The London Lounge

Have any LL members used City tailors Choppin & Lodge? They assert that they are full bespoke, and offer suits at very attractive prices.

I have need of a morning suit for an English friend's wedding, but have no desire to pay Savile Row prices for a garment that I'll wear very infrequently.

Thanks,
Badden

Dear Badden,

I have no experience with Choppin & Lodge. But my additional question would be: how comfortable and experienced are their cutters and tailors doing formal wear?

Cheers, David

I would be more inclined to use Graham Browne, who can be trusted with this type of commission, and who are priced at at well below half SR.

Good luck

Thanks, both.

David: they contend that they have extensive experience in formal wear, with their cutter having previously worked on SR.

Aston: unfortunately, GB is no longer doing a U.S. run.

Choppin & Lodge are Graham Browne

Wasser50 wrote:Choppin & Lodge are Graham Browne

Nope, they are not. They were briefly associated with GB, but have been independent (location, staff, etc.) since 2012.

Badden wrote:Thanks, both.

David: they contend that they have extensive experience in formal wear, with their cutter having previously worked on SR.

Dear Badden,
in this case I would give it a try. Good luck and show us pictures

Cheers David

Who knows? Might be a good place to get seersucker and madras jackets made up.

They are the same you can see the cutting of the garments at GB, Russell at GB is the majority owner of both

I also assumed C&L had fully separated from GB a while ago.

Wasser50 wrote:They are the same you can see the cutting of the garments at GB, Russell at GB is the majority owner of both

They have told me, point blank, that is no longer the case. I seriously doubt they would lie so obviously about a fact.

It's worth noting that they are also priced lower than GB. Why on earth would Russell offer a comparable product, merely under a different name / address, at 20% lower prices?

People say many things for many reasons but I stand by what I say they are the same.

Badden wrote: I have need of a morning suit for an English friend's wedding, but have no desire to pay Savile Row prices for a garment that I'll wear very infrequently.

Although of course there are no guarantees, through experience with bespoke I have learnt that you generally get what you pay for.
A well cut and constructed morning suit will last a lifetime, allowing for considerable alterations as you get older and making you look at the pinnacle of elegance every time you wear it. Of course it´s a given that it will be a garment that you wear infrequently, but there is no price for looking at your very best in those rare and very special occasions. I had mine made in Huntsman for my wedding in the early nineties and it´s been one of the best sartorial decisions ever, even when I have worn it so little that I can remember each and every time .
I´m not advising that you go to Huntsman now (oh no, please don´t). I´m just telling -in the case of a morning suit- not to weight your decision as much on price as you would do with an everyday suit.

hectorm wrote:Of course it´s a given that it will be a garment that you wear infrequently, but there is no price for looking at your very best in those rare and very special occasions. I had mine made in Huntsman for my wedding in the early nineties and it´s been one of the best sartorial decisions ever, even when I have worn it so little that I can remember each and every time .

Dear Hectorm,

well said, you have a point here. I would want my morning suit coming from the best possible tailor, regardless of its use - although it sounds a bit ridiculous - if I would need an occasional car once a month, I would go for Beetle not Bentley

But I also understand Badden. To help things a bit: There is off Row and off Row - tailors doing some manufacturing short cuts to save work hours paid by the client, or tailors working off Row and having lower prices because they have less overhead than the big houses. To illustrate my case, taking popular Steed as an example - he is offering a 20% reduction on his normal prices for LL members, and this on prices that are already 20-30% lower than the average Row establishment. Now this is the kind of offer I would consider first...

Cheers, David

I have used CL and GB as well as those on row, I tend to try others now and then. you will get a bespoke suit but it won't be anywhere close to the standard of the other off row tailors such as steed, Karl, or the on row tailors, in my opinion. But I would also say quality is in the eye of the beholder, a blue suit is a blue suit as my wife says.

Now weather it's worth paying the extra for the difference is a personal choice of your own view to value