Suit shopping

Hey everyone,

I am trying to buy a new suit, so I am ready for potential interviews. I know the most important part is to get it tailored and that color should be charcoal/navy blue. I found a nice suit online that fits my budget, the website states it is charcoal, but it looks almost black. Is that ok, or should it be more on the grey side?

And what about shoes? I like brown shoes, but is that appropriate?

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Also, get good shoes, a good belt and a good tie. A shitty tie is easily recognizable. A decent tie costs $100-200. It better be a good triangle on the knot. Always belt length. You need at least one baller tie / interview tie, so it’s worth it.

White shirt - no buttons on the collar. French cuffs optional (sometimes they are fun to rock).

If you prefer a different color shirt than white, it shouldn’t be too dark. And don’t double stripe (striped tie + striped shirt). Too much activity can be bad. If you want a tie with little animals, offset it with a light solid shirt.

Don’t get Gordon Gekko heavy pinstripe suit styles unless you are one closing mofo rolling around in a Rolls Royce Phantom with a driver. You can get pinstripe, but subtle is key. A navy suit with light lines (ie light blue lines) on it can look super crisp.

Light plaid is okay, but heavy plaid is distracting and dated.

"If you always put limits on everything you do, physical or anything else, it will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them." - Bruce Lee
 
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Since this is your first suit, I'd recommend the following:

  1. A navy blue suit. It's more universal than a grey suit, and a better starting point from which you can build your wardrobe. Brands like Suit Supply, J.Crew, and Bonobos are going to be a little bit above your price range, but they are all high quality and will last you for years. Better to pony up cash now for a suit that will last a long time in your closet than spend $100 dollars less for something low quality that will last you no time at all - provided you take good care of what you buy in the first place. Make sure that you suit jacket is structured, meaning it has a silk lining in the back, which is the gold-standard for most brands. It makes the jacket warmer and more resilient to wrinkling, and gives it a fuller look. Unstructured suits are for the summer, and unnecessary until your wardrobe gets more developed. Any suit that you get from these brands should be well tailored already, hopefully with no after-market tailoring needing to be done.
  2. I'd go with black shoes and a black belt instead of brown. Black is subtler and goes well with many many more things than brown does. You can wear a nice pair of black shoes with a suit, with simple slacks of many colors, and even with a tuxedo these days. I'd say for shoes, go Allen Edmonds. The price is high, but there is nothing worse than a pair of poorly made shoes. Again, if you treat them well, they'll last you for years. I just re-soled a pair of Allen Edmonds shoes that I've had for 6 years, and they look brand new, and will last me another 6 years. Any company that you end up buying the shoes from should also have an accompanying belt that you should purchase. You can also buy socks from the same company - I wouldn't go anything loud in that department quite yet, just black/dark grey/navy blue will suffice.
  3. Purchase a few white shirts. You can go to a tailor and get yourself measured, and there are a host of websites (I, and my coworkers as well, buy from Charles Tyrwhitt) you can buy basically custom made shirts from. You can go with a bunch of collar styles, doesn't matter if it has buttons or not. Most people do buttonless these days - and if you do end up going buttonless, get a pair of plastic collar stays to keep your collar looking crisp. Charles Tyrwhitt shirts come with metal collar stays, but they're easily lost and it's always nice to have a few back ups.
  4. Ties are the hardest part. They say the most about who you are and are your area for differentiation. Go for something subtle, though. You'll be an analyst, after all. You want 100% silk, and with a simple pattern. I'd recommend going to any mall (once this coronavirus clears up) and taking a walk through Bloomingdales or Neiman Marcus. They tend to have a larger selection of ties of superb quality, and if you look carefully some of them won't break the budget.

More than happy to expand on any of these if anyone has any thoughts. If I had to look back on my first suit, this is what I'd want.

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