OK OK, I am late with this review...I know. Now sit back and understand something before I go on my review soap-box on this one: I am a custom clothes junky. I think clothes are like seafood; good seafood is not cheap and cheap seafood is not good. I have ordered custom clothes all over the world. England. Australia. Singapore, Thailand, China..I even have a guy that does custom shoes for me. I dress conservatively but with flair. My point is that I KNOW custom clothes well.
A good clothier is worth his weight in gold. He equips you for the world and fits your lifestyle by finding clothes for all the things you do, he finds a place for all your stuff. He is the guy that secretly puts the things into your clothes that make you feel like a million bucks. He instills confidence in you and makes you LOOK like a million bucks too. Your clothier is a powerful weapon in your battle for success.
I expect a clothier to bring to me a sense of style that fits my demeanor, one who pushes me to consider new items/colors/styles but doesn't push so hard that I get over the edge and regret my purchase. I expect great fabrics. I expect great measuring and tailoring so my stuff fits like...like, well, it's made for me. I expect him to make the most out of my purchases so I get the most versatile wardrobe.
Now let me tell you about my experience at Balani...
Balani is by appointment only. I first met Adam at the shop and we sat down over a beer to discuss what I'm looking for. I wanted to try Balani out for an initial run to see what they can do. A suit, a sports coat, some pants, some shirts. Nothing crazy...ok, we discuss. Adam knows the line very well and immediately begins showing samples, pictures and fabrics. The fabric selection is quite good, much much better than I expected. As good as the best shops in London. His ideas are solid. In fact, he's got tons of ideas. We settle on the sports coat pretty quickly. The shirts will be basic solids across a range of colors...all the standard things to select when it comes to features. Pants - casual and ones to match the sports coat...done. Now on to the suit...and here's where it gets even better. The options they can provide on a suit are considerable and more than you would traditionally expect. Adam showed me some ideas...initially, I thought some were quirky, but the more I looked at them, the better I liked them. OK, we decide. Meanwhile, chatting and another beer or two. The process is easy and comfortable; I feel like I've gone through the entire collection by the time we're done. We place the order and wait for the next step: the fitting.
It takes a while for things to come in, but that is quite normal with custom clothing. OK, ready for the first fitting. With most clothiers the first fitting is kind of rough and you expect a good bit of additional tailoring to be done. Well, not here...I was shocked at the high-quality first time fit of these garments. Outstanding. I'm happy with some of the pieces right now, but oh, no between Adam and the tailor, we're going to make it perfect. They tweak this and that, going way beyond what I would have expected. An incredibly good first fit, but they want it better.
I take the shirts home when their ready. Awesome. Cuffs are perfect, length is perfect. Collar perfect and just as I expected regarding spread. Fabrics are, well...just feel great and look very high end. These are probably the best shirts I've ever ordered.
Second fitting on the suit, coat and pants. Bam, on the money, looking great and feeling great. Pick out some cufflinks and pocket squares, some shoes and off I go feeling like I just suited up with the most perfect clothes in the world. The tailoring is spectacular. I have gone over every inch of these clothes: no flaws, no missed stitches, perfect fit.
In summary, excellent in all categories of expectation. Whether it is your first time doing custom or you are a veteran, this is a great place to get clothes. You will get creative ideas, make connections, feel good and look good. Not cheap, but you shouldn't expect it to be. The most outstanding things to me were the way Adam understood what I was looking for but still gave me creative ideas, the way the tape man (Adam) and the tailor worked so well together, and the quality of the fabrics.
Very happy customer here...see you soon read more