MTM vs Alterations?

Hello. I'm new here so please forgive me for any silly questions. I'm in the process of buying a few new pairs of trousers and shirts (and possibly a blazer) for my husband. He's not exactly an easy fit (6'3" with a 32" waist) so I've talked to a local tailor and I'm considering buying the pieces MTM. Since a good many of you seem to have experience in this area, would you recommend it? And if so, for which pieces? Or would I be better off buying OTR and then taking the garments in for alteration? Also, do you gentlemen prefer MTM shirts done locally or do you use online sites like Proper Cloth? Advice is greatly appreciated!

MTM or custom is almost always the way to go if the price is suitable to your budget. Besides looking better, it wears much better and is much more comfortable. The less you have to alter a piece of clothing the better. Nothing wrong with alterations, it is just preferred that you don't have to.

I would buy MTM for any trousers, jackets and shirts. Although, word of warning, custom made shirt will spoil a man very easily, and he will be reluctant to wear anything other than custom after he tries it once. OTR shirts are made to fit in the neck and arm length. All the other areas such as arm hole width, tail length and width have enough material put in to fit a large range of sized men. Often times someone like your husband is going to have a ton of material in the tail and waist of his shirt and after wearing it tucked in a few hours it starts pulling out and looks like he is parachuting out of an airplane. Custom takes care of that problem.

I would definitely go with someone local, the personal service you will get more than makes up for the money you will save by ordering it online.

If you are near a Brooks Brothers or a Nordstroms, I suggest you visit one or both, talk with the most experienced sales associate you can find, explain the situation and see if they have a base athletic cut suit that they can alter. They shouldn't do it unless they are confident of the outcome. Otherwise, Nordstroms for sure and probably BB have made to measure services. I strongly suggest dealing with a large company rather than a local tailor. I speak from experience, being 5'7" with a 40" chest and a 30" waist. I have good results from altered Botany Athletic Cut suits and other quality brands and equally good results from MTM. If there is a base suit to start with that fits in the chest and shoulders, everything else depends on who is doing the measuring. Keep in mind that zillions of men of all shapes and sizes have gone to BB for over a century for good reasons.

By tailor you are referring to an alteration shop, which is what most people consider a tailor. A true tailor makes the suit for you and isn't just someone who makes alterations. There are companies that exist who have tailors who personally see to their clients individually and make their clothes. Some of the large companies like BB and Nordstroms have good tailors that work there, but some also have people that are only there for a pay check and could care less how you look when you wear the suit.

With OTR, the closer you are to fitting it to begin with, the better. If it just needs a hem here and there, you are good to go. Those requiring extensive alerations are better served by going custom-made right off the bat, rather than whittling down a square peg to fit a round hole.

As long as the quality is there, a local tailor (whose business is making suits, not hemming pants ... big difference) is the way to go. Shirts can come from the same guy if he offers that service, or find an actual shirtmaker in your area.

Joshua, thank you very much for the advice! It had honestly never even occurred to me that a MTM shirt might be more comfortable but of course it makes perfect sense that that would be the case. We'll probably start out with just a pair of dress shirts (since we've not worked with this tailor before) and go from there. Is there anything in particular we should look for?

Godan, out of curiosity, is there any particular reason you prefer chains?

Very good advice, Doc4. We'll certainly steer clear of anyone who primarily works in alterations. The tailor we've talked to makes suits. And I'm not sure if it's at all relevant but he also does reweaving and reknitting. I'll admit that surprised me since it seems to be so uncommon. I hadn't considered looking for someone who is an actual shirtmaker, though. I'll poke around and see who I can find. Thank you!