Review: The Indochino Traveling Tailor – Chicago
Post and photos by Arts & Culture correspondent Ben Madeska. Expect a follow up review on the suit once it arrives. Also expect more of these Traveling Tailor events. San Francisco? Looks like you’re on deck.
Before this, I had never been fitted for a custom suit. A few years ago while in Rome I went into a tailor’s shop and picked a white suit (when in Rome…) off the rack, and since they had a tailor on site, I had some alterations done on the spot. The few other suits I own are all ready-to-wear from places like Macy’s and Banana Republic. They fit my lanky frame well enough after minimal tailoring.
Because I have long, thin limbs I’m wary of ordering clothing online. I had checked out the Indochino website and I liked what they offered, but I had never pulled the trigger. Their new Traveling Tailor pop-up shops promised to take the guesswork out the process. Before hitting their Traveling Tailor in Chicago for my fitting I had decided the fabric I wanted, the essential Navy two piece, but not much else.
I walked in the Great Hall at Union Station in Chicago a bit early for my reservation and was immediately given over to a tailor. She began by asking some basic measurement questions, and it quickly became apparent to the two of us that I was new to this process. Height and weight? 6’4” and 185. So far, so good. She then measured my neck and we were on our way.
I had made a point of wearing a dress shirt and dress shoes, but I wore blue jeans instead of suit pants, so she had to pull the tape measure a bit tight when measuring for the pants. She explained that jeans are a thicker fabric and she had to compensate when measuring for suit fabric.
I was given a sample suit to try on, and it was about at this point that I became extremely self-conscious about standing in the middle of the Great Hall in an ill-fitting sample suit being measured and recorded. Commuters and tourists walked by and I stared straight ahead into the mirror.
The jacket fit pretty well, but the pants were too tight, so the tailor gave me another pair to try on. I did a few squats in these without busting out the seams and pronounced them a good fit. She then started taking finer measurements and asking my fit preferences. “Does the jacket fit right in the chest.” “Yeah…it seems ok.” She hesitated. “Or not…do you think it should be tighter?” She cinched it just a bit and asked how that felt.
Fitting samples at the ready.
That was the routine for all subsequent measurements. An extra inch or so was added to the sleeve and pants lengths, and the hem of the jacket. Other places were brought in. I had a general idea of what I wanted in a suit and she was able to refine it. Measurements taken, I was passed off to my personal stylist.
First choice was suit fabric. I knew I wanted a navy suit, but I stopped to look at some of the other options. I wanted an idea of what these looked liked in person in case I ordered online in the future.
Indochino brings along bolts of their suiting fabric so customers can get a closer look.
For the suit lining I was inclined to take a more conservative choice (blue or grey, probably), but my stylist steered me towards more interesting options. The nice thing here was that I could actually put the two fabrics together to see how they worked. I opted for the pink (yes, pink), at my stylist’s suggestion.
More customization: Notch lapel, slim. Two buttons. Center vent. No pick stitching. Slanted pockets. No waist pocket. Functional sleeve buttons. Boutonniere. Belt loops. No pleats. No cuffs. Etc. I didn’t always have strong preferences, and for every option the stylist was able to give a suggestion, a personal opinion, an explanation.
Indochino’s Midnight Blue Tuxedo on display
Because I had made a reservation, Indochino included a custom shirt with the suit. Again, they had all the shirt options available for me to look at, and again I was able to look at suit fabric with the shirt options to help make my decision. At the suggestion of my stylist, I opted for the gray tattersall. All that remained was to pick the collar (medium) and cuffs (two button, angled).
If I were to choose again, I would take the opportunity to go formal for my one and only custom-made shirt. At the time I decided to get something I would get a lot of regular use out of. I just don’t have much call to pull out my cuff links these days.
Finally, they included their suit utility kit with the purchase, including a black silk tie, tie clip, cuff links, pocket square, and tape measure. Joe reviewed the kit earlier here.
From start to finish, the process took less than half an hour, and I have to assume I was on the long side. It was extremely smooth and professional. The staff was helpful and patient with someone who was clearly new to the full-customization process, gracefully steering me away from poor decisions. I have high hopes for the completed suit.
Full disclosure: Indochino did not pay for this review in any form, which is our protocol. Suit has been paid for in full. Since Ben had never gone through the Indochino experience, we figured it was best to send him for perspective. Meanwhile, The Daily Hookup is running an Indochino Deal right now. $320 for a $379 suit plus a free shirt & tie. Vouchers exp. 9/27/12.
