Height of ridiculousness

[smoothjazzone]

I met Des Merrion when he first visited New York. I was impressed by his desire to make a good garment and an honest living but the handwork was not quite up to snuff with the best tailors. One of the latest posts on his website represents what everyone of us who are ordering bespoke garments should avoid. I am not going to spend any more time debating the merits/demerits of Mr. Merrions latest endeavors -- but here is the original note:

http://www.desmerrionbespoketailor.com/ ... /services/

A True, Fully Hand Made Suit
As one of only a very few true tailors who is actually a practicing cut and make tailor,

I am offering for the discerning client a service that I believe is the best in the world.......A FULL HAND MADE SUIT WHERE EVERY SINGLE STITCH WILL BE DONE BY HAND.

This service is aimed at the client who wants the absolute truest and purest form of tailoring that money can buy.

I will personally place every single stitch in your suit by hand, a machine will never touch the garment at the various fitting stages, the making stages or finishing stages.
This hand making is the absolute pinnacle of tailoring, and will create a garment that is unique and unparalleled from any other tailor in the world.

Your suit will take me so long to make it can not be measured in man hours, it will take MONTHS of my time to make the perfectly crafted suit that will emerge from my labours.
The finished suit will appear as if it has not been hand crafted, but sculpted around your torso, the wearing of the suit and the softness will be unrivaled by anything else that can be offered from any other tailor or tailoring company.
The fabric and trimmings selected for the suit will be of the finest quality and will come from the best merchants in their field.

The price for this service will start at £30,000 for a 2 piece suit and WILL BE LIMITED TO MAKING ONLY 2 SUITS PER YEAR. currency converter.

Yes, this is expensive but there are suits and then there are suits. Remember you are paying for ONE craftsman to work on your suit from measuring to finish for a few months.

I am so confident of my cutting and sewing skills that I am taking this opportunity to showcase my hard learned craft.

[storeynicholas]

Is Sr Armani not also offering something similar - at least in terms of price? How many members would pay this for one suit?

[sartorius]

A top Savile Row house will charge you about £4,500 for a two piece suit with two pairs of trousers, in cloth from one of the well known English merchants like Smiths, Lessers or Holland & Sherry. For that (not inconsiderable outlay) you will get something which in my experience is a beautifully elegant but also practical and hard wearing garment that will last a very long time. They will also clean, press and repair it, for free, for life.

I was in Kiton in London a couple of months ago and overheard them telling an American customer that their full bespoke service starts at £15,000. I have no idea what goes into such a suit to justify this price and indeed I cannot conceive of anything which could justifiy it.

I cannot comment on Mr Merrion's craftsmanship, but I would have thought he will need to offer a great deal more than just 100% hand sewing to bring punters with £30k to spend through his door.

[zegnamtl]

.........

I was in Kiton in London a couple of months ago and overheard them telling an American customer that their full bespoke service starts at £15,000. I have no idea what goes into such a suit to justify this price and indeed I cannot conceive of anything which could justify it............

.

The full bespoke program means the Kiton tailors will come to you for the fittings, anywhere in the world. Fit you in your office or wherever the case may be, start the suit, come to you again for a fitting, return to Naples to continue the work, and so on.

They aim to make 50 suits a year under this program. For Mr. Des Merrion to only attempt to make 2 suits seems like a very leisurely schedule.

I think you need to be in a situation that involves the combination of:
having a great deal of money,
a very busy schedule,
very little interest in the process beyond looking good,

to justify the expense involved in that process.

But clearly there are many people that are in the position to go that route as the program is working for Kiton, to the point where Borrelli is now trying to groom the same market with the same program.

[storeynicholas]

I am no communist but, in my view, chaps who would stretch to this sort of cash for a suit, when there are people dying of thirst in desert places, mark the point of difference between a Beau and a fop and need to reassess their priorities.

[Concordia]

Definitely. Limiting yourself to $4,500 on a suit or pair of shoes is much more sensible.

[iammatt]

The full bespoke program means the Kiton tailors will come to you for the fittings, anywhere in the world. Fit you in your office or wherever the case may be, start the suit, come to you again for a fitting, return to Naples to continue the work, and so on.

They aim to make 50 suits a year under this program. For Mr. Des Merrion to only attempt to make 2 suits seems like a very leisurely schedule.

