"Why don't you get a kilt while you're there?"

[MacMillan of Rathdown]

Try:

TM Lewin

Budd

Eade & Ravenscroft

all are in the UK, all have an on line presence, and all can ship to the USA in under a week (specify Royal Mail).

That said, expect to pay about 130-150 GBP for your shirt, perhaps a bit less if the collar is attached.

[Jack Daw]

Like Geoff said, I found my second tuxedo shirt (lay-down collar, pleated, french cuffs) at Men's Wearhouse after visiting two formal-wear shops. I was surprised that it has become difficult to find semi-formal wear.

[The Monk]

I just went through that last weekend, when I needed a shirt I could use cufflinks in. Used to was that every long sleeved shirt I bought had holes for cufflinks with a small button sewn on next to the bottom hole so you could button your cuffs if you were gauche enough to not own cufflinks. Not anymore. I went to five local stores before I found what I wanted.

On the plus side, the salesperson at each store I went to knew what I wanted with a minimum of explanation (even if they didn't have it) and directed me to the next store in my quest, so other than driving around for awhile everything worked out in the end.

[Lallans]

Anyway, after deciding on the style and features, I set out to find it locally. I tried a few tuxedo rental stores, with no success. I tried a few department stores, also with similar results. My final attempt was at a local JoS A Banks store. When I described what I wanted to the two salesmen helping me, they first told me that it did not exist. When I explained that I had actually seen the style available in several on-line stores, and that a number of retail stores also advertised that they sold them as well, but that many were located in the UK or specifically Scotland, I was met with the sarcastic comment..."Why don't you get a kilt while you're there?"

I quickly bit my tongue and replied politely that I already had a rather nice one from Scotland. They both fell silent, realizing that they had perhaps offended me. Needless to say, I did not buy one of their shirts.

I guess I will have to place an order for the shirt on-line. Oh-well. At least I know one store that I will need to stop by the next time I am wearing my kilt. Not to purchase anything, mind you, just to see the look on their faces when I walk in.

I suspect the rudeness thing can also be a sales tactic, at least with women. I work nearby an enormous shopping centre which includes a snooty women's clothing chain that sells to political spouses, diplomat's wives, and their ilk. The staff there are apparently completely distainful of any walk-in trade that doesn't include a protection squad, but I notice the women I hear complaining about the rudeness keep going in. Perhaps the intention is to get the victim to buy something just to show they are persons of value?

[BobsYourUncle]

Same here. That, and I just can't find what I'm looking for locally. None of the local stores ever have the style I want, a size that fits, or people who know anything about anything.

And on top of that, it's cheaper to buy online. The cost of shipping is much less than burning up gas driving all over creation on the hunt for something. Because I live rurally, any shopping trip requires driving into the city, and I can easily spend half a tank of fuel in a hopeless search for what I'm after. And I will waste a half a day doing it.

Online is the way to go. More variety, better prices, less hassle.

I greatly prefer brick & mortar to shopping online. If I can find the things I'm looking for, even if I do pay a little more for it. Unfortunately, more and more of the things I seek are getting harder and harder to find in person, which forces me to shop online more. Which in the long run makes it harder to find such things in person...

Don't get me wrong, I would ALWAYS prefer to actually HAVE the product in front of me when I buy, ESPECIALLY fabric goods. I don't mind paying more for what I want, when I can find it.

I am cursed with a massive intolerance for stupidity as well as rudeness. When I know more about a given product than the person who is supposed to be selling it to me, I find it extremely aggravating. Rude help... is enough for me to black-list a store for eternity.

I'm also cursed with a fairly specific idea of what I want. I know what I like and I don't want anything else (if I know that what I want exists). I don't want someone trying to sell me a pleated front shirt if I want plain. Don't try and sell me a wing collar when I want a turn down collar. You are just wasting your time as well as mine.

I DO dislike the "shop in person, then buy online" style of customer. The B&M retailer takes the hit on all the overhead, the salesperson wastes their time, and some anonymous internet warehouse gets the sale.

All that said, if I cannot get what I want in person, I have no problem buying online.

Isn't this the vicious cycle in which we live? Walking into a bricks and mortor store is an exercise in futility unless you simply need a type or kind of product--if I need a shovel or a generic coffee maker, I am happy to jump in the car and go.

However, if I need a SPECIFIC item, a particular brand, or configuration where not just any generic of that kind will do, I shop online, because if I go to a bricks and mortor store, my experience has been that I will spend lots of gas and time, only to find that "inventory management" means it is not on the shelf. I have been frustrated like that so many times, that online is now my default shopping venue.

The only exceptions are (1) if I need it NOW, and can't wait for it to ship, I will call likely local retailers BEFORE making the trip, to ask if the item is on the shelf. Even that can be frustrating due to employees not knowing anything about the stock, or caring enough to answer accurately; (2) my local hardware store, family owned for generations, is a shining exception to the rule. Everyone who works there knows the stock inside and out, down to the number of bolts in a particular size, and if they don't have the specific item I am looking for, they know where in town to get it. I don't even need to call ahead, I know that I will get knowledgeable, efficient service there. I give them my custom at every opportunity. If they ever go out of business, there will never be another retail store where I can have such a shopping experience.

Online will be the inevitable default, inventory management will continue to keep inventory to a minimum, and retail shopping will necessarily involve tolerating a high frustration level. I'm not sure I will ever quite get used to it...

[McFarkus]

I worked at the Men's Store at Marshall Field's in Chicago from 1970 to 1977. I was used to giving and receiving excellent customer service. I now do most of my shopping online because I can't abide the low level of service even at supposedly high-end stores.

[wildrover]

Interesting discussion...

I haven't bought clothes in a while, but the last time I did, the experience was a combination of satisfaction at how cool the employees were, and dissatisfaction at the lack of selection and difficulty in moving anything between stores. That was at a local Nordstrom's...

Part of the difficulty of living in suburban hell is that the B&Ms all cater to the suburban denizens of the pit. Label whores, people who want to keep up with the Joneses, Jersey Shore types, bling, Californication. Sophistication and class? Only what can be fit within the confines of the "swagger wagon".

You guys in or near major urban centers, you're lucky, at least when it comes to quality goods.