"Work horse" and "Diamonds"

[Fishbone]

So I have been reading a lot on the forum, but I have never exactly found a good answer to my question.

So I am wondering, as a student about to enter society, how should the wardrobe be set up?
I work in the office everyday(4days a week business formal 1 day a week casual).

Also how much is reasonable to pay for MTM suits in general?
I am looking for quality that will be worth it in the long time, yet be cheap enough to be affordable for a fresh graduate, as well as cheap enough for me not worrying too much about being in an office all day, worst case scenarios using the same suit and shoes 2 days in a row.

How much is reasonable to pay for "workhorse" shoes?

I am thinking of:

Having an immediate "workhorse" setup of:
2 Off-the-rack, tailor altered single breasted Black suit (Already own, 300USD level suits, used for job-hunting, quality and fit is acceptable but not great especially when I lift my arms up and the sleeves suddenly become super short.)
1 Made-to-measure single breasted Black suit
1 Made-to-measure single breasted Dark Charcoal suit
1 Made-to-measure single breasted Navy suit

1 Black Oxford
1 Black Derby
1 Black Derby brogue (Thinking of doubling as a casual outing shoe, I generally wear black pants)

Once I am economically able to,
I am thinking of building my "Sports car" wardrobe setup of:
1 Bespoke double breasted Dark Navy (I already own; Henry poole)
1 Bespoke double breasted Prince of Wales grey check OR Dark-charcoal

1 Black Oxford Shoe (I already own; Crockett&Jones)
1 Black Derby Shoe (I already own; Cheaney)

 

[useless_username]

You might be overthinking it. If you're just starting work, two suits (charcoal & navy, avoid black) and two black shoes would be enough. With those, you can rotate and avoid the appearance of being 'that guy with only one suit'. You can introduce variation with shirts and ties.

Given what you already own, I don't see a reason to invest heavily in clothes at this point. A year from now you'll be much better positioned to judge what you need (given your industry, city, climate, tastes, etc).

 

[Fishbone]

Thank you for you reply!

Seeing as I have 4 days of actual formal clothing in the office(as friday is casual), I guess the first purchase upon graduation 1 charcoal and 1 navy suit which will be great adding to my already ensemble of "acceptable" black off-the-rack suits.

As for the pricing, I have two options(I live in Japan) a made-to-measure $500-700 for cheaper Chinese or Japanese fabrics.

Or the slightly more expensive made-to-measure $1200-1500 option using English fabric from the ISETAN henry poole satellite
(they said that since I already created my pattern making my bespoke suit, they could reuse it, which in turn makes it a "made-to-bespoke based-measure" suit, but a lot cheaper than the actual bespoke).

From experience I have learned that it is not worth it to buy something "temporary" as I usually regret it the next year or 2, so I am leaning towards the slightly pricier option.

 

[useless_username]

Japanese corporate culture has its own nuances, of which you will already be aware of. Therefore I would take the opinions and aesthetics you encounter on this forum - including mine - with a grain of salt, as they represent a peculiar sub-culture of (primarily) North American dandyism.

I agree it's best to buy for the long term rather than temporary. But my earlier advice stands: you can start work with the clothes you already have, and over time see what purchases will serve you best. That way you'll know what you're doing.

Choosing between different MTM options is a topic of its own. Do plenty of online research and visit the stores. Fabric choice is a fairly minor issue, especially for standard business clothing.

 

[GBR]

No black suits please.

Don't forget to consider a light grey suit which is perfectly formal but rings the changes.

 

[useless_username]

No black suits please.

Don't forget to consider a light grey suit which is perfectly formal but rings the changes.

While I agree on black suits in general, I believe it's de rigueur for entry-level professionals in Japan.

 

[Eucris]

Agree with GBR, don't even contemplate Black suits. Banish that thought immediately.

 

[useless_username]

What ever you may think of the black suit, it has a place in Japanese society. Certainly in professional job-hunting. So I wouldn't be so quick to judge OP's choices. He might have a very good reason for wanting at least one black suit in his wardrobe.

Exhibit A: University students in a job-hunting event. Observe not only the suits, but the accessories. It's a uniform, plain and simple.

(Caveat: I'm not Japanese nor do I live there, so my information may be inaccurate or outdated).

 

[Veremund]

Firstly, I suggest you ignore the people with the knee jerk reflex saying don’t wear a black suit. If you are Asian, and therefore probably have black hair, black suits look great. If you're pale and blonde, probably not so much.

Secondly, don’t worry about the suit’s price or being MTM. If OTR fits you great, then you don’t need MTM. And if a $300 suit fits you great, then you don’t need to spend $700.

