Indochino Review: Transatlantic Traveler Blue Suit & Brown Tweed Blazer

The Transatlantic Traveler Blue Suit

General Information:

• Indochino Perfect Fit Guide
• More Reviews
• Indochino Coupons
• Indochino Customer Survey 2012

I ordered the Transatlantic Traveling Navy Blue Suit to replace my Indochino Navy Blue suit that I had ordered as my first Indochino suit, back around April 2010. The suit still holds up fine, but I just know much better now what I want in a suit and didn't feel entirely comfortable with it anymore. 

When I had first ordered the Traveling Navy suit, the jacket arrived with a too high button stance and too much waist suppression. I do have rather wide hips and a long torso, so the combination really left me looking as if I was wearing a women's blazer. 

Luckily, Indochino still does the free remakes and I am glad that the remade jacket now fits perfectly. Angie ensured my that my preferences of a lower button stance and less waist suppression are now noted on my account, so I shouldn't have these problems again in the future. Actually, don't know why I had it them in first place, these issues didn't occur with earlier suits. Anyway, I hope that now with their digital cutting process these problems are a thing of the past. 

Transatlantic Traveler Navy Blue Suit | 479$
Ultimate Utility Shirt | 79$
Regimental Strip Tie | 49$
Elegant Angle Tie Clip | 39$
Metal Collar Stays | 9$

I have noticed some Indochino suits with overdone waist suppression in the past, so if you don't exactly have the ideal model shape of wide shoulders and narrow hips, you might want to tell them to take care with the waist suppression. 

The suit itself is really cool. You might have read my article on the Traveling Collection, so you know about it's special features like Teflon coated Merino wool (it feels nice to the touch, luckily), zipped sleeve cuffs, headphone ports and zip pocket under the lapel, vents under the armpits, etc. Some of those are just gimmicks I probably won't use much - for example there are something like 9 pockets inside the suit, I won't ever use them as it would probably destroy the shape and looks of the jacket. Other features are really nice to have, I am determined to see if I can make proper use of the headphone port and the Teflon coating will definitely come in handy for those Spaghetti lunches. 

Another item I purchased is the Intriguing Intellectual Brown Tweed Blazer. I had the same fit problem with this one, the remade blazer fits great though. To be honest, I even think the waist suppression is overdone at the model. I stayed with the peak lapels and the ticket pocket as shown on the Indochino website. I am still not sure if the peak lapels were a wise choice, but it looks cool - especially with the elbow patches (I realize you either hate or love them). It's a pretty versatile blazer, I could have easily worn it with jeans and without tie as well, just was too lazy to change for the photo

Intriguing Intellectual Brown Tweed Blazer | 299$
Navy Blue Pants (from the Transatlantic Traveler Navy Blue Suit)
Ultimate Utility Shirt | 79$
Spot On Navy Tie | 39$
Elegant Angle Tie Clip | 39$
Metal Collar Stays | 9$

All in all, two great additions to my wardrobe. I hope that was it for me with remakes on my suits, I indeed have high hopes for their newly introduced digital cutting process. By the way, I will be doing an interview with Indochino CEO Kyle Vucko and I'm writing together a couple of questions at the moment. Are there any specific questions you would like to ask? I will gather them all and see what I can get answered.

Indochino Navy Blue Traveling Suit

Reviewing a new addition to Indochino's suit lineup.

A great suit, including hidden pockets, teflon coated wool fabrics and most importantly, a great fit.

Written by: Lorenz

Indochino Navy Blue Traveling Suit

Date published: 12/04/2011

8 / 10 stars

Indochino's 2011 plans: Cardigans and more

Cardigans - soon on Indochino?
(pic depicts random cardigan found on the internet)

Have you been wondering what could be next on Indochino? We've had all kinds of suits, from linen to flannel and tweed, interesting linings, pocket squares and much more. Now it seems that Indochino is thinking even further than suits and outerwear. It seems for 2011 we can expect Indochino's own line of Cardigans and much more.

A recent interview on "tucked. the blog" with Kyle Vucko, Indochino's CEO reveals some interesting plans for the future:

Tucked: What should Indochino’s current customer and prospective client look forward to in the future?

KV: More product launches. We have new product every month. We are currently expanding our current offering, so more suits, more shirts and pants. We want to continue to make our product more appealing, especially to our customers that have been around for awhile. You should look out for new types of products. Cardigans is one that we are working on for the New Year and then a few others. We are trying to move beyond being the go-to place for the men’s suit, and towards being the go-to place for men’s custom clothing. The idea that you can really buy an entire custom wardrobe is the bigger vision, and I think we are beginning to strive towards that goal. (taken from tucked. the blog - interview with Kyle Vucko, November 29, 2010)

I'd really recommend you to read the whole interview on tucked. the blog, it has some great insights concerning Indochino, their profit situation, return rates and much more. The whole blog is actually a must for people interested in fashion, so check it out sometimes!


Tucked LLC Interviews Indochino from Justin Bridges on Vimeo.

Interview with Kyle Vucko, Indochino CEO

Left: Kyle Vuko Right: Heikal Gani

Photo copyright by www.guardian.co.uk

They say behind every successful company, lies a great story. It's not different with Indochino. According to their website, Heikal Gani had troubles finding the right suit for a conference. Unable to find anything that fit both his budget and taste, he decided to take matters into his own hands. He teamed up with  fellow student and friend Kyle Vucko and in 2007, Indochino was born. Kyle, the CEO runs the business from Canada, Heikal, the CCO (Chief Creative Officer) is responsible for design and production in Shanghai, China. Today, Indochino is the largest online retailer of customer suits in the world, with over 50 employees and customers from (almost) all over the world.

