Ultimate Wardrobe Thread

Brooks brothers and banana republic, the epitome of high class fashion. Best thing you can do to your look is be in shape. You may look shiny it your fancy clothes but you'll still be a fat bastard underneath.

Dress Shirts (12-15) - Charles Tyrwhitt slim fit (purchase in British currency and ship to US--> ~$45/shirt) Ties (3-5) - Vineyard Vines at Century 21 for

banana republic is definitely not the epitome of high class fashion, their stuff isn't very good. brooks brothers makes good stuff and is an american classic but, once again, not the epitome of high class fashion.

Gilt groupe - and why no ferragamos? Nordstrom shirts are nice, buy some Geoffrey beane ties or something and a couple CK suits or whatever you can snag off gilt.

Brooks brothers slim fit wrinkle free dress shirts and a few pairs slacks in dark browns, greys and blacks. Allen Edmonds or Ferragamo shoes - black and brown. burberry, hermes and zegna ties. zegna is not the best suit you can buy - go for a brioni if you have the cash it will last you forever. Otherwise stick with some reasonable options from Boss, zegna or canali

Tall and fit. Hit gym everyday. Looking for more fitted style, since most classic shirts have all the baggage around the stomach/hips which I hate.

this is an utter disaster. get a membership to gilt groupe for heavens sake lol. I think i saw someone actually write banana republic and brooks brothers were the "epitome of fashion". cmon you guys have to look halfway decent. and buy clothes that fit you. that may mean you probably need to loose a few pounds.

delljunkie:

3. Suits - Zegna by far I think is the best suit you can buy.

What percentage of analysts actually dress like the OP's recommendations (price-wise)? If OP were 100, and IlliniProgrammer were 0, I think I'd probably be about a 35...am I in the minority? Can't honestly imagine that I am...

talk to me abt gilt... just requested membership.......?

land's end is great for an analyst - decent quality stuff at very reasonable prices and very traditional/classic type of clothing. get the slim fit because their shirts are brooks brothers big. charles tyrwhitt is great too as they are very reasonably priced for their range. nice ties too

allen admonds make great shoes. you can get them for less than $100 on ebay (yes i'll get flack for this but it's actually an amazing source of clothes that might as well be new). however they are mostly lace-ups.

i think there's no reason to get semi-nice clothes like zegna at this point. i'd rather get good quality but very plain clothes as an analyst

Get a custom tailored suit and shirts. The suit will run you around $800 and each shirt will be around $80. For the suit use a local tailor but for the shirts you can use a place like Modern Tailor.

also, stop thinking in terms of mall fashion - zegna, hugo boss, etc. are not the best clothes, just overmarketed brands along the lines of coach, gucci etc.

i doubt zegna is the "best" suit out there.

agree with the custom recommendation

The most important part of the wardrobe is obviously the suit. Invest in a quality charcoal, navy and gray suit. If you can afford it, pick up a forth or fifth charcoal or navy with pinstripes. I also would recommend never paying retail for suit. You can always find quality marked down. If you try to go cheap on suits, you'll end up getting burned. You'll look like a used car salesman after a few months, and end up paying more by continuously having to buy and alter suits.

I've never bought anything made to measure. If you find a talented local tailor who will use quality fabric at a decent price, its probably worth it. I would strongly advise against buying a custom suit online from a place like indochino. I've heard some horror stories about the quality/fit.

How are the modern tailor shirts?

Is it uncommon in the US to have shirts actually made for you by a tailor?

I'm Italian, and here it's simply the way to go, especially businessmen they all have their shirts made. You can find both cheap ones (

I would also be very interested in hearing if people have recommendations for good tailors in NYC.

I tried a Hong Kong-based tailor who measured me in the city and then shipped me the final products but to be honest, neither the fit nor quality was great. I'd be happy to pay a little more for a good quality tailor actually based in NY. Off-the-rack clothing just does not work for me anymore.

For fuck's sake working in finance isn't a goddamn beauty pagent. Look decent and no one's gonna be able to difference between the boutique tie that costs a bill and the Van Heusen tie you picked up for ten bucks at TJ Max.

thx clever .. +1

lol this thread get better!

ok guys get a membership to gilt groupe, think "classic", "conservative", then buy a decent pair of oxfords with mentionable leather quality, and most of all make sure the clothes fit you. you can do 2 suits(with shirts ties shoes) for well under 2k. done.

When buying off the rack, where do you guys normally get things tailored? I don't trust these Asian drycleaners/tailors. Department store in-house tailors?

Shirts-Turnbull and Asser....budget TM Lewin (Go british or go home)

Ties-Hermes, Brioni, Bulgari (expensive as shit but will lift any shirt/suit and make everything your wearing look better).

