I recently asked for opinions about BAR III suits (one of Macy's in house brands). I ended up ordering the Pindot Dark Blue and thought I would share my impressions.
Pros
-A true slim fit. I found the Alfani Red line to be boxy for my frame. I have a 38 inch chest, 29 inch waist. But the Bar III suit coat fit me fairly well out of the box. I still had to get the waist brought in, but I was really impressed by the contour.
-High armholes. The suit jacket doesn't fly off. Even raising my arms horizontal to the ground, there is miminal movement in the jacket.
-Shoulder padding. I'm on the extreme end of miminal shoulder padding. I don't really care for any at all. The shoulder padding on the Bar III is slightly too much for my taste, but I think most others would like it
-Quality, lightweight fabric. I know my tailor well and have brought 4 suits and 5-6 blazers to him in the last year. He often works on some high quality stuff like Hickey Freeman. He made a point to tell me multiple times that the fabric of the BAR III was excellent and reccomended that I buy more suits from the brand. He's never been that expressive before.
-Price. $600 retail, with sales and coupons I got mine for $240. Regularl on sale in the $300 range.
Con's
-Peak lapels. I like peak lapels, but I know many don't. However, the peaks are subtle. Nothing like the stuff Shannon Sharpe somtimes wears.
-Extreme taper on the pants. I really liked the taper on the pants. The pants fit me perfectly. However, it might be a drawback for some.
-No separates. There is a 7 inch difference between the coat and the pants. This is simply a pet peeze of mine due to the 9 inch difference between my chest and waist. Had to spend $10 more to get pant waist taken in.
Overall impression
I have a new favorite brand of reasonably suits. I have tried multiple brands trying to find a good fit (Tommy H, Alfani Red, Calvin Klein, Banana) and never really found anything I liked, with the exception of bonobos, of which I own 4 of their suits. Bar III is a definte step above anything else I have seen in the $500 - $700 realm. I plan on buying the Cotten Khaki they have. I would recommend that everyone try them out.
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