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Ideas for a new suit without breaking the bank....

My last suit purchase was in the 1990's. The one I wear most frequently is a charcoal wool blend with very faint white pinstripe I bought the fall of 1990, prior to doing on campus interviews at the University of Utah. I think I paid about $300 or so for it at the time. Which means it has cost me about $15 a year to own. Needless to say, I can't button the jacket anymore, but the pants still fit and it still fits in the shoulders.

What is a good way to go with a replacement? The one I have is a two button. Any ideas? My budget would probably max out around the $350 range (+/-). I haven't really looked, although I probably should. The budget has been a bit tight recently. The why has been expressed in other threads.

I also have a nice double breasted but haven't been able to wear that in some time. It is newer than the gray one, and is a beautiful what I would call "summer" brown in a lightweight fabric. Great for warmer weather. I have attached a photo of me in that suit taken in 2011. Not sure I have one of me in the gray suit.
 

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In the past I have had a lot of luck buying a suit on a budget at Burlington Coat Factory. The one near me has a huge selection. They all offer on site tailoring if you don’t have a tailor you usually use. You can also find suit separates there so you can find a good fit with little to no alterations.

I recently bought a Michael Kors suit there for just under $300. I also purchased a very nice Nautica suit for about $150.

Good luck!
 

Doc4

Stumpy in cold weather
Staff member
Your biggest problem might be finding a suit you like that does not have the trendy skinny slacks. Not a good look for mature guys.

I came here to post pretty much the same thing.

Avoid anything that says it has a "slim" fit or similar description. Ditto if they use "modern" or similar term in the description. Of course, the added problem of a "modern" "slim" fit suit is the jacket may have far too short length.

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Rule of thumb: look at the photos on the website of models wearing the suit. If the jacket ends at his wrist, it's probably too slim/modern for your tastes. If the jacket ends at his first knuckle (ie where fingers and palm meet) then you are good to go.

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Ultimately, it's how the suit fits on YOU, not on a fashion model (those guys often seem to have extra-long gangly arms and legs) ... so try the suit on and check.
 
Vacation in Bangkok. My business wardrobe is all Bangkok tailored suits and thrift store sports jackets.

Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk
 
I came here to post pretty much the same thing.

Avoid anything that says it has a "slim" fit or similar description. Ditto if they use "modern" or similar term in the description. Of course, the added problem of a "modern" "slim" fit suit is the jacket may have far too short length.

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Rule of thumb: look at the photos on the website of models wearing the suit. If the jacket ends at his wrist, it's probably too slim/modern for your tastes. If the jacket ends at his first knuckle (ie where fingers and palm meet) then you are good to go.

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Ultimately, it's how the suit fits on YOU, not on a fashion model (those guys often seem to have extra-long gangly arms and legs) ... so try the suit on and check.

Good info.

My stepson recently picked up a nice traditional (I think it was called Executive Collection) suit from Joseph A Banks and it cost him less than $300. He bought it and wore it twice so I don't know how durable it will be - but it looks nice and for the price seems to be decently made.

On the other hand, two years ago my youngest son was on a business trip to Hong Kong. He was there for three months and decided to get a suit made by one of their tailors. He is hard to fit because he is 6'9" and is slim. He went for three fittings and it was mailed to him about two months later. I had my doubts as to the quality since the cost was about $350. When the suit arrived I was shocked. The trousers were lined in the crotch area and the jacket was canvassed rather than fused. The workmanship was excellent.
 
+1 on JCPenney. I buy their house brand (Startford?) for sport coats and they last like iron and for years.
 
i went through this for my wedding. i was almost going to do one of the indochina or other online type discount high end suits or whatever they market. but i ended up getting something on sale from Macys that i thought looked decent. i think the real important step to make it look nice is getting it custom tailored. local shop in town i was there a half hour, she pinned it up and it looked substantially better (essentially a tailored suit now). I think she charged 30 bucks or something obscenely cheap. i would think they can custom tailor it to an 'old guy' frame as well to make sure you arent looking like a brooklyn hipster.
 

Doc4

Stumpy in cold weather
Staff member
The biggest problem with online suit ordering is figuring out the ... not the size or fit ... But the "stylistic approach" of the maker.

This is most noticeable in the fit of the pants ... do you get low-rise butt-huggers or proper trousers ... But seen elsewhere too ... length of jacket and so forth.

You think the epitome of style is Cary Grant in North by Northwest ... and the guy you are buying from may agree ... or may be dreaming of Pee Wee Herman instead.
 
I wear suits daily for work. I spend a lot of time traveling and visiting clients. My suits take a fair amount of abuse from eating lunch while driving, wear marks from crossing my legs, to road salt in the winter. Because of all of that, I've stopped buying expensive suits. Now,I buy the best fitting suit I can get at Kohl's (there's a couple brands I buy) and then I take them to a local tailor to finish the job. I can usually have a tailored suit for around $250 to $300. I get a lot of comments on my suits. Noone realizes they are "inexpensive".

Another benefit is when a pair of pants is worn out, I can replace them without replacing the entire suit.
 
I have bought almost all my suits over the past 20 years from Men's Warehouse. While I have never bought one of the $99 specials, they do have them. Usually, I go when they have a sale, and get 2 for $500.

But, be sure to leave money for tailoring (they have in-house tailoring)... you MUST get it tailored to get it to look great, rather than just OK... or worse, sloppy. It would suck to buy a $150+ suit and not have it look good on you.

And Men's Warehouse also does custom suits, you are looking at 400+ to start.

And you didnt hear this from me, but if you have a Haggar Outlet store near you, they can sometimes have fantastic deals. You will need to get your own tailoring done, but really... you can get like 5 suits for that same $500, and they are pretty decent suits, as long as you arent looking for Italian like. :)
 

Doc4

Stumpy in cold weather
Staff member
Another benefit is when a pair of pants is worn out, I can replace them without replacing the entire suit.

If this is a concern, the other option is to go with the "blazer and slacks" look ... which can result in more diverse "looks" simply by wearing different trousers with the same jacket. (Instead of buying two suits, or three suits ... one jacket and several pairs of trousers is the more economical option.)

And bringing a second pair of trousers is a lot easier for travel than bringing an entire second suit.
 
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If this is a concern, the other option is to go with the "blazer and slacks" look ... which can result in more diverse "looks" simply by wearing different trousers with the same jacket. (Instead of buying two suits, or three suits ... one jacket and several pairs of trousers is the more economical option.)

And bringing a second pair of trousers is a lot easier for travel than bringing an entire second suit.

You're spot on. I do this quite a bit to keep my look more "fresh".
 
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I might be late to give advice, but, if you know your measurements (most tailors will do this for a nominal fee), look at Ebay for NOS suits, then have them altered. Search for Hickey Freeman, Brooks Brothers 1818, or the Jos A bank gold sig line. See which of the cuts would flatter/you would prefer... then wait for one in your price range.

I can't tell from your photo your approxmate size: what size do you think you are?

I wear suits for conferences, and my first good suits were bought this way. I still use a Hickey Freeman and Brooks brothers three peice I bought that way in my rotation.

Get a blue suit or a grey suit first--> you can always spice them up with shirts/ties.

My most complimented suit is a brooks brothers three piece that I have my tailor add buttons for braces (suspenders). I paid $175 for the suit. All said and done with alterations was perhaps $350. And I am not some odd ball size-- I'm a 44R 34W...
 
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