Question:
Hello-
I just stumbled on this forum but it looks like quite the resource!
I just graduated college and am starting law school in the fall. I will need to purchase at least one new suit in the next few weeks. As I'm a student, I don't have nearly the resources of most of the people on this forum (no $600 shoes, thats for damn sure!), but I'd like to make this purchase correctly. I am from a pretty small town so I don't have a ton of places to look but I have found two options in the $300 range that look appealing:
1. A navy blue "Palm Beach" (I think by HS&M) 2 button suit.
2. A slate Banana Republic 3 button with cool flat front pants.
Do any of you style gurus have any opinions? I know the most important thing with either is a great fit, and I know a very good tailor who will alter whatever I get. I also will need to purchase a couple of shirts (I think I'm set on ties). Any general advice for my kind of price range is appreciated!
Thanks a ton!
Answer:
whats the total budget?
Answer:
Flexible, but say $500. More if you can talk me into it.
Answer:
For this kind of price, you are going to be getting a fused suit, meaning the fabric is glued to the interlining, rather than canvased.
Where do you live? I'd probably go check out the local high-end outlet, if you have one. Brooks Brothers might have something for you, as might Joseph Abboud and Burberry.
Answer:
I was told that the Palm Beach suit was not fused at all, was the saleswoman mistaken?
Answer:
I live near Minneapolis/ St. Paul.
Answer:
yeah look for
http://www.brooksbrothers.com/storel...ing_stores.tem
Answer:
go to the store, take a picture of urself, or have a friend take a pic of u, in that suit (with a white dress shirt and dark red or navy tie). oh, and post prices.
then we'll let u know if it's good.
in ur price range and for the use u'll get out of that suit, i'd say a fused suit is fine.
seed
Answer:
As a rising 3L, this is what I think...If you are hurting for money, I'd recommend waiting until you have a clearer picture of what you'll be trying to interview for in the winter (you can't even send out applications until Dec. 1). Most people don't even have an in-person interview in the first year, and if you spring for a cheaper suit now you'll be wasting money - if you don't end up having to go on an interview, you'll waste most of your clothing budget on a useless suit and won't be able to afford to buy the business casual clothes that might be necessary if you plan on attending firm events during 1L year. It isn't like you won't be able to decide in November that you may need a suit and buy one then, but you also may decide at that point that it simply isn't necessary and that you wish you had waited to buy nicer suits at a later point for 2L on-campus interviewing.
Answer:
Here are my 2 cents.
If you wait until you actually have an interview scheduled to go look for suits, you will end up either overpaying for a good suit or buying a crappy suit and not having enough time to tailor it properly. I suggest just keeping an eye out for some good deals between now and December. Once you get a feel for how much a good suit costs, you will know when to pull the trigger.
Currently, Brooks Brothers is having a clearance sale. At my local BB, Golden Fleece suits are on clearance for $898 and 1818 suits are on clearance for $498. Those are pretty good prices, but not great. Also if you have Dillard's nearby, there is a clearance going on as well. You might find some HSM Gold Trumpeter suits there on clearance or even some Hickey Freeman (although maybe not on clearance).
Many law career counselors will tell you "Don't feel bad if you don't get an interview as a 1L" and such, but don't get discouraged from applying. More 1L's get summer jobs than you might expect (where you go to school is also somewhat of a factor).
Answer:
If you have till fall, eBay is your cheapest option (the archives tell you how). If you want something slightly fashionable, Thick as Thieves. If you want something conservative and disposable, Target is often recommended.
Are you likely to need a full wardrobe of suits for your first internship? If so, you're gonna need more than $500...
Answer:
Oh yeah, another thing you will need to be on the lookout for is a navy blazer. Even if you don't get any interviews, you will most likely get invited to many law firm receptions, where the dress code is almost always business casual. It's always fun to see those clueless law students who show up wearing a polo, khakis, and rubber soled shoes while all the lawyers are dressed in true business casual.
Answer:
head over to a nordstrom rack or a macys near you. alot of decent suits, ties, shoes, shirts at the rack, and right now i think macys is having one of their extra clearance sales to make some of their house suits and other brand name suits at around 100-200 dollars.
Answer:
My point was not that he would likely not be able to secure an interview than that very few 1L summer jobs actually involve an interview. As far as I know, every 1L has a summer job - I certainly wouldn't recommend not working over the summer as that would have an extremely negative impact on his later career options. Depending on where he's going to school, what he is very likely to encounter is law firm and other events that require decent business casual attire - hence my suggestion to focus initially on that.
Answer:
While I completely respect the fact that someone is a student, I must express a little surprise in that the budget to dress for an interview which may have an impact on the rest of one's life is only $500. Many students own computers which cost more than that. To have invested so much in the educational process and to jeopardise it all in order to save a few bucks on a suit seems a precarious thing to do. It just goes to show how little regard for the importance of dress people have these days. Maybe in the old days, the family would have insisted on their son dressing properly for the interview and would have paid for a suit with the same earnestness they did for the college tuition fees - in order to give him that little bit of an edge over his peers in life. But then in the past proper dress was considered an absolute necessity, whereas today it is regarded as an absurd extravagance.
