031: What I Would Do Different If I Could Start My Menswear Journey Over (Part I)

Join us in Episode 31 of 'I'm Not A Gentleman' as we delve into the crucial question: What would I do differently if I were starting my Menswear journey now? Learn from our host's valuable experiences, as he shares insights on mindset, mistakes to avoid, and essential tips for beginners. 

Discover the importance of choosing style over fashion, finding the perfect tailor, prioritizing quality, deciding between off-the-rack and made-to-measure, and the transformative power of having a mentor or community. Tune in for a roadmap to sartorial success in the world of Classic Menswear!

Get my eBook "The 7 Style Mistakes That You're Making Right Now" for FREE here.

Discover the 7 Style Mistakes and how to correct them once and for all.

Transcript

00:00
Announcer: I'm Not A Gentleman is a production of chaceandryder.com

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to boot New York, Magnanni, um, Banana Republic shoes. I thought that was really killing it, man, but none of those shoes were any good. You know, like I had five pairs of shoes, but what good is five pairs of shoes if the quality is horrible? So not only I didn't do my research, but I was really thinking about the quantity of shoes as opposed to the quality of them. And it was the same with my suits.

00:32
I used to work part-time at the Republic just to use a 50% discount. And I had a bunch of suits and looking back now, none of them fit well. The design was horrible with a high buttoning point, skinny, yellow pearls, and I didn't know anything about any of those things back then.

00:50
Yo, what up? Welcome to I'm Not A Gentleman, the show designed to help you look stylish without following trends. I'm your host Vladimir Riché from chaceandryder.com and your favorite menswear YouTuber's favorite menswear YouTuber. I've helped dozens of clients and hundreds of students and viewers feel more confident by looking their best and always making a great first impression.

01:18:
Welcome to episode 31 of I'm Not A Gentleman. One question that I've been posed is what would I do different if I were starting my Menswear journey now. It's a very important question because the way you start is what's going to determine your success. That doesn't mean you can't pivot, but if you start off the wrong foot, it could take you a long time to finally get your footing. So this is what we're going to be talking about today. I think that is extremely important, but we're not going to talk about what I would recommend that you get. So this is going to be a series. So in this episode, we're just going to talk about the mindset and then next week we'll talk about.

01:57
some of the pieces that I would recommend if I were starting now. So this is a very important episode, something that you can definitely share with people that you care about if they're looking to get into menswear. Because see, menswear is not hard, but at the same time, it's not easy. And as we can see, a lot of people do get it wrong. So this is what I'm trying to avoid for you guys, because I definitely started wrong myself. So some of the mistakes that I made.

02:24
I'm going to talk about them that way that you guys don't have to go through the same exact thing that I went through. So we're going to play my theme music and then we're going to get right into it. Intro.

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Intro music: Bag in that bag in that bag again, whoa!

02:45
Yeah, man, I'm back like I never left. And I see that you guys have been enjoying the wardrobe audit episodes. I've been getting a lot of positive feedback about those episodes. So for those of you who are unaware, those are the episodes that drop every Friday and they're the even number of episodes. So we just recently started that with episode 24. So I believe they are four of them already out. But the funny part about the wardrobe audit episode, they were supposed to be the shorter episodes.

03:14
of I'm Not a Gentleman, but there have been the longer episodes, you know, so I have to find a way to manage that because once I start talking about menswear with somebody else, it's like we can't stop. So those episodes are really only supposed to be 20 minutes, but I haven't been able to accomplish the 20 minutes yet. A couple of them actually have been in the 40-minute range. So this is definitely something that I have to rework.

03:42
But I'm glad that you guys are enjoying those episodes and we'll be doing a lot more of them. Once again, there'll be every Friday. But back to this episode, once again, we're going to talk about what I would do if I was starting my menswear journey now. And I think it's a very important thing to talk about. And that is a question that I get a lot because I think that menswear is intimidating to a lot of people. So having a good way to start.

04:10
is a very positive thing. That way, it doesn't discourage you right away because sometimes you might look at certain influencers and you're like, man, I'll never be able to be at that level. And that stops you riding your track and you don't even start. So that's what we're trying to avoid. You know, I'm going to talk about some of the mistakes that I made and hopefully, you can learn from them. But without further ado, man, let's get right into it.

04:38
So the first thing that I would do if I was starting now is I would do a lot of research and that's to determine what style really resonates with me. Because when it comes to menswear, you have fashion and you have style. So those are two different things. Of course, I'm into the style category. I teach classic menswear, which is a timeless style.

