Bespoke Suits in Los Angeles

Mr James makes fully bespoke, fully canvassed suits from $1,795. Every garment is cut from a pattern drawn for one client and made by our own atelier in Southern Brittany, France. Unlimited fittings and a year of complimentary alterations are included. Four to six weeks, or six to eight in imported Italian and English cloth.

There is a great deal of loose language in this trade. Shops advertise “bespoke” for a stock pattern in a chosen cloth, and “canvassed” for a jacket that is mostly glued. What follows is exactly what we do, with the prices attached, so you can judge us against anyone else in the city on the same terms.

Where the suits are made

Mr James is a European house. Robb founded it in 2010 with Max, our French atelier, who still makes every garment in Southern Brittany. We have been in Los Angeles since 2015 and in Playa del Rey since 2021 — sixteen years of the same hands doing the same work.

As far as we know we are the only genuinely European suitmaker in Los Angeles. There are other fine tailors in this city and we would happily send you to several of them. What we do not think anyone can match is the combination: a French atelier, full canvas as standard, and a starting price of $1,795.

What it costs

Price is set by the cloth. Nothing else changes: every suit at every price is fully bespoke, fully canvassed, with unlimited fittings.

In the finer mills:

  • Drago — from $2,995
  • Zegna — from $3,495
  • Holland & Sherry — from $3,495
  • Loro Piana — from $3,995

Every price includes unlimited fittings and one year of complimentary alterations. Fifty per cent is taken at cloth selection and the balance on delivery. A wedding party of several suits is discounted twenty per cent. A rush order carries a twenty-five per cent surcharge.

We do not make cheaper made-to-measure garments. It is not that we look down on them — it is that a full-canvas bespoke suit from our own atelier starts at $1,795, which is where a good deal of made-to-measure already sits.

What makes a suit bespoke

A bespoke suit begins with a pattern drafted for your figure alone — your posture, the set of your shoulders, the way you actually stand rather than the way a mannequin does. That pattern is kept and adjusted over the life of the relationship. No two clients share one.

The canvas is the second difference, and the one nobody can see. A fully canvassed jacket has a layer of horsehair and wool floating between the cloth and the lining, attached by hand. It takes the shape of your chest over the first months of wearing and holds it. A fused jacket has that structure glued in. It looks similar on the rail and it never moulds to anyone. Every suit we make is full canvas. There is no other option here, at any price.

The third difference is the one you can see, and it is worth learning to read: how a jacket sits at the collar and the shoulder. We have set out eleven fit checks you can make in a mirror, including which faults an alteration can correct and which are drafted into the pattern and cannot.

If you are weighing us against another house, there are nine questions worth asking any tailor in Los Angeles — canvas, pattern, workroom, fittings, price and what happens in the year afterwards. Our own answers to all nine are at the foot of that piece.

How the process works

The first consultation takes an hour and costs nothing.

  • Consultation. You meet Robb or Ben and we explain what full bespoke actually involves. Then you choose — cloth first, with the price of each in front of you, then linings, buttons, detailing and any monogram.
  • Measurement. Around thirty measurements, head to toe, plus three photographs: front, side and back. Posture and stance are recorded, not just dimensions.
  • Making. The pattern is drafted and the garment cut and made by hand in our atelier in France.
  • Fittings. Most clients have three in total, counting the consultation. Some take four or five. There is no limit and no charge — we fit until it is right.
  • Delivery. A final try-on, and a year of complimentary alterations afterwards.

Four to six weeks for domestic cloth. Six to eight for imported Italian and English cloth, which takes two to three weeks longer to reach the atelier. We can work faster when we have to, at a twenty-five per cent surcharge, but we would rather space the fittings a week apart and do it properly.

What to wear to your consultation: fitted trousers or jeans and a T-shirt, or a well-fitted shirt. Nothing baggy, and please not shorts — we cannot read your figure through loose clothing.

Weddings

Six months before the wedding is perfect. Three months is comfortable. We have made suits in six weeks and we will tell you honestly when we are working at the edge of what is sensible.

We would rather not start a year out. Men change shape — a training regime, a new job, the wedding diet — and a suit cut to a body from twelve months ago is a suit that needs remaking. Three to six months is the window.

Groomsmen and wedding parties are discounted twenty per cent. There is also a timeline for grooms, a note on choosing between a tuxedo and a suit, and a guide to dressing a wedding party.

Common questions

How much does a bespoke suit cost in Los Angeles?

Ours start at $1,795 for a two-piece, fully canvassed and fully bespoke. Finer mills run from $2,995 to $3,995. The price is the cloth; the making is the same at every level.

How long does a bespoke suit take?

Four to six weeks in domestic cloth, six to eight in imported Italian or English cloth. Rush orders are possible at a twenty-five per cent surcharge.

How many fittings will I need?

Most clients have three, counting the first consultation. Some need four or five. Fittings are unlimited and included — we do not stop until the suit is right.

How should a bespoke suit fit?

The collar lies flat against the shirt with no gap, the shoulder seam ends where your shoulder ends, the front closes on the waist button without strain lines, and the trouser breaks once over the shoe. Those four carry most of it, and the first two cannot be altered in afterwards — they are drafted into the pattern. There are eleven checks here you can make yourself in a mirror.

Do you offer made-to-measure?

No. Every suit we make is full canvas and fully bespoke, cut from your own pattern. Our starting price sits where much made-to-measure already sits, so there is little reason to offer a lesser garment.

What cloth weight suits the Los Angeles climate?

Lighter and more open than most people expect. A high-twist worsted breathes in a way a smooth lightweight cloth does not, and holds a crease through a long day. Heavy flannel has its place here, but only from December through February.

Will you come to me?

Yes. We visit homes and offices anywhere in the Los Angeles area for $300, and we bring cloth, linings, shirting and finished garments with us.

What should I bring to a fitting?

The shoes you intend to wear with the suit, and a shirt whose collar you like. Trouser length is set to a specific heel height, and how much linen shows at the cuff is set to your shirt, not to a standard.

Before you commission

These answer the questions men actually ask before they spend the money. They are worth half an hour before you book anything, here or anywhere else.

Book a consultation

We are appointment-only, seven days a week, and we ask for forty-eight hours’ notice. The showroom is at 221 Culver Blvd, Playa del Rey, CA 90293, with free parking in front and behind.

Book a private consultation — or, if nothing on the calendar suits, telephone 310-503-3592 and we will find a time. You can also write to mrjames@bespokemrjames.com.

Nearby: Santa Monica · Manhattan Beach · Marina del Rey · Culver City · El Segundo · Beverly Hills · Brentwood.