Mens $99 Suits: Save Without Sacrificing Style

Let's get real. What's wrong with mens $99 suits?

Some men say suits that retail for $99 are cheap looking. Or, they'll say the fabrics are outdated and stale. But ready-to-wear suits are all made the same way. Glue fuses the lining and the jacket fabric together, and basic component patterns are part of the standard suit-making process. Learn how to find a suit for $99 you'll be proud to wear.

How They Make Great Mens $99 Suits

The average cost of buying fabric in China, Thailand, and India is about $15. And it only takes about 30 minutes to stitch the pants together and put finishing touches on the jacket. So, the total factory cost may be less than $20 a suit in those countries. Suit wholesalers add another $20 or $30 dollars and sell their suits to retailers for $40 or $50. Retailers add their markup to the suit, pricing them according to the current market value.

A decent quality suit may retail for $300 or $400. That retail price doesn't reflect the true factory costs. It represents what the retailer thinks they can make from a suit made in a third world country specializing in ready-to-wear suits. Retailers could put a $99 price tag on the same suit. But to maintain their store profit margins, they kick the retail suit price up to offset the suits that cost them more.

Made to Measure Vs. Ready to Wear Mens $99 Suits

Made-to-measure suits don't fall into the same category or price point as ready-to-wear suits. They are more labor-intensive, and the fabrics cost more. Not all China factories can make made-to-order suits, so supply impacts the retail price. Most of the made-to-order suits come from Italy, France and England, but U.S. suit manufacturers make high-priced suits, too.

They also make ready-to-wear suits and know there's a big demand for $99 suits. To get a piece of that demand, they cut a few corners. They do that by finding a fabric that looks decent, but doesn't cost much to create a line of suits retailers can sell for $99. Some of those suits don't fit the right way. Also, the fabric color fades after the suit goes through the cleaning process.

But the good news is, there are suits on the market that offer you the quality and the comfort you want for $99. But to find those suits online, look for clues that direct you to suits that retail for less without sacrificing style and quality demands. You can find an inexpensive, good quality suit if you know something about fabrics and the country of origin. You should also know the current market value for suits in the standard fabrics from those countries. When you do some online price shopping, finding good quality $99 suits is not that hard to do.