Suitsupply

Suitsupply B.V.

Industry	Fashion/Apparel
Founded	Amsterdam, Netherlands (2000)
Founder	Fokke de Jong
Headquarters	Amsterdam, Netherlands
Number of locations	84 (2016)
Area served	worldwide
Products	Menswear
Website	Official website

Suitsupply is a men’s fashion brand founded in 2000 by Fokke de Jong in Amsterdam. Suitsupply is a vertically integrated company,^[1] and the brand is known for choosing unconventional retail locations.^[2][3] Suitsupply is a member of the Fair Wear Foundation (FWF) and uses fabrics sourced from the historic mills of Italy such as Vitale Barberis Canonico and Reda for its products.

History

Suitsupply was founded in 2000 out of Fokke de Jong’s dorm room when he was 26. De Jong still runs the company and operates as CEO. The company is privately held.

Awards and honors

Suitsupply was named among the best places for suits in New York City by New York Magazine in 2012,^[4] and among the best new menswear stores by GQ Magazine in 2011.^[5] The Wall Street Journal reported in 2011 that a Giorgio Armani suit priced at $3,625 equaled the quality of a Suitsupply suit priced at $614.^[6]
Fashion industry insider Tim Gunn named Suitsupply's "impeccable and affordable" suits on a list of 12 things he can’t live without in an interview for Elle Decor.^[7]

Operations

Suitsupply Chicago Store on Rush Street

Suitsupply has an online store and brick-and-mortar stores in countries including Belarus, China, the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Mexico, United Kingdom, Canada, Russia, Singapore, Switzerland, and the United States.^[8]

Suitsupply’s first store outside the Netherlands was opened in Antwerp in 2007, and in the same year a store was opened on Vigo Street, London. Suitsupply's headquarters are located in Amsterdam; they also have offices in New York City and Shanghai.

Marketing campaigns

Suitsupply is known for its sexually-charged photography and ad campaigns. Carli Hermes has been shooting all the Suitsupply campaigns since 2004. Some photos from the Shameless campaign had to be removed from a London Suitsupply shop,^[9][10] and images from the same campaign at Westfield Shopping Centre were criticised because they were displayed where they can be easily seen by children.^[11] Several photos from the Shameless campaign had to be removed from Suitsupply's website and Facebook page for portraying the woman as a sex object and/or as submissive to the man according to a ruling by the Belgian advertising standards authority.^[12] The Ambition and Not Dressing Women campaigns also courted controversy. For the 2012 Fall/Winter lookbook campaign the Lunch atop a Skyscraper photograph shot by Charles Ebbets was a source of inspiration,^[13] and the images were shot against the skyline of New York City. The spring/summer 2016 campaign, titled Toy Boys, depicted doll-size men in suits playing on giant female bodies; scenes included: men sliding down a model’s bare chest, straddling a woman's neck, standing on a woman and spraying a hose into her mouth, etc. The images provoked controversy on social media.^[14]

Special collaborations

Suitsupply is the official supplier of the Dutch Olympic team,^[15] and was named best Olympic opening ceremony outfit in the 2012 London Olympics by Yahoo Sports.^[16][17][18] Suitsupply dressed Dutch Olympic athletes for Beijing 2008, Vancouver 2010, London 2012, and Rio 2016.^[19]

In 2009 Suitsupply’s collection featured pocket squares made of Liberty of London fabrics. Suitsupply collaborated with UNIS on a capsule collection in 2010, as well as with Mackentosh and Lavenham. Suitsupply collaborated with Antonio Maurizi, an Italian shoemaker, for a capsule collection of six shoes in 2012.

References