What kind of suits do men wear to interviews nowadays?

[bleedingheart]

Mr B has an interview and all he has are two double breasted suits that are a bit tight but he is thin...so it isn't noticeable...

So what is it....

[Whitacre D_WI]

1. We wear our "birthday suits."

Our society is much less formal these days.

[jmowreader]

2. Single breasted, dark color

Double breasted is a bit formal.

[Loonman]

3. Clown suits

With big, stupid, clownshoes.

[bleedingheart]

4. That's at the cleaners

[Loonman]

5. Oh...

Then I'd go with a nice charcoal gray suit with a white or pinstriped shirt and a matching, sensible tie.

[happyslug]

6. In Western Pennsylvania

It is suit, tie, and white shirt. The area is conservative when it comes to dress. There are some exceptions, but tend to be job specific (i.e. Jeans and T-Shirt for a Construction job).

If I was making any recommendation I would go with the suit and tie.

As to double breasted suit, a little out of style. I purchased some suits for Kaufmann's in December almost all of the Suits Kaufmann was carrying was three button Suits I believe the proper name is a "Tunic" but no one has used that term in 50 years.

In the 1980s Three Piece suits were the rage, than the vest was dropped, so you had two button Jackets. Than the three button Jacket came back (I was watching a movie from the early 1970s and most of the men at that time had three button suits). Thus men suits tend to go in cycles, thus an old suit may just be the start of a new style.

A thin person with a double breasted suit looks good (If you are over weight a double breasted suit looks bad, given that most Baby boomers are in their "middle years" and thus a little over weight, the double breasted is out of style. It was most popular when the baby boomers were in their 20s before they gain weight. They then went to the three piece, the two piece and now the three button. All to reflect a generational gain in weight).

All told, a double breasted would be a good choice, if it fits him. A doulbe breasted suit shows that he is keeping himself in shape and that is a plus point in being hired by most employers.

[bleedingheart]

8. Hey Happyslug!

I am trying to push him out the door right now to get a suit.

He only has two and one he bought 14 years ago and the other is about 10 years old....

Both are double breasted and one doesn't fit him well at all, the pants got too tight over 10 years.

[happyslug]

9. Kaufmann Had a suit sales in Early December

In Late November and Early December Kaufmann' had some very good suit sales (I purchased a black two button Suit for $89.00. I generally do not like black but at $89.00 I could not pass it up). I also purchased some three button suits for about $200-250.

The problem is after the second week of December Kaufmann just stopped having sales on Men's Suit (Getting to close to Christmas i.e. could not hem the pants before Christmas). I suspect more such sales in February and March as we approach Summer. He should have a least a dark gray (or maybe Blue) suit. When I first started to wear suits after I graduated Law school (Money was tight) I had just two suits, one gray, one blue. Both are good even in Western Pennsylvania. I would watch for a sale and have him buy a suit for his interviews.

[HEyHEY]

7. Depends

If it's a job you will be wearing suits at all the time, wear whichever looks best. If it's a job where you won't just wear a sportcoat and no tie...you don't wanna look like you're trying TOO hard.

[Whitacre D_WI]

10. No, man, I would NEVER wear Depends to an interview.

Well, maybe if I had the shits really bad.


But I wouldn't count on getting that job.

[HEyHEY]

13. that took me a second

:-)

[bleedingheart]

14. LOL!

that was pretty funny...

[stopbush]

11. It doesn't matter

no one ever gets hired anyway.

[ohiosmith]

12. Single breasted navy blue suit with a white shirt and a blue and red

tie.

[Rabrrrrrr]

15. If he has time to get a new suit ebfore the interview, go get one

if not, double-breasted is perfectly fine. Go get him a nice French-cuff shirt and some good cufflinks.

Double-breasteds aren't real popular anymore, but no one will care if he's in one versus a single. It's a total non-issue, unless he's interviewing with the Foundation To End the Sin of The Double-Breasted Suit In God's Name, Amen, Inc. (a non-profit 501(c)3 corporation).

I only suggest the new suit, if he has time, only because he'll look better in a suit that's been fit to his current shape. And it should be black or dark gray, unstriped - or lightly striped - and he'll be taken very seriously. Don't go blue. And absolutely don't get it in red, yellow, or white. :-)

But definitely get a nice, new, crispy french cuff shirt, if you don't have one already. Nothing looks better than cufflinks. And make sure to get a collar that fits his face shape.

[bleedingheart]

16. Thanks for the info..

the interview is tomorrow and I want him to make a good impression.

He just went up to the local men's store to buy a suit and they do tailoring.

I am hoping he can find something otherwise he is going to wear the double breasted which looks okay but he could look better.

[Rabrrrrrr]

18. Well, if he has to go with the somewhat "ill-fitter", you can make up

for it with a perfect condition tie, new/good condition snappy shirt (white only), and a good solid leather belt with a serious buckle (brass or silver).

And make sure those shoes are SHINED. And scrub those fingernails real well, shave close, no cologne, hair combed.

If the rest of him looks really good, they won't notice the suit being a little off.

It's amazing how much of interview is based on those first few seconds when one first walks through the door and greets the interviewer.

[Robb]

17. Three-button, solid color

...and if you remember to bring your CD and a framed photo of you onstage, all the better.

[bleedingheart]

19. Update - He got a black suit

the pants will be ready tomorrow and the jacket fit like a glove.

He also got a new white shirt and a red tie and a blue tie.

Now we keep our fingers crossed that he gets the job.


By the way the owner of the store stated that things have been really bad. He has seen a record number of people in his store to buy suits to interview and the majority were currently unemployed.

[Rabrrrrrr]

20. YAY!!

I'm glad he went black. Shows he's serious - and, pragmatically, there's no social function he can't wear it to, so it's a good investment.

Did he go french cuffs? Not trying to hammer the point home, I just really like them, and am excited when I see men wearing them.

There is some good news - at least the number of interview possibilities seems to be trending upward. An unemployed friend of mine has more interviews in the last two or three months than he had in the last year, I'd say.

I'm keeping the fingers crossed for your hubby!

What kine work he does?

[bleedingheart]

21. He didn't get the french cuffs because didn't understand what

I meant by that and didn't ask...so he is going to have a traditional white shirt (new). The fellow who helped him, he is the second generation to own the store, did run him through a checklist to make sure he would look his best.

My hubby has a software engineering degree and has been working in the software biz for 14 years. He has done it all and in fact while he has been unemployed he has been doing some really amazing stuff with .NET, XML & C#...

Thanks for the well wishes! I am definitely keeping my fingers crossed!

[Rabrrrrrr]

22. So it won't be a suit-wearing job...

Well, I'm hoping he gets it. No one should be unemployed. And while I realize that whoever doesn't get the job will continue to be unemployed, I don't know them, and so offer all my hopes to the one I do know, however tenuously through DU. :-) (and perhaps a segment of those who don't get the job are freepers, in which case, it helps us the more of them remain unemployed - evil of me, maybe, but what the hell).

Since he's in software, I can understand why he'd be having problems finding work. I remember a few years ago, theyd hire anyone who had breathed air from a comptuer CPU cooling fan, they were so depserate for people with computer experience.