Suits in Los Angeles: Off the Peg, Made to Measure or Bespoke, and What Each Really Costs

Searching for suits in Los Angeles turns up a long and confusing list: department stores, rental counters, made-to-measure studios, menswear chains with a fitting room at the back, and a small number of tailoring houses. They are all selling something called a suit, at prices from a few hundred dollars to several thousand, and the words they use to describe it overlap almost completely. This is a plain guide to what you are actually buying at each point on that scale, what it should cost in this city, and how to decide which one you need.

The five ways to buy a suit in Los Angeles

1. Off the peg, as it comes

A finished suit in a standard size, bought and worn. The Beverly Center, the Grove, Westfield Century City and the department stores in Santa Monica all carry a wide range, and a sale rack can be good value. The limitation is built in: the pattern was drawn for an average body, and most men are average in some places and not others. A 40R jacket fits a 40 chest, but it assumes a particular shoulder width, back length and posture. If yours differ, the jacket will say so.

2. Off the peg, then altered

The same suit, taken to a tailor. A good alterations tailor can shorten sleeves and trousers, take in the waist of the jacket and trousers, and sometimes narrow the back. What they cannot do is move the shoulder seam, re-cut the armhole, or change where the jacket wants to close on your body. Those three are set in the pattern. Alterations at Mr James run at $80 an hour, and we are honest about which faults can be fixed and which cannot; there is a longer note on suit alterations in Los Angeles.

3. Rental

For a single evening, a rented tuxedo is a sensible answer. For a wedding where you will be photographed from every angle for six hours, it is usually a false economy, and most grooms know it the moment they put one on. If black tie comes round more than once a year, the arithmetic turns quickly; we have set out what a bespoke tuxedo costs for comparison.

4. Made to measure

The largest and most heavily advertised category in Los Angeles. A made-to-measure studio takes a handful of your measurements, chooses the nearest standard pattern from a factory library, and adjusts it: a little longer in the sleeve, a little fuller in the seat. The suit is then cut and sewn, usually by machine, usually abroad, and most often with a fused chest, where the inner structure is glued to the cloth rather than stitched in. It is a real step up from the rack, and it is sold almost everywhere as "custom". It is not bespoke, and the difference is not a matter of snobbery. A fused jacket never moulds to the wearer and will not be re-cut; a pattern adjusted from a block still carries the block's assumptions about your shoulders and your stance.

5. Bespoke

A new pattern, drawn from nothing, for one person. Around thirty measurements and three photographs. The jacket is built on a floating canvas of horsehair and wool, attached by hand, which takes the shape of your chest over the first months and holds it for years. The suit is fitted on you as it is made, as many times as it takes. That is what Mr James makes, and it is all we make. There is no made-to-measure tier here and no fused option at any price.

If you want the full comparison of the last two, we have written an honest one at made to measure or bespoke in Los Angeles, including the cases where made to measure is the sensible choice.

What suits cost in Los Angeles

Almost nobody in this city publishes prices, which is why the question is asked so often, and we would rather not put numbers on other people's work. What we can say is how the tiers relate to one another. Off the peg is the cheapest, before alterations are added. Rental is cheaper still for one evening and dearer than ownership by the third. Made to measure sits in the middle, and a surprising amount of it is priced at or above where our bespoke begins. Bespoke in Los Angeles is generally the most expensive tier, and at most houses the price rises steeply with the cloth.

Our own card is published in full. A fully bespoke, full canvas two-piece suit starts at $1,795, a three-piece at $2,045 and a tuxedo at $1,795. Overcoats from $1,200, odd trousers from $450, custom shirts $295, alterations $80 an hour. In the finer mills: Drago from $2,995, Zegna and Holland & Sherry from $3,495, Loro Piana from $3,995. Unlimited fittings and a year of complimentary alterations are included in every price.

That last figure surprises people, and it is worth saying why it is possible. The house was founded in 2010 by Robb Pollard with Max, our maker in Southern Brittany, France, and every garment is still made by his hands there. There is no factory, no middle tier and no brand premium. The price is set by the cloth; the making is the same at every level. The arithmetic is laid out on what a bespoke suit costs in Los Angeles.

Which one do you need?

A reasonable rule. If you wear a suit a few times a year and your build is close to average, a good off-the-peg suit, properly altered, will serve you well. If you wear one every week, or your shoulders, chest and waist do not agree with a size chart, or the occasion is one you will be photographed at for the rest of your life, the pattern matters more than the label, and the pattern is what bespoke is.

Wedding parties are the common exception: six men of six shapes who need to look like one group. Hiring six rentals is the cheapest route and it shows. Having six suits made is the most expensive. A middle course many of our grooms take is a bespoke suit for the groom and a wedding party discount of twenty per cent for the men standing beside him; there is more on groomsmen suits in Los Angeles.

Where to find us

Mr James is at 221 Culver Blvd, Playa del Rey, CA 90293, a few minutes from LAX, with free parking at the front and back. Most clients come to the showroom; many never do, because we visit homes and offices anywhere in Los Angeles for $300 and bring the full cloth selection with us. We dress women as well as men; there is a dedicated page on women's bespoke suits in Los Angeles. The hub page for the city is custom suits in Los Angeles, with links to each neighbourhood we dress most often.

Questions we are often asked

Where is the best place to buy a suit in Los Angeles?

It depends on what you need. For a suit worn a few times a year on an average build, a department store and a good alterations tailor are a sound answer. For a suit worn weekly, or for a wedding, a bespoke house that draws your own pattern is the better value over the years the suit will last. There are several fine tailors in this city; ask any of them whether the jacket is full canvas or fused, and whether the pattern is drawn for you or adjusted from a block.

How much should I pay for a suit in Los Angeles?

Enough that the pattern fits you and the chest is canvassed rather than glued, and no more than that. Very few tailors in Los Angeles publish prices. Mr James does: fully bespoke, full canvas two-piece suits from $1,795, with unlimited fittings and a year of alterations included.

Is custom the same as bespoke?

Not necessarily. "Custom" is used in Los Angeles for both made to measure and bespoke. Made to measure adjusts a standard pattern; bespoke draws a new one for one person. Every suit Mr James makes is bespoke.

How long does a suit take?

Off the peg, the time it takes to alter it, usually a week. Made to measure, four to eight weeks depending on the studio. Bespoke at Mr James, four to six weeks in domestic cloth and six to eight in imported Italian or English cloth, with a rush possible at a twenty-five per cent surcharge.

Can I see the cloth before I commit?

Yes. At the first consultation, which takes an hour and costs nothing, you choose cloth with the prices in front of you, then lining, buttons and detail. Half is taken as a deposit when the cloth is chosen and the balance on delivery.

Book a consultation

Book a private consultation, or telephone 310-503-3592 and we will find a time. We are by appointment only and ask for forty-eight hours' notice. Wear something fitted: slim trousers or jeans and a T-shirt, or a well-fitted shirt, so we can read your figure.