Men's Clothing Brands

[CurtisBilly]

I've been buying Banana Republic and Express clothes when they go on massive sales for the past few years. I feel like I'm paying for style and not quality. The shirts don't wash up that well, the sweaters get holes in them, and the pants fade quickly.

I'm a 25 year old young professional who wants style and quality. Can anyone recommend a brand (maybe I need to shop in a dept. store?) where stuff holds together, washes up well, and doesn't fade.

Also, another related problem is deodorant residue on my shirts. Nothing keeps me as try and stank-free as Old Spice High Endurance Anti Perspirant/Deodorant, but I eventually get yellow stains on my white shirts (aluminum-based anti-perspirant?) and shiny-crystally looking patches on my dark shirts. Anyone know a solution?

 

[Babbles]

I buy tons of Banana Express for the style and the quality. I have tons of their clothes and I have never, ever had an issue with them getting holes, not washing well, or fading. I personally found Banana Republic clothing to be much higher quality than many other places at the same price point. I have some stuff from Express, don't like their style as much, and they hold up very well. In fact I think the most durable pair of jeans I have is from Express. I used to live with a girlfriend of mine who shopped almost exclusively at Banana Republic as well and her clothes also always held up quite well.

You may want to examine how you are treating your clothes. What type of detergent you use, too many hot water cycles and so forth. Excessive drying can wear out clothes very quick, regardless of the manufacturer.

Also I too use Old Spice High Endurance and found it to be the best out there for me. At times I sweat like a pig, but that stuff works better than any other I have used. If you want to mix things up, I have used Mitchum (sp?) and found that too be pretty decent as well.

 

[boredhokie]

When I'm slumming it i sling on an Ike Behar french cuff shirt with some Brioni slacks. For shoes it's usually the Tods. This is just for casual fridays though, what's your budget?

 

[FoBoT]

buy clothes at costco

 

[Suspicious-Teach8788]

H&M... Zara? I dunno. I shop at H&M besides Express and BR. Sometimes Gap.

 

[krunchykrome]

American Eagle, comfortable clothes, good quality, not expensive

 

[LegendKiller]

Brooks Brothers, Talbots Men's has some decent stuff.

 

[Coquito]

I buy those collarless shirts from Crazy Horse(Claiborne) & wear them when I don't have time to iron.

Microfiber is crazy stuff.

 

[Hyperlite]

i've always been a fan of gap and J Crew

 

[Jinru]

I love Express, only brand I like to shop at now, second being Banana Republic. You could try Guess, J Crew, or Armani Exchange? though AX is a bit pricey.

 

[Lola]

I would suggest going to a dept. store like saks or Macy's and taking a look around the mens department there.
They usually have a very nice selection and the quality is hard to beat. Plus, you have the option of many different brands, designers.
I have found that Guess, Ralph Lauren(polo) and ExpressMen have good quality items and you can get them at a steal when they go on sale!

 

[absolu7]

if you want fashionable, diesel is good (not the jeans), g-star, buffalo, h&m not expensive but stylish, zara too. triple five soul.

that should get you started.

 

[krunchykrome]

Originally posted by: absolu7
if you want fashionable, diesel is good (not the jeans), g-star, buffalo, h&m not expensive but stylish, zara too. triple five soul.

that should get you started.

Heh, I grew out of that Urban Outfitters stage when I was 22.

 

[Reggae4k]

Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus and Bloomingdales. Look at their online items to see how you should pair up outfits.

 

[vi edit]

Old Navy, The Gap, and Banana Repulic are all owned by the same company. The Gap offers the best combination of style, quality, and cost. Especially if you can locate an Outlet store. I routinely buy polos and button up shirts from there for $10-$15. Jeans & khakis are $20-$25.

I can't help you with the pit stains. Do you consume nicoteine products and/or drink lots of coffee?

 

[Jeeebus]

Here's an idea... go to a store... buy some pants and shirts.

Go home. Have sex with a woman, and start acting like a man.

 

[IceBergSLiM]

express has stylish items but the quality is bullsh1t.

stick to macy's, nordstrom, bloomies etc...plenty of options there.

 

[richardycc]

kohl's, their own store brands are pretty good and cheap, and they carry a lot of well known brands too.


