Terrible Fit or Not?

[SaltySailor]

I'm trying to come up to speed as fast as I can so I apologize if this forum gets this question over and over but I'm trying to set my expectations for the money I'm willing to spend in a relatively short time frame. I'm retiring from the Navy and will be interviewing soon and don't know a whole lot about suits. I would love to get 2 good fitting quality suits for less than $1k but I'm beginning to think that without a killer sale I'm not going to stay within that. I checked out a Brooks Brother's outlet but returned those suits when I realized that they're cheap-o's made only for their outets. I stopped into a JAB today and tried these two on but from what I understand they don't fit correctly. They bunch up in the armpit and the shoulders dimple. Neither store had an associate that could answer my questions (ie. is this half canvassed, what is the liner made of, etc.) and either didn't care or don't know how a suit is supposed to fit. My question is whether these two suits fit good enough for the price point I'm looking at or should I expect better? To get better fitting suits do I need a custom suit? Any advice is greatly appreciated. These suits are primarily just for interviewing and won't be needed very frequently after that. Oh, and I plan on visiting SuitSupply tomorrow based on advice of others.

 

[breakaway01]

Mirror selfies with a tilted phone do not work well to assess fit. Much better if you can get someone to take a photo from roughly chest level pointing straight ahead (i.e. not tilting the camera up or down). Despite the major limitations of the photo, it looks like you can do better than that. The jacket does not seem to lie smoothly over the top of your left shoulder, and the left sleevehead is a bit of a mess.

 

[SaltySailor]

Mirror selfies with a tilted phone do not work well to assess fit. Much better if you can get someone to take a photo from roughly chest level pointing straight ahead (i.e. not tilting the camera up or down). Despite the major limitations of the photo, it looks like you can do better than that. The jacket does not seem to lie smoothly over the top of your left shoulder, and the left sleevehead is a bit of a mess.

Thanks for the confirmation. No matter if I stood straight with both hands at my side the shoulders still looked that way. To one degree or another it was the same for each jacket I tried on as well as the BB outlet jackets. Again, with my limited knowledge of suits I just wanted confirmation that this is not how suits should fit. Thank you!

 

[toplel]

If this is (for example) a 40 slimfit, try a 38 classic fit.

 

[SaltySailor]

If this is (for example) a 40 slimfit, try a 38 classic fit.

These were 44L "Tailored" fit which at JAB is slightly slimmer than their "Traditional" or classic fit. I don't have a flat stomach so they fit across my midsection fine. If I tried their Traditional fit 44L it was too big across my midsection and baggy under my armpits/breast. It's also the same size that they gave me at the BB Outlet. Neither salesperson really knew suits and the one at JAB was new with little to no training and couldn't tell that they didn't fit properly. I see what you're suggesting and I think you're exactly right! After more research I understand that the shoulders are too broad for my body and extend over my shoulder. If I had tried a smaller size in the traditional fit it probably would have fit much better. Too bad the salespeople didn't recognize that. I'm headed to a small small men's clothier today with lots of great reviews on Yelp & Google who has been in the business of selling higher end brand name suits for decades so hopefully I'll be in better hands today. Although he said that he can get me into a nice good fitting suit for $400? Seems a little low? Thanks so much for your advice, I've learned a ton on here in the past few days.

 

[toplel]

Since you seem new at this don't buy an expensive suit because fit is everything.

The relationship you cultivate with your tailor is more important. Tailoring the shoulders is prohibitively expensive so buy something that fits in the shoulders with the expectation that you'll have to have to tailor the mid-section & sleeve length (and pants).

A well fitting inexpensive suit >> poorly fitting expensive suit

 

[SaltySailor]

Since you seem new at this don't buy an expensive suit because fit is everything.

The relationship you cultivate with your tailor is more important. Tailoring the shoulders is prohibitively expensive so buy something that fits in the shoulders with the expectation that you'll have to have to tailor the mid-section & sleeve length (and pants).

