Uniqlo quality inquiry

[Flame]

Does anyone know how the quality of Uniqlo's woolen outerwear, specifically speaking, their peacoats and toggle coats, compare against similarly priced labels?

I might be doing an purchase through an acquaintance of mine and was quite taken in with the outerwear shown on their site.

 

[Max]

I wouldn't hit it. The fabric didn't seem very substantial for the price and the fit wasn't impressing me. Track down an old WW2 navy issue pea coat and have it tailored to fit the way you want. You'll spend the same amount of money and end up with a much better constructed, longer-lasting garment.

 

[Arethusa]

I liked their stuff, but for peacoats and duffle coats, you should go with Sterlingwear, Schott, or Gloverall.

 

[tundrafour]

I know many here like their jeans, but I think of Uniqlo as a place to buy small things like t-shirts, underwear, socks, hats, etc., rather than more expensive items like coats.

This is based on my impressions of merchandise from Japanese Uniqlos, though, and I don't know if there are any significant price/quality/cut differences between the stuff sold in Japan and the stuff sold in the US. That said, I agree with the above posters that you could probably get a better value for your money.

 

[mack11211]

In general, for tailored clothing -- suit jackets and outerwear, for example -- smart forumites will look away from casual/denim retailers like Uniqlo and Gap.

 

[Flame]

Well, I do believe I've stayed around similar forums long enough to know that mall franchises like Uniqlo, Gap or Jcrew, to give a few examples, don't carry good outerwear.

However, being stuck in Prairie Canada, my options are limited.

If anyone can purchase a decent peacoat for me, I'll be more than happy to pay the expenses. In fact, a Gloverall peacoat sounds nice. A cry for help here!

*I gonna ask this in B/S too.

 

[tundrafour]

What about Sterlingwear peacoat? You can buy one online easily. I don't know how much the Uniqlo one you have in mind costs, but I doubt it could be much cheaper than $150, which is probably the most you'll wind up paying for a Sterlingwear. The quality and fit are apparently great.

 

[Flame]

FYI, I don't own a credit card, and I tried on Sterlingwear before. Simply too harsh of a wool for my liking.

 

[Arethusa]

Originally Posted by Flame

Well, I do believe I've stayed around similar forums long enough to know that mall franchises like Uniqlo, Gap or Jcrew, to give a few examples, don't carry good outerwear.
On the contrary, I'd say J Crew generally has fairly decent outerwear. You can do better, certainly, but they're orders of magnitude removed from the Gap.

 

[StevenRocks]

No clue on the quality of Uniqlo's outerwear, but I picked up a few basic pieces (t-shirts, fleece) at their Soho store last week, and they were decent quality for the price.

 

[Max]

Define "too harsh of a wool." If you want softer, lower-quality fabric uniqlo is for you.

 

[mack11211]

Peacoats are very often, even traditionally made of rough wool, often mixed with some nylon.

 

[subdivide]

Aren't peacoats traditionally made from Melton Wool?

 

[mack11211]

The peacoats of Melton wool that I'm thinking of have a rough hand.

Some are here:

http://www.vtarmynavy.com/pea_coats.htm


Def of melton wool:

melton wool, sometimes combined with synthetics. Twill or satin weave. Thick well fulled or felted wool with a smooth surface. Napped and very closely sheared. Coarse meltons are similar to makinaws but made of finer yarns and finished with a smoother, more lustrous surface - used for "under collar cloth" in lighter weights. Very solid cloth due to the finishing processes that completely conceal the weave. It wears very well. Wind resistant. If made in tan or buff colour in a coarse quality, it is called "Box cloth". It is classed with kersey, beaver, and broadcloth. Originated in Melton, Mowbray, England, which is a fox hunting report in england. It was first made as a hunting cloth. Looks like wool felt - pressed flat. Mostly used for men in over coating, uniform cloth of all kinds (army, navy, etc., as well as polie and firemen), pea jackets, regal liverly. Used for heavy outer sports garments and coats for women.

http://www.apparelsearch.com/glossary_m_.htm

 

[winq]

Most of Uniqlo's basics are great for the price, but there outerwear is really hit or miss. I have the toggle coat and a brown jacket which I thought were well made given the price, but I've handled other pieces that were complete shite, ex. trench coat.

The toggle coat goes for $110 USD here and I think you would be hard pressed to find a similarly priced toggle coat around the same quality, well in the states at least.

But from what I've read the prices in the US uniqlos are marked up compared to here, so my above comment may not hold true.