The CM Graveyard: First Sartoria Partenopea... next J. Crew?

[SimonC]

I like it. I never consider J Crew sportcoats as the lapels have tended to be overly narrow and slim, but the one here actually looks very good. Also agree I don't think I'd pay $1000 for it.

Probably channelling @dieworkwear here, but I suspect this is why the midmarket is so hard in menswear right now. Top of the market would go bespoke, budget end is flooded with used examples at a fraction of the cost, and the relationship between a brand or retailer and a certain category of buyer has been broken by e-commerce. Just not sure who is left to buy a jacket like that.

 

[edmorel]

Tried on the camel hair jacket at J. Crew. It’s Italian Camel hair, feels luxurious, fits great, and seems well constructed. I’m not one to drop $1000 on a sport coat, but we all know it will be 40% off in a few months.

View attachment 1831054

I got this J. Press camel hair jacket off eBay for $70. It’s great, but the fabric does not feel as nice as the J Crew one.
View attachment 1831055

I’m pretty sure when you were born, your dad had an Ivy patch pocket jacket in newborn size ready for you. If you took all the Ivy looks you’ve worn over the years, put them in a book, it would be a bestseller in Japan.

 

[edmorel]

Probably channelling @dieworkwear here, but I suspect this is why the midmarket is so hard in menswear right now. Top of the market would go bespoke, budget end is flooded with used examples at a fraction of the cost, and the relationship between a brand or retailer and a certain category of buyer has been broken by e-commerce. Just not sure who is left to buy a jacket like that.

having no insider knowledge of JCrew, my guess is they price it at $1000 knowing that the average sales price will be closer to $700 as their customers have been trained to buy on sale. It’s hard to get people off that mentality so one way you beat it is by pricing high (and they will sell some at the normal price) and then offering a terrific deal at 30-40% off during one of their many sales. It seems silly but the psychology is real. I saw a study a few years back from a large trade group that dealt with free shipping. I showed that people regularly bought more items if you offered free shipping than if you priced the item lower and added shipping where the price between the two items would be the same. I’m other words, people would buy a $50 item with free shipping but pass on the same item priced at $40 with $10 shipping.

 

[Thin White Duke]

having no insider knowledge of JCrew, my guess is they price it at $1000 knowing that the average sales price will be closer to $700 as their customers have been trained to buy on sale. It’s hard to get people off that mentality so one way you beat it is by pricing high (and they will sell some at the normal price) and then offering a terrific deal at 30-40% off during one of their many sales. It seems silly but the psychology is real. I saw a study a few years back from a large trade group that dealt with free shipping. I showed that people regularly bought more items if you offered free shipping than if you priced the item lower and added shipping where the price between the two items would be the same. I’m other words, people would buy a $50 item with free shipping but pass on the same item priced at $40 with $10 shipping.

Interesting.
Oh - and greetings long lost stranger. I still wear a cool pair of Panta strides you made for me many years ago in lightweight nailhead. There may be mohair involved too but no tag to say what the composition is. Welcome back.

 

[edmorel]

Never went away, just post mostly in the food/wine forum. If you send me a pic of the pants I can probably tell you the makeup. I’m out of the pants business as medical issues popped up a few years back that didn’t allow me to continue and I could start again now, but I’ve become a crypto douche

Very grateful still though for guys like you and the others that supported me

 

[Thin White Duke]

Never went away, just post mostly in the food/wine forum. If you send me a pic of the pants I can probably tell you the makeup. I’m out of the pants business as medical issues popped up a few years back that didn’t allow me to continue and I could start again now, but I’ve become a crypto douche

Very grateful still though for guys like you and the others that supported me

Sorry to learn of your issues there matey. Hope you’ve put them behind you and it’s too bad that you’re out of the menswear game. A few others along with you, like Conrad Wu and Henry the Aussie tie bloke are sorely missed but I can see why it’s a tough game to get ahead in, especially in the current WFH sweat pants climate.
Anyway below is a view of the strides along with the old phrase “excuse the crappy iPhone pic”. I realise I could have taken this conversation to PM but leaving it here gives me the opportunity to say thanks and reveal to any relative newbies what a wealth of knowledge and talent we once had on this board. (Notice the hand stitching on the pocket edge which continues all the way down the out seam!)

 

[mossrockss]

Probably channelling @dieworkwear here, but I suspect this is why the midmarket is so hard in menswear right now. Top of the market would go bespoke, budget end is flooded with used examples at a fraction of the cost, and the relationship between a brand or retailer and a certain category of buyer has been broken by e-commerce. Just not sure who is left to buy a jacket like that.

Great point of view. The ecommerce angle is so true. I'm eternally grateful to have come of age in the time of ecommerce, though I know it's sad for many local businesses.
I love my local menswear store and try to support them as much as I can. But in reality, they're buying for local customers who just aren't me (even though they're carrying the brands I love and would buy elsewhere—Ring Jacket, Valstar, 100 Hands, Drake's, etc.), meaning fabrics I'm not into usually (either really high end and out of my price range or patterns I don't love), or models I don't love.

 

[David Reeves]

I always make up what I want to make up. I suppose that can be promoting but one season I may be really into a particular silk and wool seersucker or a certain tweed. Its natural to put forward a product (in this case cloth) that you are excited about, especially when it may be gone next year if you are using loro piana or Dormeuil. I would never use a cloth or pattern I didn't like personally.

 

[othertravel]

I always make up what I want to make up. I suppose that can be promoting but one season I may be really into a particular silk and wool seersucker or a certain tweed. Its natural to put forward a product (in this case cloth) that you are excited about, especially when it may be gone next year if you are using loro piana or Dormeuil. I would never use a cloth or pattern I didn't like personally.

David, you're back! How's business these days? I reached out to your team a while ago about a bespoke commission, but never heard back. Are you taking on new customers?

 

[Thin White Duke]

David, you're back! How's business these days? I reached out to your team a while ago about a bespoke commission, but never heard back. Are you taking on new customers?

Good luck. I emailed Reeves about ten years ago and I’m still waiting for a reply! 😁

 

[Texasmade]

Good luck. I emailed Reeves about ten years ago and I’m still waiting for a reply! 😁

Try sending a message on IG. That's what us millennials and the zoomers do now.

 

[Thin White Duke]

Try sending a message on IG. That's what us millennials and the zoomers do now!

.I’m not on IG. Nor Facebook.Nor Twitter. Nor do I ever intend to be

 

[sugarbutch]

Threads? It's on-brand for StyFo...

 

[David Reeves]

David, you're back! How's business these days? I reached out to your team a while ago about a bespoke commission, but never heard back. Are you taking on new customers?

Really? how did you do that? Everything should go to me direct. shoot me an email [email protected] doing good, opened up a store front in beacon recently in addition to the showroom in NYC.

 

[David Reeves]

Good luck. I emailed Reeves about ten years ago and I’m still waiting for a reply! 😁

Email should work fine I did change it around then from [email protected] to the slightly less clunk [email protected]