05:06
So I'm going to be biased. But if you really look at the landscape, I'd say about 90 to 95% of guys are into fashion as opposed to style. And if you're not sure what the difference is, so if you look at GQ Magazine and what they preach in their issues, that's fashion. Where it's more based on trends, every year there's going to be something different, different style, different name brands and those type of things.

05:35
It makes sense for their business model because they are monthly magazine. So they're teaching something that's timeless that may hurt their bottom line. At least that's the way that I look at it. That's not to say if you teach something timeless, you can't keep teaching it every month, you can because there are so many different aspects of menswear. But I think it's easier if you teach something that just changes that we don't have to do a ton of research, there will always be something to talk about, but that's something that you have to determine for yourself.

06:04
like which one more resonates with you, you know what I mean? Like I was saying, obviously I'm biased. If you were to ask me which route should you go, I would say you should go the style route. And the reason why is because

06:24
I'm not really into following a whole bunch of trends. I don't really want to think about if what I'm wearing is going to go out of style a year from now, two years from now. That sounds stressful to me. Like I always like to say, man, life is hard. Dressing well shouldn't have to be, it should be fun. You know what I mean? So I don't want to think about, man, I'm buying this now, but I don't know if it's going to be in a couple of years. And number two, at the end of the day, you end up spending a lot more money.

06:53
because you're buying things that you're not going to have any need for. So when I started my menswear journey back in 2005, 2006, first thing that I did was get a GQ subscription. So my foundation was built on fashion. So the first thing that I would change was switch that to style because I didn't discover style until let's say 2013. And then

07:21
It took me a couple years to finally put it all together. So by late 2015, early 2016 is when things really started to click for me. So if we're keeping school at home, that's about eight years that it took me. 78 years to really figure things out. So that would be the first thing that I would recommend to someone is to do your research and see what the differences between fashion and style.

07:48
But to me, style is definitely the way to go because like I was saying, you don't have to worry about trends. You don't have to worry about spending money on things that will be out of style. And the second thing that I would do different is find a good tailor. I can't even begin to tell you how important this is. When I first started getting into menswear, I used to take my clothes to a dry cleaner and use the in-house tailor that they had.

08:16
to the point that they actually butchered one of my suits. So finding a good tailor is invaluable. So just like as a man, you should have your own barber, assuming you have hair. A good tailor is just as important. And I would say the best way to find one, because that is a question that I get a lot, how do I get a good tailor? So there are a couple ways to go about it, but the best way is really with a mouth.

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So if you have some friends or you have some coworkers who dress nicely, then I was still there, you know, to see who they use. Cause sometimes the tailor may not be in your town, but depending on the distance, it might be worth it. Personally, my tailor's about 20 miles from me. If he was 30 miles, I would still take that trip. You know what I mean? That's how important a good tailor is.

09:08
So if you don't know anybody in your immediate circle that dresses nicely, then the next best thing would be to go online. So places like Yelp is a pretty good place to start. One thing that you don't want to do, once you find a few results, is to just go to one of them. The key is to look at your town like I was saying, and if you don't have one in your town, look at the surrounding areas, and you want to make a list of about three of them.

09:37
And what you want to do is you want to go to them, just have a conversation and see what their thoughts are. Because once you determine what kind of style you want to have, and assuming you want to have a classic menswear style, then you want to talk to tailors that's going to be on the same wavelength. And that doesn't mean that the tailor only works with people who are into classic menswear, but it means that he knows exactly what it is that you're trying to accomplish.

10:06
Because I've heard horror stories where guys would ask their tailors for two-inch cuffs, for example, and the tailor would be like, what are you one of the two-inch cuffs that's dated? Like, this is horrible advice. Having two-inch cuffs on your trousers not only look better, in my opinion, but it plays a function because it helps the trousers drape better because it makes the bottom of the trousers heavier. And that's a classic menswear staple that's been around for generations.

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So if your tailor is telling you that's dated, then we have a problem. You see what I'm saying? So you want to make sure that the tailor understands classic menswear and they understand what it is that you're looking to accomplish. So that's why it's important for you to go to them and talk to them. The only problem is sometimes because a good tailor is usually very sought after, they may not have the time to really sit down with you and have like a...

11:01
a small conversation. You know, they may be too busy. A lot of them are like a one-man operation or maybe they have a helper, but for the most part, it's really just them. So if you're not a client yet especially, they may not have the time to really have that kind of conversation with you. In that case, what I would recommend is... We'll be right back.