Suits-Tailor (wouldnt spend on Brioni starting out but they are incredible). Fit is everything. If I was buying off the rack I would go Zegna though (Or brooks bros for a cheaper option).

Belt/cufflinks/wallet-Dunhill...No question for me.

Socks/underwear. I like tommy Hilfiger socks and boxers because their cheap and comfortable and good quality.

Watch-Omega speedmaster....functional, bullet proof and very cool...can be worn casual and dressed up and you'll have it for life...as you progress you can get a variety (more dressy etc.) but speedmaster is a good trade off for first watch. Like I said you'll have it forever.

Shoes-Forget overpriced Italian names go British. Harder to find modern, stylish british made shoes than Italian but they are much better quality. Have a look at John Lobb. John Lobb luffield is a great shoe.

Only slip ons Id wear are Tods loafers for very casual wear so cant really comment on them.

You should never pay full price for anything. Find a Bloomingdales outlet store and a Saks off fifth, you can get Brioni, Canali, and Versace ties for $50-70. Nice shirts for under a $100 (Hugo Boss shirts were $60) and Brunomagli shoes (extremely comfortable) for half price.

Shoes - Allen Edmonds or Magnanni

Pants - Wool Tailored

Shirts - Custom, modern tailor is a good selection

Socks - Gold Toe extra soft

Suits - Hickey Freeman or check out a custom tailor around 1K

Have you guys seen the "Hickey" suits for sale on Gilt? Are they "Hickey Freeman" suits or does there happen to be another suit maker by the name of "Hickey"? Looks like a pretty good deal if you can size it right.

Posting in this so I don't have to search.

Details matter the most. Watch- Rolex or Tag Shoes- Aldon Tie- Robert Talbot Suit- Custom Shirt and pants- Custom Business Card- water marks, etc

Shoes: Salvatore Ferragamo Shirts: Ralph Lauren Black Label Suits: Ralph Lauren Black Label, Paul Smith, Canali, Caruso, Kiton Ties: Brioni, RLBL, Ferragamo, Hermes Belts: Hermes, Ferragamo

Russian tailors are the best. Period.

I'll take it from the top. Keep in mind that I'm putting suggestions down that are suitable for an analyst (ie. not getting RIDICULOUSLY expensive:

Suits: 4 total (2 blue: 1 flat navy, 1 navy with a light, thin stripe; 2 grey: 1 charcoal, 1 slightly lighter grey) Moderate Price: Starter bespoke at Brooks Brothers can go for approx $650-700. Good cloth, great fit More Expensive: Zegna or Canali ($1500 - $2500). Crisp.

Shirts: 12-15 total (5 white, mid-spread collar; 5 LIGHT blue, mid-spread collar; 2-5 more of your choice, nothing too aggressive) Moderate: Anything Boss, Z Zegna will do. Nordstroms (NYC), TM Lewin (London) are good. I also really like the shirts from CTShirts.co.uk. Keep it under $100 a shirt, but NO LESS than $40. (You get what you pay for!) Expensive: Zegna or Canali (lol). You can also do the tailored monogrammed thing ($150-225 a shirt). Never been a huge fan, slim fits will do just fine.

Ties: 10 total (you can get creative here) Moderate: Brooks Brothers silk 7-fold (nice). I picked up 2 for $100 in August and they're great. You can also steal Hermes ties off e-bay. Expensive: Zegna, Canali, Ferragamo, Hermes, Charvet, etc

Shoes: 4 pairs Moderate: Can't go cheaper than $225 a pair here. Allen Edmonds (Bel Air or Strand) are timeless, 1 of each. Maybe a moderate brown (not light) pair of laceups, and a more casual pair of slipons (Cole Haan, Boss) Expensive: Anything Ferragamo, Canali, Gucci, Prada (nice slip-ons) etc

Belts: 2-3 black belts. Nice, classy, not too thin or thick. Nothing tasteless. Spend about $100 or you'll get shit leather.

Other: -Don't get too creative with the socks. -I'm not a big fan of undershirts, unless you want to look like the IT guy. I've met people who disagree with me on this... -I'm not too knowledgeable about the watch situation, but I wouldn't go too far either way. A first year analyst wearing a Submariner might feel out of place, but so will the one wearing a G-shock or a Timex.

"Dress for success, and expect nothing less"

AND.....

A nice overcoat. There's nothing like running into an MD in the elevator in the middle of winter, and having him ask you whether you're on your way to go skiing.

Cashmere... These can get expensive (upwards of $1500). Wool-Cashmere is OK as well, I'd go with a dark grey Boss.

