Book a Fitting
Everything at Mr James begins with an hour in the shop. It costs nothing, it commits you to nothing, and you will meet either Robb or Ben, because there are two of us and one of us is always the person you deal with.
You can take a time directly from our calendar at calendly.com/info-robbp/bespoke-mr-james-fitting. It only ever offers times that are genuinely open, so whatever you see there is real. If nothing suits, telephone 310-503-3592 and we will find something between us.
What the first hour is for
Mostly it is for talking and looking. We will ask what the suit is for, when you need it, and what you have worn before that you liked or quietly did not. Then we open the cloth books. Prices are shown as we go, so you are never choosing in the dark, and a bespoke suit in Los Angeles from this house begins at $1,795 for a two-piece and $2,045 for a three-piece. The making is identical at every level. Full canvas, cut from a pattern drawn for you, made by hand in our atelier in Southern Brittany. Only the cloth changes as the figure rises, and we have written up where the money actually goes if you would rather read it before you come.
If you decide to go ahead, we take around thirty measurements head to toe and three photographs, front, side and back, because posture tells us as much as the tape does. A deposit of half is taken when the cloth is chosen and the balance falls due on delivery.
What to wear, and what to bring
Fitted trousers or jeans and a T-shirt, or a shirt that fits you well. Nothing baggy, and please not shorts. We are reading the shape of you, and a loose jumper hides exactly the things we need to see.
To a later fitting, bring the shoes you intend to wear with the suit and a shirt whose collar you like. Trouser length is decided on the shoe, and there is no sensible way to guess it.
Where to come
221 Culver Blvd, Playa del Rey, CA 90293. It is a storefront with our name on it and no suite number to hunt for, and there is free parking front and back, which in this part of the city is worth saying out loud. We see people by appointment only, so the shop is yours for the hour rather than shared with whoever else has wandered in.
If coming to Playa del Rey is awkward, we will come to you instead. A home or office tailoring visit anywhere in Los Angeles is $300, travel and the full cloth selection included, and a good many of our clients never come to the shop at all.
How long it all takes
Four to six weeks for a suit in domestic cloth, six to eight if the cloth travels from an Italian or English mill. Shirts are two to four weeks. Alterations take about a week. A rush is possible at a surcharge of twenty five per cent, though we would rather you did not need one.
For a wedding, six months out is perfect and three is comfortable. Six weeks can be done as a rush. We would gently discourage starting a full year ahead, because men change shape and a suit cut to a twelve month old body wants remaking. There is more on all of this on our wedding suits page, and wedding parties and groups are discounted twenty per cent.
Fittings are unlimited and included, however many it takes. Most people have three counting the consultation, some four or five. A year of complimentary alterations follows delivery, because bodies move and a suit should be allowed to follow. If you are still deciding what to have made, our custom suits in Los Angeles page sets out the range.
Questions we are often asked
Does the first consultation cost anything?
No. It takes about an hour and there is no charge and no obligation at the end of it. Plenty of people come in, look at cloth, and go away to think.
Do I need an appointment, or can I walk in?
An appointment, please. We are a two person house and we are often out at a fitting or at a client's office, so a walk in risks finding the door shut. Taking a time from the calendar takes a moment and means the hour is held for you.
How much notice do you need?
Whatever the calendar offers is available, so the honest answer is to look. If what you need is sooner than anything showing, telephone 310-503-3592 and we will see what can be moved.
Can I bring someone with me?
Of course, and we rather recommend it. A second opinion on cloth is useful, and for a wedding suit the person being married is usually the one with the clearer view.
Do you dress women as well as men?
We do. The house makes bespoke suits for women on exactly the same terms, full canvas and cut from a pattern drawn for you.
What if I only want something altered?
That is a perfectly good reason to come in. Alterations are $80 an hour and take about a week, and we will tell you honestly if a garment is not worth the work.
What happens if I need to change the time?
Move it in the calendar or telephone us. Nobody minds, and we would far rather reschedule than have you arrive in a hurry.
When you are ready, the calendar is at calendly.com/info-robbp/bespoke-mr-james-fitting, or telephone 310-503-3592. If you would like to know who you are coming to see first, there is a little about the house and the sixteen years behind it.