Off the Rack

Over the weekend I acquired a new suit. It's not exactly something I was actively looking for, it just sort of fell into my path and was too good a deal to pass up.

One night last week we went on one of our regular supply runs to Target. (We now buy almost all our household needs like cleaning products and toilet paper, as well as the personal stuff we used to buy at CVS, at Target because everything is less expensive there.) I usually take a spin through the men's department; none of the clothes are going to win awards for design or quality, but I have found some useful basics there over the years.

I particularly like to check the clearance racks, because the longer stuff is around, the deeper the markdowns get. Last year I scored a button-front shirt for $6, 75 percent off the original price. This time they had a bunch of suit separates. The last time they had their suit pieces on clearance like this, I missed out on finding a bargain in my size, so I diligently pored through the racks. I found a couple of styles that I liked, but I was unable to find two matching pieces in my sizes.

On Sunday we headed up to the North Shore to take care of a few things, and there happens to be another Target store in the shopping center. This time I was able to find both jacket and pants in the appropriate sizes. The jackets were originally $100 and there were three different orange clearance tags, so I was able to see that the markdowns had been 30 percent, then 50 percent, then 75 percent off. So, $25 for a 100% wool suit jacket. The pants were similarly discounted from $50 down to $12.50.

Even at the original prices, Target's suit separates are a good deal for guys on a budget. The quality is surprisingly good for clothing from a discount store (I've seen worse, selling for more money, at Kohl's). The jackets are fully lined and are reasonably stylish, with side vents and lapels that are neither too wide nor too narrow. The pants are flat-front, have an inner waistband button tab, and are lined to the knee, as is customary on wool dress pants. And buying separates is convenient, eliminating the need for tailoring in most cases. I have no idea how well these pieces are going to hold up, but since I don't often need to wear a suit, it's not really an issue.

At the Nordstrom Rack outlet in the same shopping complex, I saw some really nice Burberry suits, which are made for them in the USA in the same factories that produce Hickey Freeman suits, marked down to $500 from original prices of $1,200 and higher. That's an exceptional deal, and I would have loved to grab one of these, but that's a bit beyond my budget at this point. However, $37.50 for a suit is an expense I can justify. That's probably less than I'd pay in a thrift store, with some of the same thrill at finding a bargain and none of the worry about moth holes or odors.