Delightful experience - I'll be back for more!…read more
As we all started to return to work after the worst of the COVID pandemic was over, I had to be ready for those onsite visits and meetings when dressing for business was again relevant and expected. Living near Princeton, NJ, I looked initially in the area, and found the selection was primarily down to Jos. A. Bank, Men's Wearhouse and Macy's. A few years back Macy's mens' department was well staffed, and one or twice a year they'd have a wonderful sale on Ralph Lauren suits and suit separates, and I treated myself to these every couple of years. No more - the men's suit / slacks / jacket department is a poor facsimile of what it used to be. Very limited selection, incomplete assortment of sizes available across the few lines they carry now. Also such sparse staffing that it seems like there's one guy primarily there to run the register, but nobody knowledgeable to measure you or advise on style and fit. Jos. A. Bank is definitely a step up in experience, but the selection is pretty limited. Men's Wearhouse seems to be a variant of the same model: ok, but limited.
Searching for alternatives I tripped across Brooks Brothers at the Jackson, NJ outlets. I knew about this years ago and it's only a half hour drive for me. I had just stopped even thinking about the outlets there several years ago. So -- still needing a suit or two, I drove to Brooks Brothers in Jackson, and had a fantastic experience.
Unlike the post-apocalyptic feel of virtually any store in a mall (especially Macy's and Penney's it seems), Brooks Brothers is well laid out with numerous items on display. The store is clean, well lit and well maintained. I didn't have to wait for a person at the register to free up and talk to me (as you must in Macy's and Penney's): as soon as I got to about the middle of the store a salesperson (Niobe) came over and asked if I would like help with anything. I told her I was there for a suit, and we got right into it.
We homed in on my size and general description of what I was considering, and she led me to the racks with suits that fit my specs. Instead of interminable searching to find anything that would fit me, she located several options for me to consider over the next 10 or 15 minutes. Unlike Penney's and Macy's, where the dressing rooms look more like a men's room at NYC Amtrak Penn Station where a homeless person might be living, the dressing rooms at Brooks Brothers must be unlocked by a sales person - so they're empty, clean, well lit. Delightful! This is what it used to be like to shop for men's clothing - I had almost forgotten.
Instead of struggling to find anything I might like, as I had in every other store I had visited before this, I had really only come out today for one suit, and wound up having to decide between several - all of which looked great, were well made and well priced.
The sales person who helped me, Niobe, was great. Pleasant, knowledgeable, professional, and attentive -- I didn't have to chase her around the store as I did with sales folk at every other store I had visited.
All in all -- an excellent experience all the way through. The store and selection is fine. The product is very nice (Italian wool, half canvassed construction, nicely stitched seams), hangs very naturally and moves nicely.
After all the frustration at other stores, this was a breath of fresh air. Great experience, came home with an excellent suit (will only need very minor tailoring) at a great price. This will be high on my list for men's clothing going forward.
