Filene's Basement | Ripped off (?) or (!)

[incognitius]

Just went to the basement and picked up a suit I thought was Zegna but was actually just Zegna cloth. Scammers. Thanks to the SF and AskAndy, I exposed this common deceptive practice: http://www.askandyaboutclothes.com/f...p?t-51503.html.

Question is, I bought the suit for $450. Is a suit with decent fabric worth $300 in tailoring charges to make it fit like a glove? Everything in the suit needs to be engineered. My tailor will make it look great.

If you think I should return it (I have 20 more days), any ideas where to look for a better deal? This recession should soften up this market but I don't know where to look.

 

[Douglas]

Umm, it's hardly a scam. The cloth is made by Zegna, and the tag says so quite clearly. It does not say the suit is made by Zegna. While the labelling is perhaps misleading, it is hardly a scam, and you can hardly assign the blame to Filene's Basement.

Still, I own one of these suits and it isn't bad. It's not fantastic, but the cloth is nice and it travels well. $450 is kind of on the high side compared to what you can probably find here on the B&S Forum for a better suit - you can prob. find a Corneliani-manufactured Polo for the same price, and it will be a fused garment - I recall most of the Zegna-fabric suits from FB being fused.

I don't understand why you'd need $300 in tailoring though. You're going to the wrong tailor, or the suit REALLY doesn't fit... as in, you bought a suit 3 sizes too large.

 

[heard546]

This is a common theme here in Texas at Off Saks 5th and Nordstrom Rack, as well as the full line retail stores. I almost purchased a suit that I thought was Zegna, but I noticed the label stated fabric by Zegna. This is not the same as buying a true zegna suit, and it's kinda bait and switch because most potential consumers assume that he/she is buying zegna.

What brand is the suit with the Zegna cloth? For the price you paid I would take the suit back for a refund and continue your search. Especially if you have to pay $300 for alterations.

-tony

 

[pitboss12]

$300 in alterations is waaay too high. Get a suit that is a better fit and you'll knock at least $200 off the alterations cost.

 

[NH_Clark]

my tailor charges $110 and damn near rebuilds my suits to my body style. $300 is way too much!

 

[incognitius]

Thanks for all of the responses. Returning has been the consensus. Now I need to break the news to my tailor -- who really isn't ripping me off. He's charging for making half of a MTM suit, since the original size is too large. (My sister bought it for me; I hate to shop.)

 

[whiteslashasian]

Originally Posted by incognitius

...I hate to shop....

What the hell are you doing on SF?!?!

 

[Sanguis Mortuum]

Originally Posted by incognitius

Everything in the suit needs to be engineered.

If it doesn't fit you at all, why did you buy it? You must have liked the style and the fabric, and if you liked them enough to pay that much then does it really matter whether it's made by Zegna or not?

 

[polar-lemon]

Originally Posted by Douglas

Umm, it's hardly a scam. The cloth is made by Zegna, and the tag says so quite clearly. It does not say the suit is made by Zegna. While the labelling is perhaps misleading, it is hardly a scam, and you can hardly assign the blame to Filene's Basement.

Still, I own one of these suits and it isn't bad. It's not fantastic, but the cloth is nice and it travels well. $450 is kind of on the high side compared to what you can probably find here on the B&S Forum for a better suit - you can prob. find a Corneliani-manufactured Polo for the same price, and it will be a fused garment - I recall most of the Zegna-fabric suits from FB being fused.

I don't understand why you'd need $300 in tailoring though. You're going to the wrong tailor, or the suit REALLY doesn't fit... as in, you bought a suit 3 sizes too large.

Every Polo blue label item I've seen or owned has had at the very least a canvassed lapel...if it's made in Italy, it is NOT fused.

 

[Christofuh]

@ incognitius

Not sure how you came up with the "scam" angle

Zegna supplies a whole host of producers with fabric.
In related news: so does Loro Piana.
In unrelated news: the Pope speaks Latin

 

[Douglas]

Originally Posted by polar-lemon

Every Polo blue label item I've seen or owned has had at the very least a canvassed lapel...if it's made in Italy, it is NOT fused.

On a second reading, I can see how what I typed was in fact the opposite of what I meant. Allow me to rephrase:

Originally Posted by Douglas

Still, I own one of these suits and it isn't bad. It's not fantastic, but the cloth is nice and it travels well. $450 is kind of on the high side compared to what you can probably find here on the B&S Forum for a better suit - you can prob. find a Corneliani-manufactured Polo for the same price, and the Polo will be a canvassed garment - I recall most of the Zegna-fabric suits from FB being fused.

I don't understand why you'd need $300 in tailoring though. You're going to the wrong tailor, or the suit REALLY doesn't fit... as in, you bought a suit 3 sizes too large.

 

[polar-lemon]

Originally Posted by Douglas

On a second reading, I can see how what I typed was in fact the opposite of what I meant. Allow me to rephrase:

....half canvassed, most likely.