Nice write-up, Ben. It sounds like you may have had a slightly more helpful experience with the stylist than I did, but it’s possible I got the ‘B’ game because it was the last night of the event and I was not buying a suit. Hope you’re happy with your suit when it arrives.
I wrote-up more about my experience in the Dappered Threads. http://threads.dappered.com/topic/indochino-traveling-tailorchicago-review#post-36602
I wonder if they knew he were writing up a review?
I had a few hours to kill on my way back from a business trip, and I decided to run around chicago, and lo and behold INDOCHINO was in Union Station! I had heard a lot of mixed things about them from a lot of people that I knew weren’t suit experts. I happen to live in Rochester where I do most of my suit shopping at the Hickey Freeman factory store, so I have a high standard.
Unfortunately, when I came up close to these suits, I was severely disappointed, even though the designs, patterns, and cuts were fantastic, it was very apparent that the material is very cheap, and the craftsmanship was sub-par. I suppose it is what one would expect from a $380 suit, but I wanted so badly for the quality to surprise me.
I do think that everyone should have an excellent tailoring experience, such that Ben had here, but do it with a suit that you’ll be unashamed of wearing. I can’t tell you the pride of having an 80 year old Italian Tailor compliment me on my choice of suit and fabric.
just my two cents. I hope you do like your suit Ben.
Thanks! I’ve been really curious about Indochino and the whole tailoring process in general. This was really interesting!
Great idea having a for-all posted review!
I had a pretty good experience at Chicago’s Traveling Tailor, including meeting the Indochino co-founder. I don’t think I was asked as many questions as you were, but I felt like I had free reign to consider everything on my own. It was no-hassle and enjoyable.
Here’s my review from the Forums: http://threads.dappered.com/topic/indochino-traveling-tailorchicago-review#post-34941
Indochino is interesting. It’s been between them and suit supply for my next suit. I’ve seen some great fitting suits from Indochino and some where it left me puzzled. It all depends on how correct your measurements are when ordering online.
I’ve seen the measurement videos and read a bunch of reviews on Indochino and it sounds like the best way to mitigate any fit issues is by sending the most accurate measurements as possible.
I’m not confident in my ability to measure myself. Has anyone had themselves measured by a tailor and ordered from Indochino?
Great walk-through. Really looking forward to the follow-up review.
If anyone is wondering, you can apply that Daily Hookup voucher to a more expensive suit, you just have to pay the difference. So essentially you’re paying $320 for a $527 voucher. I’ve taken this opportunity to bite on a three piece essential navy.
I haven’t tried Indochino, but I can’t say enough about the two Napoli suits that I’ve purchased from Suitsupply. If you’re fortunate enough to be in a city that has a store (NYC, Chicago, DC maybe?), I would highly recommend visiting. Luckily I’m in Chicago and have had an excellent experience each time I’ve gone. But, for the price, I couldn’t be happier with the fit and quality of Suitsupply.
(Sorry to hijack the thread, great review. Wish I had made it to the fitting).
Oof. Well, part of me thinks I shouldn’t respond, but since we had a rush of new visitors to the site yesterday thanks to the JCPenney Boots post going up on Reddit (hello new guys) I think this might be a decent opportunity to sort of explain what Dappered is all about.
There are two kinds of people in this men’s style world.
1. Those who see clothes as a means to an end.
2. Those who see clothes as THE end.
There’s nothing shameful about wearing a $380 suit. That’s no small chunk of change to many of us. And while Indochino is obviously divisive, I personally prefer their fabrics over most department store suits (Alfani RED, Hilfiger, Bar III, etc…). I think their more expensive Vinero line claims to use the same wool as RL black label suiting? http://www.forbes.com/sites/edzitron/2012/05/15/indochino/ So that said, can their essentials really be that big of a step down? I don’t know. Maybe in some eyes, but I really like the essential Grey and Navy I have.
I’ll stop being an Indochino apologist now
I’ve seen the horror stories/bad fit pics on the web. They’re far from perfect.
It’s all about your goals. What do you want the suit for? My personal target demo isn’t an 80 year old tailor. It’s me, and also I suppose, the Mrs. I wear clothes that make me feel my best. You know it when you look your best. People can feel it. An inexpensive suit that’s been well tailored that’s being worn by a guy with confidence is going to look better than any ol’ poorly tailored $1000 suit 99% of the time. Especially if he’s out to do more than look good in a suit that day.
