Disaster! Most important Interview of my Life and nothing fits

[Klobber]

Originally Posted by CaymanS

I am truly blown away that renting a suit is even an option. Seriously?

Normally I would not think along those lines.

I am planning on trimming back down on my weight but right now it goes without say I would have to size up. Once I trim down, all my main suits would fit, and then I would have another redundant overlarge suit. I do not really want to spend $1000 plus on this suit, but given the importance of this interview, I will just cough up the cash and let the larger future salary take care of this expense. That is of course if I find a suit that fits ok.

I do not have the interview until Tuesday but arrive on Monday afternoon, so I have a few hours to mess around in New York if I want (I would rather practice my presentation in the hotel though). If I find nothing in Saks in LA (or Camarillo or Desert Hills outlets just outside LA), I could still pay a visit to Brooks Brothers in NYC and take pot luck there.

Originally Posted by mcbrown

Forgive me for focusing on a minor point, but for what kind of job and firm are you interviewing that would include a "formal dinner" as part of the process? As a professional in New York I am hard-pressed to think of a restaurant or other venue (besides a handful of private clubs) where one would normally wear a tuxedo to dinner. Nor can I think of a profession or firm where formal events would be so customary that one would be included in the "getting to know you" phase.

Good piece of information, the itenary I was given just said dinner. So if it just says dinner, would it be correct to assume a fairly informal affair then?

You see I work as an associate professor at a university right now, but want to shift to corporate for a few years. This job at corporate puts me in charge of a whole R&D department, and from there I will be in a position to do exactly what I wanted to do all along. I worked in a more corporate job a long time ago, but it was a little company with a turnover < $50mil a year.

 

[js4design]

 

[viator]

Originally Posted by Klobber

I do not have the interview until Tuesday but arrive on Monday afternoon, so I have a few hours to mess around in New York if I want (I would rather practice my presentation in the hotel though).
Here's something to chew on. Consider coming to New York tomorrow. If you find something in one of the nicer stores here, you'll have more time to wait for alterations. Depending on where you are now, you may also find a better selection.

 

[Klobber]

Originally Posted by js4design

, I would need a girdle or liposuction right now.

 

[Klobber]

Originally Posted by viator

Here's something to chew on. Consider coming to New York tomorrow. If you find something in one of the nicer stores here, you'll have more time to wait for alterations. Depending on where you are now, you may also find a better selection.

Company already booked the flight for me, but that does not mean I could not fly in separately on a one way and take the booked flight back. Probably last minute on expedia will be extortion prices

 

[bigbjorn]

Originally Posted by Klobber

Company already booked the flight for me, but that does not mean I could not fly in separately on a one way and take the booked flight back.

This you can NOT do. Airlines contract of carriage allows them to cancel the return leg of your ticket if you don't show for the outbound leg. And they will. And you will be stuck without a way home.

 

[Klobber]

Originally Posted by bigbjorn

This you can NOT do. Airlines contract of carriage allows them to cancel the return leg of your ticket if you don't show for the outbound leg. And they will. And you will be stuck without a way home.

Thanks for telling me.

 

[mcbrown]

Originally Posted by Klobber

Good piece of information, the itenary I was given just said dinner. So if it just says dinner, would it be correct to assume a fairly informal affair then?

In my experience, in the corporate world (at least in New York, and I would imagine most of America) a work dinner is typically an extension of the work day, which means people go straight from the office to a restaurant, which means they wear business attire. Small "b", small "a"... i.e. they wear whatever they wore to work, even if that is not Business Attire in the traditional sense.

Relax. Don't panic. Breathe. You will be fine, just don't go crazy.

 

[mcbrown]

Originally Posted by Klobber

I do not have the interview until Tuesday but arrive on Monday afternoon, so I have a few hours to mess around in New York if I want (I would rather practice my presentation in the hotel though). If I find nothing in Saks in LA (or Camarillo or Desert Hills outlets just outside LA), I could still pay a visit to Brooks Brothers in NYC and take pot luck there.

DO NOT take the risk of arriving in New York without a wearable suit. If you can't find something that makes you happy over several days in LA, I promise you that you won't find it in a few hours in New York. And what will you do if your flight is delayed? Or you get stuck in traffic and get into the city late? If the job is yours to lose as you believe it is, don't take even a 0.01% chance that you will have to tell them "Sorry, I don't have a suit because I planned on buying one in New York the night before my interview, but I got in too late and I couldn't. I know I had weeks to get one at home, but I couldn't find one I liked. I thought Brooks Brothers here might have a better selection than Brooks Brothers in LA." They will conclude (correctly, as far as I can tell) that you are a lunatic who can't function in the real world.

