Our ten-minute presentation came from veteran member Tony Carr of Suit the City, bespoke tailors and manufacturers of exquisite and unique made-to-measure suits and separates for men and women.
Tony is one of the most confident speakers in our group and his presentations are always keenly anticipated due to the fascinating nature of his business. As ever, his audience were not disappointed as Tony went straight into his introduction, explaining that he would be concentrating on shirts and the myriad of options open to ladies and gents looking for bespoke design and exceptional quality.
By way of demonstrating a point, Tony asked two members to stand up. Chris Burton-Brown and Chris Winser duly obliged, both being wearers of 16-inch collar shirts.
It is fair to say that the two gentlemen in question do not share a similar physique, CBB being over 6-foot-tall with an athlete’s frame, while Chris W…. isn’t.
Tony made the point that despite their physical disparity, both chaps, if shopping for a shirt in a department store would have to buy the same size and that while the collars may fit, the length of the shirt might create problems for on or either of them.
It was a striking demonstration of why made to measure is the only real guarantee of a perfect fit. Tony went on to explain that as well as collar size, measurements are taken at other points across the torso, arms and shoulders and that when measuring Tony even takes into consideration job type and weather the person wears a watch!
With the measuring completed, Tony guided us through the thousands of fabric types, collar styles, button options, stitching and monogramming, colours and weights of cloth…so many permutations that it would take a lifetime to even scratch the surface of the possibilities available to Suit the City clients.
As always, questions were welcomed from the audience and first in was Darren Evans with a typically appropriate ‘where do appointments take place?
Tony responded by confirming that measurement and fitting can be arranged at a client’s home or work, in fact many offices chose to have Tony visit to measure entire teams one after the other.
The presentation ended with the traditional door prize, a rather splendid bottle of wine which went to Caroline Cooper.