11:28
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11:56
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12:40
bring them a piece of garment and make sure it's something that is not that important to you. So it could be something that you thrifted for example where you didn't pay that much money for it or it could be something that you've had in your closet but you're kind of looking to get rid of it anyway because it's no longer something that you like. Bring it to them and see what they can do with it. Tell them you know you're looking to have two-inch cuffs on these

13:10
show about a quarter inch of shirt underneath the sleeves and see what they can do. That could be a good way to test them out. So depending on the results, then you'll know whether or not you guys are a good match. And also some tailors may tell you there's really nothing that they can do to salvage a certain piece of clothing. And believe it or not, that's really good advice because sometimes others will tell you, yeah, I can do this.

13:41
knowing them more than they can't do it. You know what I'm saying? Like for example, if you have a jacket that you thrifted and the shoulders are way too wide for your natural shoulders, there's really not that much that you can do. So if you go to a tailor and you tell them, I really like this jacket, but the shoulders are way too big for me. And he tells you, yeah, I can do that. Versus another one, try to explain to you, here's the reason why you can't do it.

14:08
Him not telling you that he can do it to just take your money could be a pretty good indication as well. Because I was advised guys when they're trying on a suit jacket, the first thing that they have to make sure of is that the shoulders fit because there's not really a way to alter the shoulders. So typically somebody's telling you that they can, they're lying to you. So that's why it's important to sit down with a tailor. That's why it's very important to read reviews.

14:34
because I'm not the type of guy that I like to leave reviews, but the only review I've ever left was for a bad tailor. Because after I stopped going to a dry cleaner, a friend of mine hooked me up with a tailor that was in my town or in my county, I should say. And I was working with him for a couple of years because I was clueless at the time. I didn't know any better, but I had a really bad experience with him. Number one, his job wasn't really that good. And he just thought that he was a lot better than he was. He was very stubborn.

15:02
and extremely expensive too. And I had a really bad experience. So I did give them a one-star review and that's the only review I've ever left in my life. So definitely check the reviews online. The third thing that I would do differently would be to focus on quality over quantity. I remember I had a few shoes to boot New York, Magnani, Banana Republic shoes. I thought that was really killing it, man,

15:32
none of those shoes were any good. You know, like I had five pairs of shoes, but what good is five pairs of shoes if the quality is horrible? So not only I didn't do my research, but I was really thinking about the quantity of shoes as opposed to the quality of them. And it was the same with my suits. I used to work part-time at the Republic just to use a 50% discount. And I had a bunch of suits and looking back now, none of them fit well.

16:03
The design was horrible with a high buttoning point, skinny yellow petals. And I didn't know anything about any of those things back then. I was just glad to be able to have about seven or eight suits. And looking back now, not only that was a waste of money, but it was really being short-sighted. Even though I thought I was doing my research.

16:26
I really wasn't doing any research really because I was researching in the wrong spots. Like I said, I was an avid GQ reader and that's not a good way to learn. Once again, a magazine like GQ focuses on fashion, which is horrible for somebody who is just starting out because when you're just starting out, I would think that maximizing your budget would be the best way to go, the best course of action. So instead of buying...

16:53
a lot of stuff, think about buying just one thing. So that's what I always tell my clients and my students is to buy less and pay more, meaning focus on quality and not the quantity. And I know this one is tough because, you know, you wanna have multiples to show that you're really doing this. But when you first starting out, man, don't worry about how many you have. Worry about the quality of what you have. So one good suit is worth a lot more than five bad suits.

17:24
Number four, you have to determine if you want to do made to measure or if you want to do off the rack. So made to measure is when you go to a clothing year and they take your measurements and they make you a suit or shirt base of those measurements. So it's not bespoke where you have to take multiple trips to keep getting fitted until the garment is finished. This is one and done and

17:53
Most of the time it's made on a pattern, a pre-existing pattern, but then make some modifications to the pattern based off your measurements. And a lot of guys think because it's made to measure it's going to be great. And that's not the case because you're still dealing with someone who's taking your measurements, someone who's going to look at the measurements and try to make sense of them. So that's not really a foolproof way of doing things.

18:20
The made to measure is only going to be as good as the person who's taking your measurements. So there's a lot of opportunity there for things to go wrong. A good off the rack is going to be a bad made to measure any day of the week. So just because something is made to measure doesn't mean it's better than something that's off the rack. So that's very important for you to keep in mind. But I've worked with some guys in the past where they don't really have an option. They have to go made to measure.

18:48
because of the way that their bodies are. So they can't really find anything off the rack that fits them. So that's different. I usually recommend that my clients go off the rack first. And that's because if you have a good off the rack suit, then when it's time for you to go made to measure, you can base everything off of that suit. Unfortunately for me, one thing that I did wrong, one of the suits that I had back then that I really love was a suit from J. Crew and the style was the Ludlow.

