers if you must, but I no longer like their shirts, made mostly in the Orient last I saw)

+ Buy several quality ties from a discount store like Off Fifth, Century 21, etc. and purchase two or three pairs of over the calf socks that match the color of your suit. Robert Talbott best of Class highly recommended-- small pattern or stripes.

I've found that suits for work are like good alcohol-- you don't start out drinking LAPHROAIG, a luxury vodka, etc. when you turn 21. You've gotta start out with something simple, and work your way up to appreciate what you're getting. I think this is the reason I enjoy suits from Oxxford and Brioni now-- because I started out with simple glued/ fused inexpensive suits, and have worked my way up to Sartorial creations.

Originally Posted by The_Foxx

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your FIRST suit....I know this is counter to what others might advise you, but have you thought about just going to Jos A. Bank or similar store, and buying a solid navy blue or charcoal midweight suit? Flat front trousers probably better for a young person these days, one or two vents (two vents preferable) in the jacket.

+ Get it tailored by a competant tailor, not at the store. Ensure that you have ONLY A SLIGHT BREAK IN THE TROUSERS, and that you show 1/4" of shirt cuff at the sleeves. Ask that buttons be attached at sleeve so that all "kiss," all buttons must touch in the row on the sleeve, all areas of the suit are fitted by the tailor (neck, the upper back, body, pants and sleeve length most important. Ensure the jacket neck does not stand away from your own, for example)

+ Use money from your budget to get one or two good pairs of shoes and cedar shoe trees. Highly recommend Allen Edmonds captoes, and a proper belt to match your shoes. I own two pairs of black shoes, because I wear them much more often than the brown-- and you can't wear shoes two days in a row.

+ Buy three or four good shirts (two white, two light blue [or one striped] nice looking cotton, from Paul Stuart if at all possible (or Brooksbrothers if you must, but I no longer like their shirts, made mostly in the Orient last I saw)

+ Buy several quality ties from a discount store like Off Fifth, Century 21, etc. and purchase two or three pairs of over the calf socks that match the color of your suit. Robert Talbott best of Class highly recommended-- small pattern or stripes.

I've found that suits for work are like good alcohol-- you don't start out drinking LAPHROAIG, a luxury vodka, etc. when you turn 21. You've gotta start out with something simple, and work your way up to appreciate what you're getting. I think this is the reason I enjoy suits from Oxxford and Brioni now-- because I started out with simple glued/ fused inexpensive suits, and have worked my way up to Sartorial creations.

I have to second this advice. The two most important things you need to do are get a suit that fits perfectly and Foxx pretty much laid it out. You also need to not skimp on shoes. Go with the Park Avenues. Let us know how it goes.

Originally Posted by maxnharry

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I have to second this advice. The two most important things you need to do are get a suit that fits perfectly and Foxx pretty much laid it out. You also need to not skimp on shoes. Go with the Park Avenues. Let us know how it goes.
The fitting advice is spot on, but I would not go to Jos A. Bank. If your budget is what it is, at least get something that will last a long time and you'll still want to wear when you have the resources to buy nicer alternatives. No reason to spend a few hundred dollars on a suit and tailoring only to spend twice as much in 5 years on the same thing, only nicer.