Opinions on Paul Smith Suits

[Lowndes]

Hi, I am looking at purchasing a Paul Smith Navy Blue 2 button suit for about $1200. I really liked the suit and was wondering if anybody has experience with this brand and what their opinion is? I am going for more a well fitted English look. I tried on a E. Zegna at the store today and while I absolutely loved the suit and fit it didn't seem like it was worth the $2200 price tag. Thanks in advance for your help. Here is a link to the Paul Smith suit http://www.neimanmarcus.com/store/ca...734cat11940745

 

[rioni]

That would be a horrible idea imho. I wouldn't pay more than 400 for a ps suit. What about one of these for 1k? not the english look but a much better way to spend 1,200

 

[CatsEyes]

Well, you really are asking for it: posting a question like that here! There'll be more huffing and puffing than a stage-version of the Three Little Pigs.

Actually, my experience is that Paul Smith mainline suits can be very nice, if bought on discount (they have a sale store in London, from memory) or off eBay (near-new is best, given the amount of counterfeiting). I have one, bought second-hand, that is clearly full-canvassed, even to the point where the chest canvassing under the collar was done in brightly-coloured thread. And they're not all loud and youthful and all that un-SF stuff...

The so-called London line is gimmicky and pretty ordinary, though, on the whole. (And purely fused, I think.) And the PS line is mostly awful. As with all the 'name' labels, once you get below the top-drawer stuff, the quality disappears really fast. It's like there's a 'name' margin that gets relatively bigger and bigger as the total cost goes down...

 

[acidboy]

I happen to like the cut of Paul Smith. I've got a main line and a London line. Of course, I still wouldn't pay full price for them. They usually go on sale during the end of the season. I got mine for less than $700 and around $300 respectively.

 

[ysc]

If you can bare the wait a lot of paul smith stuff goes to 50% or so on sale. Never owned one of the suits, although trying them on I have noticed they seem to be cut for the rather tall and slim.

 

[pe-ja-per]

Hi, I recently bought a Paul Smith suit from a seller off Ebay (UK). I only paid about £150 for it.
There are many Paul Smith suits for sale on Ebay UK, they are usually sold for £250 or thereabouts. I would definitely not pay $1200 for a Paul Smith suit.

Mine was BNWT though most likely a few years old. It's a 3 button charcoal with a very subtle pale lilac pinstripe. I must say I am quite happy with it (at that price) though I wish it were a 3 roll 2 instead of a true 3 button. The fit is slim but not too slim. I think perhaps some of the more recent models (The Byard) are slimmer.
I have only recently started reading the forum and paying attention to details and differences in quality etc. I tried the pinch test on my Paul Smith suit but failed: I wouldn't know if it was canvassed or fused. It does have roped shoulders though, that I could see... The wool is soft to the touch, the pinstripes are matched jacket-trousers.
One of the issues I have is that, when buttoning the middle button of my jacket, my shirt tends to show where it peeps from my waistband. A detail perhaps but one I find annoying. Perhaps I ought to post pictures of this in another thread?

 

[MLIW]

Might be best to go into a few paul smith suit vendors and try them on photograph them and get some sfers to give some quality advice/horrible critiscm!

 

[rioni]

Most if not all of the ps suits going for £150 on ebay are fakes

 

[(Shepherd's)Bushman]

I needed a suit in a hurry a few months ago, a long way from home, and bought a Paul Smith "Willoughby" suit from a franchise - it cost around 450 pounds at the prevailing exchange rate. The fit and cut are reasonable, but the material and construction are shoddy. The fabric is really dreadful and the jacket feels pretty cheap. If I hadn't had such a pressing need and such a shortage of time, I wouldn't have bothered, and I still regret the purchase.

 

[Get Smart]

I've owned suits from all his lines, and it's hit/miss on what you get

Mainline is definitely a well made garment. The one i had was from the mid 90s when they were still made in England. I tried on a newer one last year and something about the cut didnt fit me quite right for the $2200 or so they are going for.

London....terrible. Conservatively styled for office workers, mostly boring fabrics and details. Can always be found at sale time for under $500. Fit is boxy and stiff

PS....actually like these a lot. The cut is similar to mainline but some reason I fit better in it. Details mimic mainline, but not full canvassed.

 

[Lowndes]

thanks for the replies. I actually went ahead and ordered a MTO Samuelsohn from The Hound here in San Francisco on Monday so I am all set on my suits. Thanks again.

 

[chrisjr]

Originally Posted by Get Smart

I've owned suits from all his lines, and it's hit/miss on what you get

Mainline is definitely a well made garment. The one i had was from the mid 90s when they were still made in England. I tried on a newer one last year and something about the cut didnt fit me quite right for the $2200 or so they are going for.

London....terrible. Conservatively styled for office workers, mostly boring fabrics and details. Can always be found at sale time for under $500. Fit is boxy and stiff

PS....actually like these a lot. The cut is similar to mainline but some reason I fit better in it. Details mimic mainline, but not full canvassed.

I bought a Paul Smith suit for full retail a few years back (around $1350). I'm curious how to tell which line the suit I purchased is from? It wasn't clear when I bought it and the SA didn't mention it. The label doesn't help either. I am tall and slim and (IMO) it fits me very well.

 

[acidboy]

^ take a pic of the tag and post it here.