19:18
And when it was time for me to get my first custom suit, I just had them replicate that suit. So high button in point, skin and lapels, et cetera. So that's why it's very important to build a strong foundation. So if you do get something off the rack, make sure it's something that's going to be timeless and then make sure that it fits well because my jacuzzi definitely didn't fit well, which resulted in my

19:45
mid to measure suits not fitting well either because I told the person who was measuring me that I wanted to fit me exactly the same. So if you find something off the rack that fits you well and it has the style that you want. So if I'm teaching somebody I'm going to teach you about classic proportions. I'm going to teach you about wider lapels. I'm going to teach you about buttoning point that's around your belly button. Your trousers waist is going to be at your natural waist. So if you have those things.

20:14
on an off the rack suit and it fits you well, then that's something that you can really duplicate going forward if you want to go meet to measure. But that's why I typically start with off the rack for guys. And number five, this one is probably the biggest one, that's to find a mentor or a community. And I'm not just saying that because this is what I do. I'm saying that from experience because when I started,

20:43
Like I said, GQ Magazine was my mentor. You know, I didn't know any better. So I've heard if you want to dress nicely, you get a GQ subscription and that's what I did. Around 2009, 2010, I joined a form, which is Star Form. They're still around, starform.net. And I would just go in there every now and then, but I wasn't really in there that often.

21:10
But around 2012, that's when I really started to go in there more. And I started to realize that, wait, those guys don't dress the way that I dress at all. I thought that all their clothes were too big and it just didn't really make sense to me. But when everything finally clicked, I would be on the farm every day for two years trying to put things together. But the thing about a farm like StyleFarm is that it has so many different threads. So that's why it took me a couple of years to really figure things out.

21:39
And also the people who are in there, they don't really have the obligation to answer your questions. But there are some really nice guys in there who are very helpful, and I was able to get a bunch of information. But going through Styleform and learning how to dress in a classic way, it still took me over two years to really put everything together. So I'm not saying that you have to get a mentor, because usually when you're dealing with a mentor, you have to pay, they don't work for free, versus a form like Styleform is free.

22:08
So it can be done. That's the way that came up. So it can definitely be done, but that transformation is going to take you a lot longer. There's good information, there's bad information, and you have to go through it all to try to find something that's really helpful. So this is something that we're going to be talking about at the end of the series on exactly how I can help you in that sense. But yeah, finding a mentor or community is extremely important, man, because

22:37
As I said before, you can get discouraged if you look into Dresswell and you start seeing other influencers and they weren't really expensive stuff. They have so many of them. You're like, yeah, I'll never be able to afford those things. But when you put up a community, there are other guys in there who are at the same stage that you are in. You'll see that you're not the only person who's starting from scratch or whatever the case may be. And the reason why a mentor is important is because they've been through what you've been through.

23:07
So me personally, I can relate to any guy because I've once was in their position. So I was the guy who hated to wear a suit and wore all my suits too big because I wanted them to fit me like my street clothes did. And I was the guy who was starting to get into menswear and was reading GQ magazine and wearing all my clothes too tight because I thought that's the way that it was supposed to be. So that's why it's important to find someone who's been through it and they can guide you.

23:37
And those are the type of services that I provide to my clients. But like I said, I'm working on something new and I think it's going to be beneficial to a lot of people. And you'll be hearing about it in a couple of weeks. So just to recap, if I was starting now, I would choose style over fashion. Because once again, style is not something that changes versus fashion changes all the time. It's a moving target. So that would have saved me a lot of time and aggravation and money.

24:07
if I was to go that route from the beginning. The second thing is finding a good tailor. Extremely, extremely important. The third thing, I was focused on quality as opposed to quantity. Even though it may cost you a lot to just get one piece where you could have probably gotten a couple pieces instead, but the quality part is the most important part. The fourth thing that I would do different is determine

24:35
whether or not I want to go made to measure or off the rack. And last but not least is to find a mentor or a community to be a part of. That way you don't feel like you're all alone and that way also you're working with someone who's been at the place that you want to be. But more importantly, there were wants in your shoes and they can guide you. So thanks for checking out number 31 and come back again in a couple of days for a Fire Wardrobe Audit episode.

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Peace.

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Outro music: Back in that bag, in that bag, again
Whoa, whoa, yeah, yeah (Hey)
Hey, hey, hey, hey
Back in that- yeah
Tell 'em to watch it...