Charvet ties are another great call.

I think the most important thing is to be aware of what your spending your money on. For example an Armani suit and Hugo boss tie prob wont be much more expensive than a quality tailor made suit and Hermes/Brioni/Charvet tie but with one outfit your paying for brand name and the other quality.

Same goes for shoes. A good guide is to look for unknown names that are still expensive and have a good history. Not many people know the likes of Turnball and Asser but their shirts are still expensive. There is a reason for this.

Oh and general tip...avoid Rolex like the plaque...rediculously overpriced and a prime example of what Im talking about above. A 25k Rolex is a 5k watch with a 20k brand name stamped across the face.

What analyst wears a rolex that cost $25k? What analyst even wears a watch that costs $5K?

How can I justify.spending more than 100 dollars on shoe? U mad my rockports/stevemadden/colehaans look the same as you 500+ shoes. Yeah u mad

I wear jeans, converse and t-shirts / casual shirts most days...might wear a suit if someones taking me somewhere fancy for lunch.

Buyside or broke.

Too much focus on brands in this thread.

Focus on style, fit, and quality. Nobody gives a shit what brand it is you're wearing so long as it looks good on you.

I would recommend CEGO on 28th and 5th for custom shirts, if you need them. In-person fitting, more choices, USA-made.

All of your top brand suits/slacks/shirts aren't worth a damn unless you're wearing modal underneath. You can't walk around in a zegna or boss suit with a $2.99 cotton banana hammock from wal-mart between your legs and some cheap baggy cotton T under your slim fit shirt. CK modal briefs and modal t-shirts from Nordstrom, or better yet, a CK underwear outlet store. On the expensive side, but is the biggest value-add for your wardrobe. You will actually feel better about your life in modal briefs.

+1 million on Modern Tailor for shirts

Once you get your measurement right, the shirts are beautiful. Slim fit is key. Price is almost the same as off the rack (sometimes even cheaper if you buy a fabric thats on sale)

I bought 2 pairs of Slim Fit Pants, never again! They are are like spandex. If I do order pants from them again I'll have to go with the normal fit with some extra length.

Shirts: You mention being tall and fit, so this is up my alley (6'1", 175, gym + run). Brooks Brothers Extra Slim Fit. It's all the difference. The Charles Tyrwhitt are great, but there's just something standard and clean about the broadcloth Brooks shirts. Check their website every 10-14 days or so, random styles will go on sale every now and then. Definitely pay attention to the semiannual sales, every May/June and early December they host a doorbuster sale, if you're 100% confident in your measurements pick up a number of shirts online, but they offer all of about 6 different options in ESF online and half of them aren't fit for the office. The Madison Ave flagship has far more, so if you run in real quick during the semiannual, you're golden.

Shoes: As everyone else is saying, Allen Edmonds are another de facto standard. A lot of people like to talk about Johnson and Murphy, but I find that my feet tend to look a bit clunky in theirs. You may be similar since we have the same body type, I'm a wide-ish 12 or 13 and it's just never been a good look for me. The AE shoes are more forgiving in my opinion.

Undergarments: http://www.tommyjohnwear.com/ Made by professionals for professionals, these are absolutely phenomenal shirts. Just as someone earlier talked a bit about modal cotton for briefs, you also want to go that direction for shirts. These hug your body, eliminate all that excess fabric, and look infinitely better under a slimmer shirt; in short, far better both functionally and aesthetically.

Go Calvin with briefs. Their Micro X or Micro Modal boxer briefs are the only carrier I'm comfortable trusting my package with, haha. Hard to rip these even if you play extreme sports, comfortable beyond compare, and form-hugging enough to make you forget you've got them on underneath a suit or slacks.

One other thing to remember with all this is to not be too ostentatious too soon. Bryan over on M&I had some wise advice on this, suggesting that it's better to hold off the highest quality stuff or flashier, more noticeable items until your first bonus. Don't do anything to stand out in your analyst class right away, give them no reason to think you don't absolutely need every penny of that bonus. Basically, you want to fit in without standing out by dressing tastelessly.

thanks for that. a posse.

i checked out brooks and i like their style. going to pick a couple up their having 15% off rite now. about 58 a shirt

No problem. Another thing about the Brooks semiannual sales is that you have to get 3 to get the discount.

Also, what's with all the SBs for the early posts on the front page?

my bad posse. heres ur sb +1

thanks for this! SUMMARY

shoes allen edmonds and ferragamos. thats the consensus.

shirts: brooks and modern tailor

ties :ferrgamo hermes carvet canali zegna

the rest is good. i already have 3 suits. one boss, one CK, one theory.