De Amsterdamse pakkenspecialist Suitsupply opende recent in Soho, New York zijn eerste Amerikaanse winkel. Slechts 12 jaar na de opening van de eerste vesting langs de A4 is de succesvolle keten toe aan bijna 40 winkels. Na Nederland, België, Verenigd Koninkrijk, Letland en litouwen is het nu de beurt aan New York. En bepaald niet in de minste wijk. Soho is een buurt in Manhattan en dankt zijn naam aan SOuth of HOuston. In de jaren zeventig was dit een buurt waar creativiteit hoogtij vierde door het aantal kunstenaars dat daar zat. Maar ook nu nog staat Soho bekend als een hippe buurt, trendsettend op het gebied van mode en architectuur.
Het succes van Suitsupply is, naar eigen zeggen, gebaseerd op de uitstekende prijs/kwaliteit verhouding en de snelheid waarmee wordt geopereerd.
“Wij bieden Italiaanse confectiepakken tegen groothandelsprijzen die eventueel vermaakt kunnen worden, terwijl de klant erop wacht. De kleermakers die we in iedere winkel hebben kunnen die aanpassingen meteen doen. Daarnaast kunnen wij maatpakken enmaatoverhemden laten maken van kwalitatief hoogwaardige stoffen,” aldus Suitsupply.
The Wall Street Journal meldt over de aanpak van Suitsupply:
‘Suitsupply is able to keep down prices, in part, by picking store locations slightly off main shopping streets with lower rents, says Fokke de Jong, chief executive and founder of the company. The company’s new Soho New York location will be on a second floor with no street level window display. About 15% of Suitsupply suits are sold through the website.
Suitsupply controls more aspects of production from design to distribution, cutting out payments to third-party companies that typical move suits into department stores’.
Putthison is lyrisch over Suitsupply en hun made-to-measure aanpak:
‘According to Wall Street Journal Suitsupply to be of more or less the same quality as Armani, and praised the brand for having high-quality Italian fabric, clean construction, and “lots of attention to detail.” I found the piece intriguing, but was still skeptical. Armani is an over-priced fashion-driven brand like Louis Vuitton, and I’m cynical of overused phrases such as “lots of attention to detail.” The article still failed to say anything substantive, even about the most basic construction points such as whether the suits were canvassed. More recently, a friend of mine in the industry commented that he thought Suitsupply’s suits were of good quality and that their made-to-measure program offered excellent value.
It turns out Suitsupply might be one of the better made-to-measure values around. A few points Putthison mentioned:
- First, the fabrics for the made-to-measure suits are excellent. The company uses Ariston and Vitale Barberis Canonico, two excellent mills that supply many high-end manufacturers and custom tailors.
- Second, everything is either half- or fully-canvassed. Production takes place in Portugal, Italy, Mexico, and China. I don’t know anything about the last three factories, but I do know that the Portuguese factory manufacturers for a number of very high-quality lines. I can’t reveal other people’s sourcing, but I have confidence the the manufacturing there is quite good given who else the factory serves.
- Third, there actually is an impressive level attention to detail. The Jort model, for example, has an incredible amount of handwork – the setting and sewing of shoulders; collar construction; sewing of canvas; attachment of buttons; and pick stitching are all done by hand.
- Fourth, there is the fit. Of course, it all comes down to fit. The sleeves are a touch short for my taste, but this can easily be addressed in the measuring process. The jacket seems to fit fairly well otherwise. Made-to-measure, as you know, takes a pre-made paper pattern and adjusts it to your measurements. Here, there are eighty points of adjustment. It’s not as ideal as bespoke, where something is truly custom made for you, but it’s quite good.
- Prices start at $899. It’s an expensive buy, but for a custom-made suit, with this level of materials, construction, and detailing, I think Suit Supply is an incredible deal’.
Tags: fashion, fashionlogistiek, suit supply