Thirdly, you should have 3-5 suits and pairs of shoes for a full-time job. Never wear the same on consecutive days.

 

[Fishbone]

Japanese corporate culture has its own nuances, of which you will already be aware of. Therefore I would take the opinions and aesthetics you encounter on this forum - including mine - with a grain of salt, as they represent a peculiar sub-culture of (primarily) North American dandyism.

I agree it's best to buy for the long term rather than temporary. But my earlier advice stands: you can start work with the clothes you already have, and over time see what purchases will serve you best. That way you'll know what you're doing.

Choosing between different MTM options is a topic of its own. Do plenty of online research and visit the stores. Fabric choice is a fairly minor issue, especially for standard business clothing.

Indeed it has its problems and as much as I dislike black suits, I already own to of which I am sort of obliged by society to use until at least after company training, whereas in Japanese culture dress code rules tend to get more relaxed.

 

[Fishbone]

Firstly, I suggest you ignore the people with the knee jerk reflex saying don’t wear a black suit. If you are Asian, and therefore probably have black hair, black suits look great. If your pale and blonde, probably not so much.

Secondly, don’t worry about the suit’s price or being MTM. If OTR fits you great, then you don’t need MTM. And if a $300 suit fits you great, then you don’t need to spend $700.

Thirdly, you should have 3-5 suits and pairs of shoes for a full-time job. Never wear the same on consecutive days.

Thank you for the reply! So far the OTR suits I own are with some minor tailor adjustments surprisingly good, only with the mentioned downside that the arms are slightly short.

As I am entering the company and I still have my jobhunting suits fully fucntioning, it is not urgent to splurge thousands right away haha. My "purchasing plan" is a 2 year plan that I would like to reach, finalizing myself as an established shakai-jin(society person in japanese)

 

[Oshare]

The new grad black suit “uniform” is very much alive and well here in Japan. But that usually lasts for only a few weeks. It is not yet Golden Week here and I see fewer and fewer black suit herds as the weeks go by and new hires are assimilated into their company’s workforce.

Around the mid-career office, charcoal and navy do take over as the norm. But as Veremund said, black hair and darker complexions with black or nearly black suits are actually not as ghastly as they might be elsewhere.

But personally, I would first put my money into decent shoes which may serve you for many years to come.

If you have the budget, shopping for imported brands at Isetan Men’s will give you and amazing selection. Hankyu Men in Ginza or Mitsukoshi in Nihonbashi may also be worth a look, but it’s hard to beat Isetan.

You might also check out Lloyd’s Footwear in Ginza just a couple shops down from Trading Post. Both are small boutiques. But while Trading Post sells C&J, Carmina, G&G, etc plus their in house brand, Llyod’s design their own shoes which are made in Northampton and are quite reasonable for the quality.

 

[Fishbone]

The new grad black suit “uniform” is very much alive and well here in Japan. But that usually lasts for only a few weeks. It is not yet Golden Week here and I see fewer and fewer black suit herds as the weeks go by and new hires are assimilated into their company’s workforce.

Around the mid-career office, charcoal and navy do take over as the norm. But as Veremund said, black hair and darker complexions with black or nearly black suits are actually not as ghastly as they might be elsewhere.

But personally, I would first put my money into decent shoes which may serve you for many years to come.

If you have the budget, shopping for imported brands at Isetan Men’s will give you and amazing selection. Hankyu Men in Ginza or Mitsukoshi in Nihonbashi may also be worth a look, but it’s hard to beat Isetan.

You might also check out Lloyd’s Footwear in Ginza just a couple shops down from Trading Post. Both are small boutiques. But while Trading Post sells C&J, Carmina, G&G, etc plus their in house brand, Llyod’s design their own shoes which are made in Northampton and are quite reasonable for the quality.

As a matter of fact I got my C&J and Cheaneys from Trading Post and British Made respectively!! And my suit from the Henry poole satellite in Isetan! haha

I saw the Lloyd lineup online and for that quality and that price, it is amazing!

 

[Oshare]

I saw the Lloyd lineup online and for that quality and that price, it is amazing!

If you're in the area, Lloyd Footwear is worth a look. They have a good selection of shoes on display so you can check out the quality yourself. Personally, I think they are decent Goodyear welted shoes. They are marked "Made in England" and I seem to recall seeing a sign in store saying Northhampton... but not sure whose factory they are from.

I own a pair of their black suede Chelsea boots which I am happy with. But unfortunately I can't comment on how their calf leather would hold up over time since I don't have any.

 

[Eucris]

A few years ago Lloyd shoes were made by Crockett and Jones. I don't know whether this is still the case...