PS: that yellow stains aint from the deodorant.

 

[sourceninja]

Originally posted by: Jeeebus
Here's an idea... go to a store... buy some pants and shirts.

Go home. Have sex with a woman, and start acting like a man.

OFT

 

[drinkmorejava]

As much as I hate going to department stores, Macy's is rather nice--it's not at all comparable to Kohl's and such.

 

[spidey07]

I love Nautica, Hilfiger, Haggar. The men's stuff (slacks, nice shirts, etc). Not the teenager stuff.

 

[RagingBITCH]

Originally posted by: krunchykrome

Originally posted by: absolu7
if you want fashionable, diesel is good (not the jeans), g-star, buffalo, h&m not expensive but stylish, zara too. triple five soul.

that should get you started.

Heh, I grew out of that Urban Outfitters stage when I was 22.

But you recommended American Eagle, whose target market is clearly high school/college aged kids, and isn't the same style of clothing as Banana/Express?

 

[krunchykrome]

Originally posted by: RagingBITCH

Originally posted by: krunchykrome

Originally posted by: absolu7
if you want fashionable, diesel is good (not the jeans), g-star, buffalo, h&m not expensive but stylish, zara too. triple five soul.

that should get you started.

Heh, I grew out of that Urban Outfitters stage when I was 22.

But you recommended American Eagle, whose target market is clearly high school/college aged kids, and isn't the same style of clothing as Banana/Express?

Urban Outfitters is trendy urban clothing. Banana republic and Express is more dressy. American Eagle is just comfortable jeans and t shirts. I dont think there's anything trendy about it. Just comfortable clothing thats in style yet doesnt make you look like your trying to impress anyone.

 

[RagingBITCH]

Originally posted by: krunchykrome

Originally posted by: RagingBITCH

Originally posted by: krunchykrome

Originally posted by: absolu7
if you want fashionable, diesel is good (not the jeans), g-star, buffalo, h&m not expensive but stylish, zara too. triple five soul.

that should get you started.

Heh, I grew out of that Urban Outfitters stage when I was 22.

But you recommended American Eagle, whose target market is clearly high school/college aged kids, and isn't the same style of clothing as Banana/Express?

Urban Outfitters is trendy urban clothing. Banana republic and Express is more dressy. American Eagle is just comfortable jeans and t shirts. I dont think there's anything trendy about it. Just comfortable clothing thats in style yet doesnt make you look like your trying to impress anyone.

I think the OP was looking for a "fashionable" replacement for Express/Banana, not comfortable. I'm 100% with you on feeling comfy - I'm more of a GAP/AF/even Target type person for clothes. 90% of the time when I go out - it's a tshirt/casual polo/maybe button up and jeans.

 

[krunchykrome]

Originally posted by: RagingBITCH

Originally posted by: krunchykrome

Originally posted by: RagingBITCH

Originally posted by: krunchykrome

Originally posted by: absolu7
if you want fashionable, diesel is good (not the jeans), g-star, buffalo, h&m not expensive but stylish, zara too. triple five soul.

that should get you started.

Heh, I grew out of that Urban Outfitters stage when I was 22.

But you recommended American Eagle, whose target market is clearly high school/college aged kids, and isn't the same style of clothing as Banana/Express?

Urban Outfitters is trendy urban clothing. Banana republic and Express is more dressy. American Eagle is just comfortable jeans and t shirts. I dont think there's anything trendy about it. Just comfortable clothing thats in style yet doesnt make you look like your trying to impress anyone.

I think the OP was looking for a "fashionable" replacement for Express/Banana, not comfortable. I'm 100% with you on feeling comfy - I'm more of a GAP/AF/even Target type person for clothes. 90% of the time when I go out - it's a tshirt/casual polo/maybe button up and jeans.

Yea, I used to dress up all the time, even when I went out. These days, I just dont care anymore. I wear t shirts and jeans, sometimes even sweats. Besides, 75% of my clothing dont even fit anymore. I went from wearing size M in shirts to wearing size XL in a little over a year, so looking good isnt nearly as important to me as being comfortable.

In any case, a nice substitute for the stores the OP mentioned....how about J Crew?