"zegna" suits

[Ambulance Chaser]

I was visiting my local Filene's Basement this past weekend (Mazza Gallerie for you DC residents) when I came across a rack of suits labeled "Zegna."  To my surprise, the suits, which were selling for $599.99, had a sleeve label titled "Ermnegildo Zegna Cloth Traveler" (or something like that) and no label on the inside of the jacket -- they were clearly not Zegna suits, but rather suits made with Zegna fabric.  Too make matters worse, there were several mainline Zegna suits (with the black sleeve label) mixed in on the racks and selling for $995.99, giving the unwary customer the impression that they were getting a great deal with the cheaper suits.  I expect this kind of sharp practice from eBay, but not Filene's Basement.  Or is it possible that no one there knows any better?

 

[MilanoStyle]

how about .. noone cares..

Sales person certainly does not. If I pick up those zegna wanna be suit thinking that it is real Zegna (which i won't), the sales person won't say that it is not real Zegna etc..

I guess it is our responsiblity to know what we are getting. So I thank forum like this toshare unbiased knowledge on men's fashion.

 

[Carlo]

I can see a stock clerk at Filene's not knowing the difference. What pisses me off is the guys who claim something is genuine Zegna when the cloth is Zegna when they DO know the difference. Â Noww naturally they are going to advertise Zegna in the title - I have no issue with that as long as they are sure to declare in the ad that it is Zegna fabric and someone else's construction. Â If you are looking at a fused suit using Zegna High Performance or similar fabric or the ubiquitous Loro Piana 120's it is a $300 suit at retail most of the time, Some are a good deal better than others. Â I've looked over overstock lots in Italy where I've picked some up very cheap, some were well made and came home with us and some were very poorly made and got left there - even when we could have had them for $100 each. My guess is that Filene's stock clerk wouldn't know the difference between fused and canvas... kinda expecting a lot from someone making $6/hr to know or care. Here is an example of blatant deception: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws....82&rd=1 NOWHERE does it mention that this suit is not made by Zegna and it is clearly suggested that this is made by Zegna.

 

[kabert]

I noticed those, along with the many Loro Piana suits they have had the last few months (with the LP label prominently displayed on the sleeve) but which clearly weren't LP brand but only LP-fabric. The stock clerks may not know the difference, but the store manager does and the Filene's corporate buyers definitely do, laughing all the way to the bank.

Personally, I've found that, although on a rare occasion a diamond can be found on the "general" racks among the crap, the best bet is to head straight for the racks that say Barney's, Bergdorf-Goodman, Oxxford, Mitchell's/Richard's, etc. That seems to be the surest way of knowing what you're getting.

 

[tjmaglio]

I don't believe Filene's is trying to deceive you - my guess is they didn't really check the inventory that closely. The signage in the Filene's Basement in Newton, MA tends to be inaccurate as well and the one in downtown Boston is usually a mess.
Did you try reporting the issue to management?

 

[tdial]

Here is an example of blatant deception: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws....82&rd=1 NOWHERE does it mention that this suit is not made by Zegna and it is clearly suggested that this is made by Zegna.

If you look at the stitching on the lapel of that jacket, it appears to have the hand work of a well-tailored garment. I bet the actual doesn't have that, even done by machine. That would be interesting to compare the shipped garment with the picture of the garment. Brandmaniac needs to be beaten about the head and shoulders with a spool of Zegna fabric.

 

[Carlo]

If you shop in the tourist areas in italy you see the zegna and Loro Piana names prominently displayed. The house brand will carry these labels.

At least there, people understand the advertisement "Our suits are made of good fabrics".

I'm wondering now how long it will be (if not already) before the Chinese produce fabrics with Zegna or LP's name on it - they are notorious knockoff artists and are working hard to take market share from Biella. On our last trip to Biella we heard of several suitmakers (names we ALL know and respect) who have left Biella to buy fabric in China.

Sad, Sad, Sad... even if the quality control is there, what happens if you put the designers in italy out of business? You don't go to Beijing to check out fashions.

 

[FIHTies]

Quote:

(Carlo @ 08 Sep. 2004, 11:37) Here is an example of blatant deception: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws....82&rd=1 NOWHERE does it mention that this suit is not made by Zegna and it is clearly suggested that this is made by Zegna.
If you look at the stitching on the lapel of that jacket, it appears to have the hand work of a well-tailored garment. I bet the actual doesn't have that, even done by machine. That would be interesting to compare the shipped garment with the picture of the garment. Brandmaniac needs to be beaten about the head and shoulders with a spool of Zegna fabric.
Required Brandmania Reading... http://www.styleforum.net/cgi-bin....oo+head In other words... Dont Be POO POO heads... Read this.

JJF

 

[Ambulance Chaser]

I agree that what Filene's is doing is not nearly as deceptive as what brandmaniac is doing.  At worst, Filene's ad is ambiguous, or as Bill Clinton would say, "It depends on what 'Zegna' means."  Brandmaniac is expressly advertising his suit as a Zegna suit and compounding the deception with an advertised retail price of $2150 (which mainline Zegna does not come close to retailing for).  The good news is that his feedback indicates that at least one customer has caught on to the scam.  I am waiting with baited breath his "clarif[ication]" of "this attack".

 

[MikeF]

I'm wondering now how long it will be (if not already) before the Chinese produce fabrics with Zegna or LP's name on it

Already ubiquitous througout Thailand. There are also fabrics purportedly by Versace, Armani, etc.

 

[MilanoStyle]

Guys like Brandmaniac or other Zegna Armani sellers should head to jail. When I got my fake Armani, I emailed my seller and one of other his Armani suit purchaser why it was fake. Next thing you know, he refunded my $$$. I was so pissed that I was going to email all of his Armani buyers ..

Anyways, when selling Zegna wanna be suits, they should not put word 'Zegna' 1st. They should put a label who ever made the suit follow by Zegna fabric etc ..

What brandmaniac does is clear mis-representation of the item IMHO.