I think you need to be in a situation that involves the combination of:
having a great deal of money,
a very busy schedule,
very little interest in the process beyond looking good,

to justify the expense involved in that process.

But clearly there are many people that are in the position to go that route as the program is working for Kiton, to the point where Borrelli is now trying to groom the same market with the same program.

a couple of thoughts...

First, unlike SJs review of Merrion's work, having seen the K suits in person, it is fair to say that they three guys on the K team can really sew. The work is lovely. Whether that justifies the price...

Second, I am surprised that they are still sending the tailor around to do this suit. IIRC, even at the prices charged, it was a real money loser. Adding on top of that the growing percentage of these suits done for Russian businessmen, the cost to Kiton has got to be going up quickly.

Third, while it does not surprise me that Borrelli wants to do this too, it does surprise me that they are not coming up with something at least slightly different.

[tteplitzmd]

I like the convenience of his having included a "currency converter" in the sales pitch.

[iammatt]

I like the convenience of his having included a "currency converter" in the sales pitch.

I missed that part. I hope he does not plan on taking an extra commission for converting cash.

[dopey]

I am a little conflicted about responding to this. I like Des and think he is an honest and straightforward guy. At the same time, I think this particular venture is a bit odd. If people are planning on spending $60k on a suit, it is unlikely they are going to look to a solo operator in Yorkshire. I haven't discussed the matter with him, but I would be a bit surprised if this is meant to be a serious business line for him and how he expects to feed his family. Perhaps there is no more here than meets the eye, as in it is nothing more than "if you want me to do a hand-stitched only suit, here is what it would cost." Certainly, the cost to him to launch this undertaking was pretty negligible. It is just a blog entry.

As for SJ's comments about Des's work, I agree and disagree. Certainly, there are better sewers in NY and on SR. And there are worse as well. Taken as a whole, Des does a very good job and turns out a nice product. In some areas the needlework is not as refined as others (buttonholes are the weakest spot) and in other areas I think the workmanship is superior (trousers, for example). But he does an honest and honorable job and is a real craftsman and skilled tailor. At least that has been my experience.

[masterfred]

Not to mention that if he simply wanted to get people "talking" about him, he has succeeded.

[zegnamtl]

Not to mention that if he simply wanted to get people "talking" about him, he has succeeded.

Perhaps it is nothing more than a spoof of Kiton's program

[zegnamtl]

a couple of thoughts...

First, unlike SJs review of Merrion's work, having seen the K suits in person, it is fair to say that they three guys on the K team can really sew. The work is lovely. Whether that justifies the price...

Second, I am surprised that they are still sending the tailor around to do this suit. IIRC, even at the prices charged, it was a real money loser. Adding on top of that the growing percentage of these suits done for Russian businessmen, the cost to Kiton has got to be going up quickly.

Third, while it does not surprise me that Borrelli wants to do this too, it does surprise me that they are not coming up with something at least slightly different.

No doubt the work is beautiful, as you say, it is the price that is less than palatable.

[RWS]

Not to mention that if he simply wanted to get people "talking" about him, he has succeeded.

Perhaps it is nothing more than a spoof of Kiton's program

That's how I read it.

[the tailor]

[quote="smoothjazzone"]I met Des Merrion when he first visited New York. I was impressed by his desire to make a good garment and an honest living but the handwork was not quite up to snuff with the best tailors. One of the latest posts on his website represents what everyone of us who are ordering bespoke garments should avoid. I am not going to spend any more time debating the merits/demerits of Mr. Merrions latest endeavors -- but here is the original note:

Smoothjazzone, Yes, you are correct.

After my first US visit I realised I had to lift my game and improve the quality of my garments to compete on an International stage.

Since this first US visit, I have been working hard to improve the quality of my hand work on my garment finishing to give discerning clients, like your self, the quality they expect.

I am not perfect, or claim to be, but I have seen first hand the finishing on several garments from various Savile Row firms and alumni and I can say I have seen much worse finishing on some of these garments than my own.

I am a cut and make tailor true to my roots, and trying to make a living, my 30k suit is nothing more really than a bit of bullshit, if it has hurt my credibility, so be it, my life will go on, I will still drink beer and get into trouble!

Des Merrion.