Much appreciate the comment and the tone of your comment Alex. I’m also looking forward to Ben’s follow up. Should be interesting to see how Indochino does now that the self-measurement error scenario has been eliminated.
I attended this fitting. The tailor was very knowledgeable but the stylist was a disaster. I walked in knowing I wanted their Prince of Wales suit. The stylist, however ordered something called the “blue Prince of Wales” suit, which I didn’t catch upon leaving the fitting. After being over charged by $20 and having that cleared up, I finally e-mailed about the “blue” part of prince of Wales. I was assured that I did order the blue one, which was impossible since it’s a color not yet available to the public. After arguing via e-mail with 4 different representatives from Indochino (one phone call could have cleared this up, but of course they are unreachable via phone) their mistake was rectified, my order was canceled and a new, proper suit was ordered. This, after reminding the representative who asked for my measurements and customization preferences that they were available in my previous order (isn’t this why we set up accounts with them?). This took the better part of a week and a half. I have been promised I’ll receive my suit by 9/17.
I understand the idea behind being an internet only outlet, but to have no means of communication with the company other than a 24 hour turnaround e-mail response is irresponsible at best and unethical at worst.
do you have to take the shirt/tie/etc? or can you use the voucher on a $500 suit?
As someone who attended the event as well – just a few clarifications on your write-up. The person who took your measurements was not at all a tailor. The guy I had was someone with an interest in fashion that they had hired as a temp off craiglist. Same goes for the “stylist”. Yes, they both received training from Indochino on what to do, but by no means was either a professional. I knew far more about suiting, fabrics, and Indochino’s options specifically than any of the 3 stylists I talked to. In fact, when I was there, only one person out of the whole crew was actually from Indochino – a guy from the Vancouver office.
There was a similar write-up from this guy. Looks like the same place as Ben.
http://tuttofattoamano.blogspot.com/2012/08/indochino-or-how-to-sell-clothing-to.html
How much did the Suitsupply picks run you?
Wes, I’m very picky about what I wear and I love my charcoal Napoli SuitSupply suit. It ran ~$475.
I have no interest in debating the quality or value of Indochino’s suits. However, all of the Indochino suits posted on here, the Dappered Threads, and other forums are unattractive in my eyes. The designs simply aren’t to my taste.
The Napoli is $469, plus any tailoring you may need. I don’t recall the exact prices of the tailoring, but it was reasonable and comparable with other tailors. I know they have a line that is $399 as well, however I didn’t try one of those on so I can’t speak to how they fit.
Will you be posting the completed product so we can see how it turned out? I have seen some negative reviews about these Indochino popup tailors (bad measurements, suits that needed to be remade, etc) and would like to see how it turned out for Ben.
I also dealt with the guy from the Vancouver office (Tyler). He was quite helpful and was a bit surprised about the knowledge/questions I had for him. Overall it was a good experience and I am very happy with my first suit. Some alterations still need to be adjusted, but they will have my business again.
“…unethical at worst.” What, did they invade Poland, too?
Yessir… “Expect a follow up review on the suit once it arrives.”
As far as I understand you have to take the shirt and tie, but a quick email to Indochino would clear it up.
I personally have no issues with the shirt and tie included. It allows me to try their shirts and neckties with what is approximately a ~15% off coupon on the three piece I’ve been wanting to purchase for a while.
haha unethical
Ahh, didn’t see that up top, seems I skip over the italics a lot. Have to learn to read better…though was expecting it to appear at the end.
Should I flip my collar as well?
One thing I don’t believe you disclosed was whether or not the folks were informed or figured out that you’d be doing a review. Did you tip them off in any way that you write for a style blog? They must have had some sort of indication based on the camera you were toting around… It seems to me there’s a high probability that they intentionally paid more attention to you and made sure you were handled by their top tailor & personal stylist (especially if you tipped them off and then refused any perks they offered you).
I fail to see my use of the word as hyperbole. Their inaccessibility when they already have payment could be seen to border on unethical business practice.
That sounds pretty cool. I’d totally use a service like this.
I ordered a suit online and it didn’t come out right at all. My fault for measuring incorrectly, but I followed the directions perfectly. Unfortunately, they only give you 14 days to address the problem and I was much too busy to address it within that window. I now have an new Indochino suit that’s going to the garbage. Won’t be buying from them again.