You may need advice on how to feign sanity for the next few days, so here it is: Buy the first OTR suit you find that fits "OK". I know this is StyleForum, but buy the danged thing at Jos. A. Bank or Mens Wearhouse suit if you have to. You are interviewing for to be an R&D manager, not a clothing designer. I promise you that wearing a slightly ill-fitting suit for the interview will not be a strike against you. Get the store to rush the hemming. Make no other alterations - you cannot take the risk that something gets screwed up in your short timeline. That's it, that's all you need to do. You will be fine if you do this. Or at least, your wardrobe will.

Good luck.

 

[classicusa]

If you go to BB, you'll find something more than acceptable. Tell them your sitchy, and the in-house tailor will tighten you up. Certainly, make the completed tailoring a condition of the sale. I've done this a few times at BB, and they are happy to help a GOOD customer. Now, I've gone in and pulled a sport coat off the rack and paid full price for it on a Sat morning, but told them I'd only buy it if I could have it for a dinner that night. If you are a good enough custy they will be more than happy to do this for you. It is they who are trying to form the relationship with you. When you go to pick the suit up, take the tailor shop something, some gourmet muffins, Starbucks...something to show your appreciation. They are people , too.

You are making this out to be more than it is. You f-ed up. For "the most important interview of my life" you sure didn't prepare all the details and treat it as such. But don't panic. All can be fixed. Call around tonight to the various BB. Talk to an SA and find if they have what you need. Then talk to the tailor or store mgr and tell them what you need. You can go in tomorrow morning, and have the suit back at the end of the day. Believe me, someone in LA can get this done for you.

Rent a suit? Aren't you the same guy in another thread who was ridiculing a guy for only being able to afford used shoes? Telling him there is no way you would EVER buy used shoes because of fungus and because of how bad others' personal hygiene is? Yeah, that was you. Do't be too quick to judge...now you are asking about renting a suit? Dude, you need to work on your attitude.

The job is yours to lose? You are well on your way. If this interview requires a suit and you showed up in a sport coat with pants "that closely match," I would think you were a clown, and you would lose the gig. This is EXACTLY why they want to see you in person. Wake up and get a suit that fits. Now.

 

[AE7]

The most important interview in you life will be with this guy:

and I don't know what is the dress code for this occasion.

 

[mic]

^ that's the most important interview of your afterlife.

 

[bdbb]

Easily option 5 and also, you are acting like a moron. There are practically no job interview situations where time spent worrying about your attire beyond what is necessary for layman (not styleforum) appropriateness would not be better spent preparing for the substance of the interview. You are stressing about something that only makes a difference at the margins and has a much smaller chance of impacting your interview than other things you could be doing.

 

[Patek14]

1) Go to Saks/Nordstrom tommorrow and cross fingers I find a nice Navy / darker grey suit that fits off the rack (I doubt this)? maybe, if $ doesnt matter

2) Take Navy jacket with me, find pants at department store that match most closely and hope nobody notices? no

3) Rent a suit that fits me approximately? hahaha maybe, but eww

4) Wear all black suit - given that after the interview we are having a formal dinner? unless you are oriental, no

5) Wear one of the suits above, and accept jacket fit flaws? The flaws are big by SF standards, but by general public standards, the suit jackets still fit better than 70% of those out there. If $ matters, do this. People here are too picky

6) Match a Sport coat to an odd pair of pants and hope this passes the grade? Absolutely not

7) Wear the navy suit with the pants that wont button? Zip up as far as possible and hide the evidence with a thick belt and buckle. no

Just my 2 cents

 

[Wes Bourne]

You're flying out to NY?

1- Wear your best sc/pants combo on the plane and only bring the essentials (presentation material, toiletries, underwear, etc) with you in a carry-on, nothing else.
2- Show up to interview in slightly rumpled sc/pants. Tell them the airline lost your checked luggage.
3- Nail interview, score extra sympathy points.
4- Get job.
5- Thank me.

/thread

*The key to getting away with a half-assed lie like this is to actually believe some of it yourself, i.e. you'll be more convincing to others if you yourself think you're missing your checked luggage (by actually not bringing any).