RTW Chinos: high end vs. fairly priced
Since I got the idea to create this blog, I always planned to write posts about a comparison of „High-end vs. Normally priced“. So the people would know if it´s worth it to spend more money than usual. It was clear to me that for some pieces, it is worth it and for some not. But what are those we rather should spend on and which are the opposite?
I planned to start this a few years ago as I was invited to the Brioni trunk show. But, sadly, I had to cancel my appointment and missed this. Shortly afterwards, Brioni shut down the whole region in the central part of Europe. So no more opportunity to visit Brioni stores in Prague or Wien. Nevermind, perhaps sometimes in London or Rome, I will have the privilege to try this epitome of Italian quality.
Nevertheless, this post will be a comparison between Dunhill and Suitsupply. A British brand that since 1893 delivered to its clients finest quality of products and on the other side Netherlands company making wearable, elegant clothes focused on materials and price/quality ratio.
Today I am going to talk about RTW chinos specifically. One of my favourite chinos are from Suitsupply, priced around 80 – 100 EUR. Recently I had the opportunity to acquire Dunhill chinos – normally priced around 325 EUR – for a better price than generally at the end of the last season. But brand new, of course.
The first thing to mention is that Dunhill cotton twill is a good choice of fabric. Very nice to touch, but firm at the same moment, which I like. All that despite 4% of elastane blend with cotton. Suitsupply chinos are equally pleasant to wear, perhaps more so at the moment, but that could be that I already have them for a while. And to touch, the feel like with tiny velvet finish.
Suitsupply chinos
Both are slimmer fit, yet Suitsupply features a slightly wider feel when worn. This is odd as I have two chinos in the same size – navy and white, but white seems to be “slimmer”. In my opinion, this is a matter of how often I wear those two colours. Navy are worn often, white not so much, and I wash them probably more often as I want to have them still ready in my closet. Let´s see if Dunhill will get looser by the time.
Let´s get to the point. Whether you consider Dunhill or not depends on your bank account. But even if you can easily afford Dunhill, it doesn´t mean you should rule out Suitsupply right away.
Some things/aspects are worth to spent more on, in my opinion. These are material, fit, cut, craftsmanship (like bespoke etc.) and philosophy - thinking behind the product. For example, jeans in fuller fit, bespoke trousers, trousers that are not overly slim and material that can serve well for many years to come.
Not to say this lightly, I don´t see all these qualities in those Dunhill chinos. Material -yes. But fit is something I struggle with. I probably didn´t expect it to be a “comfortable” cut, but neither so slim.
I am glad I have them. But I am also glad that I didn´t pay full price for them.
