In Review: UNIQLO’s New Stretch Wool Blazers

UNIQLO Stretch Wool Blazer – $111.90 w/ LUCKY18 ($129.90)

Note: These also ship free since they land at over $99.00. The grey glen plaid option is shown in this post. Also available in navy, a slate-looking blue, black, as well as solid mid to lighter grey.

– The GOOD news for broader guys: UNIQLO has relaxed the chest and waist area on their blazers.

– The BAD news for slim guys: UNIQLO has relaxed the chest and waist area on their blazers.

– The GOOD news for everybody: UNIQLO is back to using easier to tailor, non functioning sleeve buttons on these blazers.

– The BAD news for everybody: UNIQLO still chops their blazer tails and their sleeves run long.

Left: UNIQLO’s old Medium jacket fit on 5’10” / 180ish | Right: the new Medium Fit on 5’10” / 190.
Lower button stance. More generous fit. Still pretty short in the tail.

The Bottom Line: The fabric and construction are nice, but yet again, UNIQLO’s jacket template doesn’t seem like it’s going to work for most. Even though they’ve move to a more Americanized expansion of room through the chest and waist.

Being that they kept the chopped tail, wider framed guys are probably going to want to stay away despite UNIQLO targeting them with this new cut. Why? The last thing broad guys want in a jacket is to have a chopped tail. All that does is make you look wider than you may already be. Disproportional even. You risk a certain… Sponge Bob Square Pants effect (not that Sponge Bob doesn’t get it done sometimes). It’s now too big for the slim dudes, and still too chopped for the wider fellas.

Left: The Uniqlo in size Medium. Right: J. Crew Crosby size 40R.
Notice the difference in tail length and the effect that has.

Yet… it’s not a terrible jacket either. It’s a decent jacket. You’ve just got to be of medium to somewhat larger build, and okay with a shorter tail. That’s a personal preference for many. Plus, button stance doesn’t seem to be as high as it used to be, and the 98% wool (they claim Super 110s) 2% spandex shell does seem to have a noticeable flexibility to it. It’s not as stretchy as Banana Republic’s Traveler Denim, but it has some bounce. The back is almost totally unlined, while the sleeves and front are lined in the expected polyester.

Butterfly lined back. Non functioning sleeve buttons, but they do have accent stitching.

If UNIQLO could only find a way to extend the tail another inch or so, and swap out the polyester lining for something more breathable, then they’d really be onto something for those of us in the broader shoulder/chest/core camp. But the truly slim guys are almost certainly NOT going to be happy with this new template. And that’s going to irritate many of UNIQLO’s base clientele, who sought out the brand for their extra lean proportions.

And irritating that base, especially when UNIQLO isn’t doing so hot as it is, might be a major risk.

From some angles, the tail doesn’t look so bad. A good jacket. Not a great one.