mall-brand or other cheap-ish suits

[BtA]

So here's the deal. I'm 31 and realized that I'm still dressing like a slob. I've been reading SF over the past week or so, and I'm determined to drop a little weight, clear the junk out of my closet and start over.

I am sort of having a kick-start to the process here, unfortunately, and have to attend a funeral for my nephew this Saturday. What I need is a charcoal-gray suit that doesn't suck, and I'd like to find something in the $300-$350 range. Understandably, in this price range on such short notice, this is somewhat of a stopgap solution. However, I'm hoping with the advice of some of you guys here, I can get a few wears out of it without looking like I got something off the clearance rack at Sears.

Anyways, I live in Milwaukee, so my options are pretty limited (Mall Stuff, Men's Whorehouse, other assorted nonsense). It doesn't necessarily need to be "traditional funeral-wear".. The family's trying to keep the service as more of a "celebration" than something somber, because the kid died less than a year after being born, and pretty much just lived in the hospital, and they'e treating this as sort of a relief for him to have passed on.

Thanks for your help in advance.

 

[ppllzz]

bachrach clearance

 

[bluemagic]

Nordstrom Rack

 

[BtA]

No Nordstom ... Milwaukee is ghetto.

 

[bluemagic]

Originally Posted by BtA

No Nordstom ... Milwaukee is ghetto.

Hmm, I just suggested it because I know the Mall of America has one.

 

[bleachboy]

It's my opinion that, especially if you're young and fit, "trendy" shops like Express will serve you much better than something like Men's Wearhouse, which will give you a fat poor dude's sack suit. I recently got a three-piece cotton corduroy three-piece suit at Express for like $180 and it has actually gotten mad compliments. It probably has the wrong kind of canvassing, but who cares?

Also, Banana Republic is good if you just need a $250 black suit.

Obviously, if you can get a Brooks Brothers or Polo/Ralph Lauren suit at your local mall in your price range, that will probably be your best bet. The trendier labels will all have peak lapels, double vents, narrow shoulders, slim fit, etc, which will be out of style in three years.

 

[BtA]

Originally Posted by bluemagic

Hmm, I just suggested it because I know the Mall of America has one.

Milwaukee's much closer to Chicago than Minneapolis, so I'd rather drive there if travelling to pick up a suit for the weekend were in option (which unfortunately for my case, it's not).

 

[dopamine]

Originally Posted by bleachboy

It's my opinion that, especially if you're young and fit, "trendy" shops like Express will serve you much better than something like Men's Wearhouse, which will give you a fat poor dude's sack suit. I recently got a three-piece cotton corduroy three-piece suit at Express for like $180 and it has actually gotten mad compliments. It probably has the wrong kind of canvassing, but who cares? Also, Banana Republic is good if you just need a $250 black suit. Obviously, if you can get a Brooks Brothers or Polo/Ralph Lauren suit at your local mall in your price range, that will probably be your best bet. The trendier labels will all have peak lapels, double vents, narrow shoulders, slim fit, etc, which will be out of style in three years.
Express has awful quality suits, as does Banana Republic (especially given the price). I had no idea that slim-fitting, double-vent suits would go out of style in three years, I guess I'd better either gain some weight or never buy a suit again.../sarcasm. In all seriousness, I wholeheartedly concur with looking for a Brooks Brothers suit, especially if you can find an outlet store near you. Keeping in mind that you want to lose a little weight, however, you also may not want to buy the best suit you can afford until after that's happened. Here is a list of Brooks Brothers stores in Wisconsin that I found, including an outlet store, which should have decent prices (although it's a bit far away): General Mitchell International Airport 5300 SOUTH HOWELL AVENUE MILWAUKEE WI 53207 (414) 489-1568 \t Sun-Fri 7am-8pm Sat 7am-6pm \t Bayshore Town Center 5700 NORTH BAYSHORE DRIVE GLENDALE WI 53217 (414) 967-0893 \t Mon-Thurs 10am-9pm Fri-Sat 10am-10pm Sun 11am-6pm \t Prime O/C Pleasant Prairie Factory/Outlet 36.55 miles 11211-120TH AVENUE PLEASANT PRAIRIE WI 53158 (262) 857-6900 \t Mon-Sat 10am-9pm Sun 10am-7pm

 

[Doc4]

Buying something cheap (let's not kid ourselves) means the guy selling it to you (and pinning it for hemming) has no idea what he's doing. Take control, and make sure the pants and sleeves are short enough. Otherwise, you will have pooling pants at your feet and no chance of "showing cuff".

 

[slide13]

I'm in the same position. I have a wedding in a few weeks and need a suit. I'm also in the process of loosing weight so as much as I would love to get a truly decent quality suit, I just don't see the point in spending the money since this will likely be the only time I wear a suit in the next 6 months to a year. I think I'm going to go to (gasp!) Jos. A. Bank to just get something to get me through the wedding.

It's so hard...part of me hates spending $300 on something I know is crap, but there is really no point in spending $800 for something that will likely get 2-3 wearings at most. Maybe I should just go to Goodwill and see what they have in my size. My dad found a surprisingly decent looking suit there for $10 one time. We make fun of him for it all the time but I'll be damned if he doesn't look better then 99% of the other people in suits at church or wherever he wears it the two times a year he puts it on.

 

[satorstyle]

It's short notice, you could find a decent looking black or dark grey suit from Men's Wearhouse. You have to understand that the combined sartorial knowledge on this site has not happened over night don't get over your head for such an event. Get what you and work on accumulating quality items from here on out. The Men's Wearhouse and stores like them can get you something reason that will look good on you.

 

[raiderbuck]

Macy's?

 

[captainmo]

I'm in the same boat as you (looking for a cheap suit). In terms of proper fit, I'm thinking about going to a good tailor to be measured and figure out what size suit to buy. I also want my measurements on hand for buying random clothes online. Once I get my size, go find a low price suit and then have it tailored at the tailor, not the cheap labor at the store I'm buying the suit from.

 

[sonvolt10]

A friend just purchased an Alfani (Macy's house brand) Red line suit for approx $240. It looks great for such a cheap suit. It's a very slim silhouette with narrow lapels and narrow trousers.
The material is obviously not the finest and I'm sure the quality may leave a lot to desired (given that it's made in China), but for the price it looks pretty good.

 

[whiteslashasian]

Originally Posted by sonvolt10

A friend just purchased an Alfani (Macy's house brand) Red line suit for approx $240. It looks great for such a cheap suit. It's a very slim silhouette with narrow lapels and narrow trousers.
The material is obviously not the finest and I'm sure the quality may leave a lot to desired (given that it's made in China), but for the price it looks pretty good.

+1

For a cheap, decent looking, modern cut suit, you cannot do much better than the Alfani Red Label. The only problem is they have fairly limited selection of colors and design. Also since it's a suit seperate, the chances of finding your pant size are a bit worse. I could not find any in my size