Amsterdam – Suistudio, the new sister label from Suitsupply, is setting its
roots down in Amsterdam for good. “The pop-up burst out of its seams,” said
Suitsupply’s CEO Fokke de Jong on the decision to remain permanently in
Amsterdam. FashionUnited spoke to De Jong to learn more about the new
store, women’s suits and how the brand has been received since its launch.
Suitsupply had been questioned for quite some time as to whether it was
going to produce women’s suits “We did not want to become the umpteenth
women’s wear brand, the brand really had to be about tailoring and quality.
Which is why the company invested years into researching the right fit as
well as selecting the right materials prior to the brand’s launch earlier
this May. “The first two collections went through the shredder. It has to
be the right combination of sexy and strong, it has to be contemporary but
it business appropriate at the same time. In the end, the brand decided to
focus on two main collections per year, each with its own special
eveningwear segment. Prices for an entire suit vary between 250 euros and
500 euros, depending on fit and material. Suistudio also launched a special
Custom-service last month as well, which offers customers the chance to
order an item in another colour or fabric, if the material is already in
use in another part of the collection.
The first results from the brand are positive, both in the Netherlands as
well as the United States, noted De Jong. “The biggest reaction we keep
getting is that people still have no idea how tailoring should be, how a
women’s suit should fit. They are especially surprised when they actually
find out how good a well-tailored suit is.” The women which are drawn to
Suistudio are a well-informed group, women who are used to wearing suits
and have been searching for a great suit for a long time said, De Jong.
However, the brand does not solely appeal to business women. “That is what
we thought at first, but then we notice that the group is much broader. We
see an astonishingly nu, ber of young women who also wear our items in a
very casual way. There is certainly something going on with the women’s
suit in fashion at the moment.” Businesswomen eventually became a much
smaller part of the consumers drawn to SuiStudio than previously thought.
“Ultimately, there is a much larger target group for the niche that we had
previously foreseen.”
The target group from Suistudio turned out to be much larger than
previously anticipated, but the brand’s early success also highlights a
need in the women’s wear market, added De Jong. “A good quality women’s
suit, made from premium materials can easily cost 4000 euros. A brand
within this price segment did not exist yet.” Most women’s wear brands have
incorporated women’s suits into their collection, but their focus on the
garment is not the same as Suistudio. “As a result, many people have never
worn a suit, so there is a real element of surprise when they try one on.
That is very nice for us.” De Jong also discusses the liberation of
tailoring. “We took a product that was driven in a niche corner, which was
considered to be a classic, and we released it and freed it.” This also
gives customers a liberating feeling when they are trying on Suistudio
suits, believed De Jong. “It is a little bit like what Coco Chanel did when
she liberate women from the corset, that is how our customers feel now.
They think this is cool, this is sexy, this is classy and this is now.”
As of November 30, Suistudio is permanently located at the Cornelis
Schuystraat in Amsterdam. “We did not select this location because it is a
busy shopping street,” said De Jong. Located a few blocks from the city’s
famous Museumplein and Suitsupply’s flagship store, the location was chosen
because it was easily accessible. The store has been designed to offer
customers the best possible service, with a tailor located in store as well
as special lifts. Within these lifts, which are connected to the stock room
above the store, customers are able to hang items they wish to try on
in-store. Customers can make an appointment for a fitting session online,
or in-store and the lifts are located opposite the dressing-rooms in the
back of the store.
When it comes to expansion, De Jong does not have a specific number of
stores in mind for Suistudio. At the moment the brand counts stores in
Amsterdam, Shanghai and New York. “We are still in the start-up stage,”
said De Jong. If Suistudio wants to press the accelerator on its expansion,
then there are the possibilities, replied De Jong when questioned about the
300 million euros investment Suitsupply received from NPM Capital. However,
he emphasized the brand does not want to open too many stores too quickly
and will focus on sustainable growth. “What we find important is to be top
of mind within the relevant target group.” Now with Suistudio, a
qualitative women’s suit have been made accessible to a larger target
group. “We have taken it out of a corner and released it.”
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Photos: Courtesy of Suistudio