Whenever I post a link to a suit or sport coat, many people respond in shock bc of the price. Let's break down why tailored clothing costs so much money. 🧵
For this, I'm going to assume that the suit was made in the United States, largely because I'm relying on information given to me by a friend who works at a high level in the US suit manufacturing industry. These are simplified numbers but are generally reflective of reality.
The first thing to understand is that suits and sport coats are not made like casualwear. They are built up from many layers of haircloth, canvassing, and padding, which are carefully sewn together using either specialized machines or human hands (needle and thread)
Let's break down the cost of making a suit.
A garment worker at a US suit factory makes about $15/hr. The total number of minutes spent on making that suit (in terms of actual operations) will be about 260 mins.
The factory also has to pay for worker benefits, which, spread across the total production, adds about $23 per suit. And then there's the cost of overhead (e.g., warehousing, administration, etc.). That adds an additional $26 per suit.
So now we have spent $114.
There is also the cost of materials. A factory may spend about $30/meter for fabric. They need 3.5 meters to make a suit, which brings the price per suit to $105. Now add $30 worth of trims (haircloth, padding, canvas, buttons, and such).
So now we have a total cost of $249.
$249 is how much it costs the factory to make a suit. To make a profit, they do a gross margin markup of 40%. That means they sell it to a brand for $415. The brand has to pay for a bunch of other expenses (e.g., marketing, administration, etc).
The brand also has to make a profit. So they sell the suit to a store at a gross margin markup of 60%. (This store, too, has its own expenses, such as sales staff, warehousing, marketing, etc.).
Now, we have a retail price of $1,037.
The above is a rough sketch of what it would cost to make a fully machine-made, fully canvassed suit in the United States. The price could go up on a host of factors. The factory could spend more on nicer fabric. Or they can include some hand-tailoring details.
Alternatively, the price can go down. The suit could be made in China, where the avg garment worker in a suit factory makes just under $4/hr. They could buy cheaper fabric. Or they can do a fully fused or half-canvassed construction, which may be less durable or not hang as well.
One of the ways to cut costs is in the patternmaking stage. Remember, a suit is made from many layers of material. Each of these layers has to be cut according to a pattern, which is a term for the architectural blueprint for the garment.
If a factory is taking the time and care to make a good suit, they will draft the pattern a little larger than what they need, then lay those internal pieces—haircloth, canvas, padding—on and carefully stitch. Then, they trim away the excess material—trim, adjust, trim, adjust.
However, if they're trying to cut costs, the components of the suit are cut exactly as they're supposed to be, laid on top of each other, and just sewn. There is no trimming or basting, you just sew everything together and hope for the best.
The problem is, cloth moves and linings shift. So things, sometimes, these lower-end garments don't come out quite right. Everyone along the stage is trying to maximize money, so the garment goes out to the sales floor as-is, and you hope a customer doesn't notice.
However, even at the lowest level—garment made in China, cheaper fabrics (but still natural fibers), fully fused or half-canvassed construction, no trimming or adjusting during the manufacturing process, etc.—you are looking at a retail price of about $500.
So, the answer to the original question: Why are suits expensive? They are more complicated to make than casualwear. They often require more expensive fabrics. If they are made in the UK, Italy, or the US, there are wage and labor laws.
There are many ways to look good; you don't have to buy tailored clothing. But tailoring is a beautiful thing, and the price paid goes towards supporting workers who are skilled in a special area of manufacturing. You can also end up with a garment you love and look good in.
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Check out these photos and ask yourself: who looks better? Set aside how you may feel about the person underneath the clothes and only look at the outfit. Who looks better and why? 🧵
IMO, George Hamilton looks better. There are numerous reasons, but here is one.
Here is a photo of him getting outfitted in a suit in 1966 with Bill Bixby at his side. This photo is somewhat rare because you don't often see a suit in this stage of making. Notice something?
One of the distinguishing points of this suit is the extended shoulder. You don't often get to see a suit like this because the effect is hidden once the sleeve is attached. But see how far the shoulder extends from his physical shoulder bone. There's also a bit of padding.
A big reason why people dressed better in the past is because there were good, local stores with knowledgeable sales associates. You could go to just a couple of stores and build your whole wardrobe, as well as be taught how to put together an outfit for any occasion. 🧵
This relationship is most neatly summed up by what Brooks Brothers called their "CU customer." This was a customer who came in and asked to "see you," a specific sales associate. Men had decades-long relationships with their sales associates. Fathers introduced sons to their SA.
Brooks Brothers' sales associates kept little journals, in which they wrote customers' sizes and preferences. If you had to attend a summer wedding, your SA could recommend the exact right things and tell you how to dress for the occasion. It was a one-stop shop.
Let's talk about how to get milkshake stains out of a suit. 🧵
I once interviewed Stu Bloom, founder of Rave FabriCARE in Arizona, about this. Rave is one of the best dry cleaners in the United States (they take mail-ins if you're not local). I've seen them rescue clothes that have been damaged by smoke in house fires.
Milk is a protein, and protein fibers react differently to different types of fibers. If you get a protein stain on silk, it will be very hard to clean. Linen is the next most difficult, followed by wool. Cotton is the easiest because it can be wet-washed.
If you have a large seat—which is the polite tailoring term for "ass"—you can use darts to make the pants follow your curves. I will demonstrate. 🧵
In the clothing industry, pants are typically made to fit someone with a 7" to 8" seat-to-waist ratio. If you have a large seat, this means that if you find pants that fit your seat, your waistband will be too big. So what can you do?
You can fix this by having a tailor add two darts to the back. This works for both jeans and tailored trousers. Darts turn flat pieces of fabric into three-dimensional forms, which helps clothing follow curves. Some illustrations from the tailoring blog Tutto Fatto a Mano.
This list is terrible. When people say that men should never wear a particular item of clothing, their view is often shaped by fear and prejudice. It's also often an issue of them not knowing how to style something. I will run through some examples on this list. 🧵
Pocket squares add visual interest to tailored jackets, which is especially useful if you don't wear ties. The best ones have complex, nonrepeating patterns because you can twist them to show specific colors. Always stuff; don't fold them like origami birds.
Cargo Shorts
Yes, there are bad cargo shorts, but there are bad versions of everything. Frat boy cargo shorts are bad, but ones inspired by outdoor gear and military designs are great. Pair them with hardcore tees, chambray shirts, and flannels. Even Kermit co-signs.
Interesting article today in The Atlantic about how moths have "evolved into an unbeatable enemy." The points in the article aren't wrong—it's hard to deal with moths—but I will share some tips I learned from a textile conservator. 🧵
I once interviewed Camille Myers Breeze, director of Museum Textile Services in Boston. In her 30-year career working as a textile conservator, she's helped conserve 14th-century tapestries, pre-Columbian textiles, and tiny embroidered baptismal caps worn by former US Presidents.
She tells me that climate change has made the moth problem worse. As seasonal temperatures are becoming warmer, conditions are becoming more favorable for the insects that feed on protein-based fibers (e.g., wool). We're now seeing moths in regions we didn't before.