The 3 Suits Every Man Should Own
Jarrett Burks in midnight tuxedo by Roberto Revilla
If you could only have three suits in your wardrobe, what would those three suits be?
That’s a question that popped into my head this week, having dealt with a rush of last minute requests from gentlemen who don’t normally need to wear a suit in their day job, but had suddenly found themselves faced with a number of event invites “post-pandemic”.
These events range from black tie affairs, job interviews, wedding invites, public speaking engagements and much more.
So it got me thinking about something I’d never considered before - if I didn’t wear suits in my day job, would I even need a suit at all (the answer is obviously yes), and if I did need to have a suit or three in the wardrobe, what would it/they be?
Now, this has the potential for great debate. Some would argue that all you need is a good black suit. It can double as a cheat black tie, is ok for an interview and great for a funeral.
But I’d immediately disagree that a black suit is do-all, be-all suit. It’s too stark for an interview, where you need to create a good first impression and build trust and confidence in an extremely short space of time. A dark blue suit is far better for this.
But then while a dark blue suit works for interview, wedding or christening guest and possibly a funeral (with a black tie), yo can’t use it as a cheat dinner suit. You’d just look like you hadn’t read the invitation properly!
What then? A charcoal suit? Definitely dark enough for a funeral, smart enough for a wedding, some gravitas for an interview… but then you still have that “what to if it’s black tie” conundrum.
So, for my money (and I answered this question within seconds of it popping into my head - after all, that’s what you pay me for right?) - if I had to choose to own only three suits, it’d be the following:
A dark navy suit
A mid-grey suit
A dinner suit/tuxedo
And here’s why. The dinner suit is definitely one of those things every man should have in the wardrobe ready to pull out when that unexpected invite to an event or wedding comes through with the words “Dress Code - Black Tie” written on it. You can’t cheat your way around black tie. You shouldn’t. If you don’t go to many black tie events then all the more reason to embrace them when they come. It’s a great thing to dress up to the nines for a special occasion!
The dark navy suit is another must-have. Navy, of the cold colours, portrays trust and confidence. It’s the warmer of the two main cold suit colours (blue and grey) - perfect for an interview, or a pitch to a new client where you have 5 seconds to make enough of a great first impression that they’ll let you move on to the next step which is actually opening your mouth to talk.
Comedian, Actor & Writer Tez Ilyas in navy subtle check suit by Roberto Revilla
The mid-grey suit is essential because mid-grey (as opposed to charcoal), works for anyone, no matter their natural colouring. Charcoal can make someone naturally pale look washed out, medium grey is warmer and works for everybody.
“But what about smart casual?”
Your covered with the above! Cut right, the jacket from the dark blue suit can act as a blazer to be worn with chinos or even the trousers from the grey suit.
A step further and you can take the grey jacket and pair with the dark blue suit trousers. Voila! Two suits, 4 outfits both business and business/smart casual!
So, if there are only three suits you could ever have in the wardrobe, or if you are building a wardrobe of clothes from scratch, the dinner suit, navy suit and mid-grey suit are the three you should consider, no matter who you are or what you do.
Three piece medium grey sharkskin suit by Roberto Revilla London