A well fitting inexpensive suit >> poorly fitting expensive suit

Thanks for the advice and yes I'm very new at this. I've spent 24 years in the Navy and have never had to worry about formal wear. Could you define "inexpensive"? We were taught during a transitioning seminar that you should pay $500 for a suit on sale. I've also read that you should shoot for half-canvassed suits which seem to run in the $700+ range, which is why I was a little skeptical when the clothier told me that he could get me into a good suit for $400. I'm not going to be working on Wall Street or in finance and will likely only need a suit a few times a year outside of interviewing (which is why I'm in the market now). So it's somewhat difficult to identify what suit would be appropriate for my needs. Can people spot a cheaper suit even if it fits perfectly? There's a popular men's clothier nearby that has over 150 4.5 star reviews on Yelp but all of the reviews are from weddings or people that don't seem to normally buy suits and are quoting prices paid in the $200 range. Is it possible to get a great suit for $200 that you'd wear to an interview?

 

[breakaway01]

Fit is key as @toplel stated above. The vast majority of people don’t know anything about suit construction and even those who do would be hard-pressed to tell the difference between half-canvassed and full-canvassed by just looking. One might be able to tell the difference between a high-quality and low-quality fabric visually but how many can tell the difference between a solid mid-range fabric (like VBC S110) and a high-end fabric by their appearance?

I probably wouldn’t trust a $200 suit to be good enough for a job interview. There would have to be too many compromises in fabric quality and construction. Maybe at $400, but it would have to depend on the manufacturer. Just as an example, SuitSupply and Spier & Mackay make very good suits at that price point.

Definitely agree with trying out the small men’s clothier. Go in with an open mind and judge by fit rather than construction.

 

[SaltySailor]

Fit is key as @toplel stated above. The vast majority of people don’t know anything about suit construction and even those who do would be hard-pressed to tell the difference between half-canvassed and full-canvassed by just looking. One might be able to tell the difference between a high-quality and low-quality fabric visually but how many can tell the difference between a solid mid-range fabric (like VBC S110) and a high-end fabric by their appearance?

I probably wouldn’t trust a $200 suit to be good enough for a job interview. There would have to be too many compromises in fabric quality and construction. Maybe at $400, but it would have to depend on the manufacturer. Just as an example, SuitSupply and Spier & Mackay make very good suits at that price point.

Definitely agree with trying out the small men’s clothier. Go in with an open mind and judge by fit rather than construction.

Thanks for the advice. Should I settle for a fused jacket or for nothing less than half-canvassed? When I called SuitSupply I think the guy told me that all of their suits are half canvassed. The bespoke clothier has brands like Baroni and HSM and was great to talk to on the phone so I'm hopeful that it works out. If not I'm going to SuitSupply. Thanks again!

 

[breakaway01]

almost all half-canvassed jackets have fusing as well to support the fabric in the jacket fronts. But the additional structure in the lapel and chest of a half canvassed jacket does lead generally to a better looking jacket than a fused jacket. HSM is good (as good as SuitSupply and standard BB).

 

[SaltySailor]

almost all half-canvassed jackets have fusing as well to support the fabric in the jacket fronts. But the additional structure in the lapel and chest of a half canvassed jacket does lead generally to a better looking jacket than a fused jacket. HSM is good (as good as SuitSupply and standard BB).

True, I should have worded it differently, half canvassed vs. no canvassing? Anyway Ron Stuart Clothier in San Diego was phenomenal. A wonderful older gentleman in his 60's that's been specializing in men's clothes and suits his whole life. He identified that one of my shoulders laid about 1/2" lower than the other which was causing a fold under my right arm along the breast but not the other when I was trying on other suits. Something that I noticed but couldn't figure out, nor could the salespeople. He had me try in several different sizes from different brands until we settled on Jack Victor which fit quite well and ordered 2 at $500 each which includes the tailoring still to be done. As far as I can tell this is a great deal. I see them retail at $8-900 online.

Thanks for your patience and willingness to help, I greatly appreciate all of your advice!

 

[breakaway01]

Great, glad you found someone who knows his stuff. Good luck with the interviews!