What would you have done? (OR, I think I snagged a great deal.)

[tarmac]

So I made the mistake of walking to the back of Banana Republic where the clearance rack is located. Because I've got some experience in clearance rack perusing, I took a peak at all of the jackets in the L-XL section, even though I'm a svelte 145 lbs and 5-7.


There was a black wool suit jacket for $118. Turns out it was a 36-short. "Maybe I'll just try this on."


Well, it was the "Modern" fit two-button jacket, and it was being liquidated for $118. BUT (there's always a but), when I tried to button it, I noticed the top button was gone. Of course - there's a catch. I asked a sales person, and they checked on it. Because it was "defective," I would get an extra 10% off, but it would be final sale. The coat fit darn well, and the only real hesitation was that the sleeves were slightly low-cut under the armpit, although still more trim than my other coats. I inspected it pretty well just in case and it looked great. And the button? The spare was in the chest pocket and my cleaners will fix that button for me gratis.


THEN of course, because I'm an idiot, I checked out the matching suit pants. They only had the tailored fit, not modern, but the material is the same so I snagged those. I picked them up at retail so I'd have the set, although I plan to look online and see if those are eligible for any coupons...


What would you have done?

[tarmac]

Here's the jacket: http://bananarepublic.gap.com/browse...d=1&pid=619682

[guiltybystander]

Glad it fits you. Black is not as versatile a color as one might think, though. So if it fits into your wardrobe well, more power to ya!

[tarmac]

Yep, that was a consideration, but I didn't have a black suit. Heck here in DC plenty of folks use them for business anyway (weird, I know). I thought about just getting the coat and using it as a blazer, but then I got... greedy.

[wiliam]

I don't think it was the greatest deal, but if the fit was spot on, it was worth it. I bet it's tough to find deals in a 36s though.

[tarmac]

Yep and yep. For the same price, sure beats and Alfani Red, you know?


Looks like I can get 30% off the matching pants online right now...

[Vicious49]

They should have given you 30% off earlier today too since they had a similar promo running today.


I don't think it's a great deal since I've now found 2 tailored fit jackets brand new at a similar price online. I got the matching pants at similar discounts as well.

[nicholascrawford]

I would ask to get credited with the discount. If they don't, return them and re-purchase them for less.

[tarmac]

Doing the latter. The gap websites are all separate from their stores when it comes to price-matching. They just won't do it from their site because of all the discounts.


Total will be about $225 for the suit. No complaints from me! That works out to be cheaper the same as the Alfani I picked up a while back.

[bruschetta]

Black suits are associated with the serving class. That being said, the important thing is that it fits well and you're happy with the result. Congratulations on a good deal!

[Vicious49]

I know for a fact that the stores were running a 30% off sale that day since I was in a store and saw the advertising everywhere. They also gave me 30% off the pair of suit pants I bought that day.

[LesserBlackDog]

BR doesn't normally stock 36 sizes in-store - I'm guessing you got a jacket that was returned because of the missing button. I can't ever think of a time when I would wear a black suit when a grey or navy wouldn't be equally or more appropriate, but if you've got the opportunity to wear the suit and it fits you well, then I'd say you got a good deal.


If you wanted a sub-$200 suit, I'd have waited for a 30% discount off the Factory Thompson suits, though ;-)