Behind every bespoke suit is a story. That story starts with the customer.
As part of a series of blogs from Edinburgh Tailoring Company, we’ll look at some of those stories, and explore what our customers were looking for when they came to us, how their tailoring stories progressed, and the final results.
For this post, our Edinburgh Bespoke Tailoring Consultant, John Maines, looks at the wedding suit we made for his customer, Paul, over in our Manchester studio.
The challenge
Paul came to us looking for a suit he could wear to special events (birthdays, work events, weddings), and it was his first time ever purchasing a bespoke suit. He’d wanted a fitted suit to show off his muscular physique, aware he couldn’t achieve that when buying off the peg.
He had a particular work event coming up, but he also wanted high quality garments he’d be able to wear again and again; an investment piece for his wardrobe.
He’d initially reached out to John through word of mouth and having also seen our brand on social media, and was motivated to commit to his first order based on the strength of friend recommendations.
Paul’s work event was in just 10 weeks, so it was vital his suit would be ready on time. John explained this wouldn’t be a problem, as we’d be able to take advantage of our expedited service, whilst still leaving plenty of time for fittings.
The solution
During Paul’s consultation, he explained what he was looking for in terms of style; something fun, light, quite relaxed – and nothing too corporate. Although he was a fan of bright colours, he wanted something with a traditional element to it, whilst still reflecting his own personality.
John talked him through all of his options, let him pick from different swatches of fabrics, and advised on what would and wouldn’t work for the look he was going for. In the end, Paul chose a modern single-breasted, two-button jacket, with contrast stitching on the sleeves, and contrast buttons.
During the consultation, John knew it was important to keep Paul’s budget in mind, so started by getting an idea of the colours Paul was interested in before only showing him swatches in his price range.
Paul chose an electric blue colour in one of our pure wools; a midweight cloth, around 12oz, and a great choice he would be able to wear to occasions all year round. He chose a gold paisley lining for the inside of the jacket and back of the waistcoat; the latter detailed with brown horn buttons.
It was a fabulous choice!
The results
Paul was really happy with the results. Our expedited service meant the suit was ready for him to try on in our studio in just five weeks, and a couple of fittings later meant his suit was ready well ahead of time for his event.
Any good tailor will know all the little tricks and solutions to get the fabric to handle the right way on the body, so at the end of the fitting process, it really does feel as comfortable as a second skin.
Paul’s electric blue, fitted suit with contrasting details fitted him down to a tee, and he got the exact look he’d been wanting to achieve since Day 1. He was so impressed, he became a returning customer, and since we already had his measurements, it was even simpler to order more garments – including a grey cashmere overcoat!
Here’s what Paul had to say:
”Excellent suit, fits perfectly. Communication was good throughout. John’s measurement and consultation in the Manchester branch was useful and, without being pushy, he gave sound advice on what would (and more importantly, would not) work well on a suit and some shirts. Very happy with the results.”