In 2010 the company is experiencing immense growth rates and media from all over the world is covering their success story. I had the great opportunity to do an email Interview with Kyle Vucko and ask him about the future of the business and the challenges ahead. Furthermore, I tried to focus on questions discussed within the community, expect some very promising answers. Please read on for the full interview below:

Part 1 - about the company

First of all, many thanks for taking the time for doing this interview! I am sure you must be very busy at the moment, the business seems to reach new heights. How did the year 2010 go so far for Indochino?

So far the year has been great for Indochino. We’re not even half way through and already we’ve expanded exponentially. It’s exciting, we have some exciting things still to come in 2010.

There are a number of companies on the Internet, offering similar products as Indochino. How is Indochino different from these companies and what is your unique selling point?

When Indochino began in 2007, we were the first in the space and it’s great to see that custom-made menswear online has grown into its own pocket of the industry. There are a number of things that still set us apart including the way we release new styles at a rapid pace and the close contact we have with manufacturing which allows us to have control over quality assurance. We are also still the only company that can deliver a suit in under two weeks and back it up with a Perfect Fit Promise.

What is the general direction for 2010? Overall, will you focus on growth, new product lines or rather on further improving quality and customer satisfaction?

We are focusing on all of these. Expanding product lines means finding more compelling fabrics and continuing to refine our construction quality. Plus, the way towards growth is by listening to our customers and providing them with the best service and products possible.

You are clearly getting a high number of new customers from all over the world every day, but how high is the share of returning customers?

Close to half of our sales right now are from returning customers. Once measurements are taken and the first suit is made, it’s just point, click, and buy. Indochino has a lot of fantastic, loyal customers.

According to your data, how high is the number of remakes?

Indochino has a 4% return rate, much lower than the 20%+ industry norm, which is in thanks to our Perfect Fit Promise which offers the option for alteration credits and remakes. Every customer is unique, and every purchase different, so our focus is to ensure that the final outcome of every purchase is for the suit/shirt/blazer to be the perfect fit for each customer’s taste.

Part 2 - about the product

Many customers are concerned about buying products produced in China and other parts of Asia. What can you tell us about the working conditions/the contractual situation for Indochino tailors? Can customers make a purchase with a clear conscience?

Absolutely. We have partnerships with our tailors and Indochino’s products are based on their craftsmanship, so we’re not just outsourcing to an unknown factory. A master tailor comes into our office every day and we work very closely with the team to ensure their working conditions are great and their compensation is higher than similar positions in Shanghai.

A bespoke tailor I recently spoke to, commented on the construction of Indochino suits. He believes that Indochino decided for a rather uncommon approach of interlining the suits (both fused and canvassed, no canvas on the lapels). Can you shed some light on the background of this decision?

We made the decision to construct our suits that way in order to provide the best quality construction at an affordable price. I believe we are the only apparel company who provides a full-canvas interlining at the price point we offer. There are varying opinions on suit constructions and we continually monitor this to ensure the best possible product is created. From next week onwards, customers can expect canvas throughout the lapels too.

While most reviews on the Internet seem to be very positive overall, many are not perfectly happy with the shoulders. More specifically, the criticism goes towards the little support in the shoulder part of the chest piece that can make them appear a bit lumpy. What is your opinion on this?

We have noted that there’s a section of our customer base that would prefer a different type of shoulder construction, so starting next month we will offer the option of natural shoulder construction as well as the lightly padded shoulders we have now.

You are providing great, detailed videos on how to measure yourself. Still, many people seem to be unsure about how to do it correctly. Many people claim that for getting a slim suit as seen on your models, you have to take a few inches off each measurement. What do you recommend doing?

Taking the time to measure is key when following our videos on Indochino.com. And also be as precise as possible with your height and weight.

A question asked from Style Forum members: Do you plan on expanding the style of linings offered or perhaps even more fabrics to choose from?

Stay tuned!

I think it's fantastic how quickly you come up with new styles, new suits that are just right for the season. Some of the linen suits for example look mouth-watering! How do you get your inspiration?

Our goal is to create compelling products that wow our customers, the inspiration for this takes many forms:  Customer insights, industry trends, and what people actually buy from Indochino to name a few.

plans for the upcoming week

Dear readers,

I have some good news for the upcoming week! Kyle Vucko, the CEO of Indochino is so kind to do an email interview with me. I am really honoured and I carefully selected a couple of questions that are hopefully of interest to you. I am sure Mr Vucko is a very busy guy, especially as business at Indochino seems to be increasing at rapid rates lately, but I can hopefully release the interview at some point this week.

I have also prepared an article on suit construction with a special focus on Indochino suits. It is basically ready to be released, but I want to wait for the interview and the answers concerning Indochino's suit construction.

Furthermore, I will update and upgrade the a bit lacklustre Indochino suit review I released on Thursday. I had come home tired after a longer business trip to find my suit waiting for me and neither the text nor the photos reflect how happy I am with the suit. Also, I went to the tailor with the jacket and had some things changed (namely the length of the sleeves and chest) and I want to update you with the results. Bear with me while this blog becomes more professional and helpful for you and many thanks to all readers for stopping by so often every day.

Moreover, please note that in order to comment you don't need to sign in or sign up. You can simply choose to comment as Anonymous or with a freely chosen nickname. I'm grateful for every comment (that is not spam) and discussion. 

Best regards and have a great Sunday,

Lorenz