Article Fashion

“Two thousand dollars for one suit? Are you crazy? I don’t have that kind of money to spend on one suit! Yes
I am well aware of the quality and that it is well worth every penny. I just can’t justify spending that much on one garment. Oh... but I sure would love to have an Armani.”

Rest assured that if you hear yourself in the above comments
you’re not alone. Countless businessmen would love to have fancy designer suits
but their budget doesn’t allow for it; champagne tastes on a beer budget … understood! There’s a way you can get one or more of these suits without costing you an arm and a leg. If you could buy one for anywhere from $15 to $300
and it wasn’t stolen goods
would you? Read on.

Definitions about what makes a man’s suit a “Designer” item vary. One eBay seller’s definition is “any brand of pre-owned suit that has sold on online auctions for $300 or more.” The definition continues
“See for yourself. Do a search on completed auctions for MEN’S SUITS. Sort High to Low in price and see what brands repeatedly come up.”

Here are some of the brand names classified as “designer”: Acquaviva
Barberini
Baroni
Belvedere
Brioni
Canali
Charvet
David Eden
Dolce & Gabbana
Enrico Venturi
Ermenegildo Zegna
Fendi
Gene Meyer
Gianni Manzoni
Gionfriddo
Giorgio Armani
Gucci
Hugo Boss
Leonardo Valenti
Luciano Carreli
Natazzi
Nino Bertini
Otello
Prada
Rossetti
Trussardi
and Versace.

Where are you going to find these suits? If you want to pay under $20
you will need to start hunting at all the thrift/second hand stores. Yes
you will indeed find them there
but you need to search. If you don’t mind paying a little more
try going directly to eBay.

If you opt to hunt for your suit
here are a few simply tips for thrift stores. Don’t expect these wonderfully made designer suits to jump out at you. And don’t expect to find a boatload of them all in one place. It is truly a matter of treasure hunting.

Thrift stores
estate sales
storage unit auctions and garage sales will be your best hunting ground. Not to discourage you
but it won’t be uncommon for you to look through 100+ suits until you might find one “good” one. The good news is that after you have a little experience under your belt
you will be able to whip through an entire rack of suits in mere minutes. You will be able to quickly tell just by the look and feel of the garment
which ones are quality. Take your list of "designers" with you and become familiar with the brands you want.

Hint: You will probably need to have a circuit of approximately 10-12 second hard stores that you frequent
hoping to hit the mother load. If you’re intrigued in the quest
shop a minimum of once a week at each locale! Your efforts will eventually pay off. If this is more work that you care to spend on finding a suit
try eBay.