Steve Nash invests in Indochino and gets his own Collection - Introducing the Steve Nash Collection

Steve Nash prancing around in one of his new suits

Indochino promised us their biggest collection to date and in a way, it is true - it is their biggest collection, because Steve Nash might just be their biggest (as in tallest) model to date. I assume you all know Steve Nash, the Canadian basketball star. He is also an investor in Indochino (introduced to the company via Jeff Mellett, another Indochino investor) and today he got his own collection, the Steve Nash Collection. 

It's a clever marketing move by Indochino, using a strong Canadian testimonial for their brand. There had been a cooperation between Nash and Indochino before, for a charity and featuring the Showdown In Chinatown suit. I don't know if Steve Nash is perceived as a style icon by the general public, but he surely seems to have the necessary enthusiasm for suits. Here is what Mr Nash himself has to say about the collection:

“I have a huge passion for men’s apparel and brands that are innovative,” said Nash. “So, it is extremely exciting for me to be a part of a brand like Indochino and to have the opportunity to design my own signature collection with them.” (source: http://www.techvibes.com/blog/steve-nash-invests-in-and-launches-his-own-suit-collection-with-indochino-2011-10-25)

The Steve Nash Collection consists of 6 new suits, 4 new ties, a selection of pocket squares and 3 new cufflinks. As for the suits, standout features include:

• Nailhead fabrics (4 different colors, all 100% Merino Wool)
• Prince of Wales fabric (100% Merino Wool)
• Glen Plaid fabric (100% Merino Wool)
• colored collar felts (matching the suit color) 
• special polka dots linings (available in 4 colors)

Prices range from 499$ for the 2-piece suits to 579$ for the 3-piece suits, ties are 49$ each, pocket squares and cufflinks are 39$ a piece.

The new suits are mostly pretty versatile with a twist (nailhead). Available in blue, brown, charcoal and gray the nailhead suits don't have any fancy plaid or striped patterns and can be worn with a number of ties and shirts - and pocket squares, if you want to. If you already have your standard navy and charcoal suit in your wardrobe, a nailhead version might be a nice addition - the brown one also looks great, surely makes you stand out from the crowd, especially on a closer look.

My personal favorite however is the Gray Glen Plaid Suit. Just like all other suits in this collection it is made from 100% Merino Wool and it has a bit of a rougher look to it, perfect for the late fall/winter weather in my opinion - I ordered this one, with pants cuffs, think it goes well with fabric and style. To see an overview of all the new suits and some more details on the collection go here.

As mentioned, there is also a number of pocket squares and ties available, see below for an overview.

Overall, an interesting new collection - I personally don't care much about who designed or models for Indochino, but the collection itself is pretty cool - I like the nailhead fabrics and the glen plaid a lot, the pocket squares and ties are interesting, but a tad expensive (as usual). Overall, Indochino has had some great releases lately and their updated production process (digital cutting) was also a huge step forward. Pity I am not in Vancouver, I would love to go go to their pop-up store - as a tailor measures you there, the risk of having wrong measurements is basically terminated.

Last but not least, there is also a Facebook Competition (value: 4000$)

https://www.facebook.com/indochino?sk=app_161033847281768

...by the way

I did some research on Steve Nash and men's style and Indochino is actually not his first time as a suit model. According to an article on guyism.com, Mr Nash already modelled for Sears back in 1996 - with limited success - guyism.com lists him as number 2 of the 25 worst NBA draft suits of all-time. However, Steve Nash's interest in (and sense for) men's fashion has surely increased since then.

Steve Nash modelling for Sears in 1996
source: http://guyism.com/sports/worst-nba-draft-suits-ever.html

Biggest Indochino Collection ever coming up tomorrow

Facebook teaser image

Tomorrow, the 25th of October, is no ordinary day according to Indochino. Today, the released a newsletter with two links to teaser images from their Facebook and Twitter acounts. I have posted them both above and below. Hard to say what exactly will await us, colored collar felts are for sure and I guess there will be much more - Indochino named it their biggest collection to date. More tomorrow!

Twitter teaser image

Finally, new outerwear from Indochino!

Finally, we got some fresh outerwear from Indochino. Actually, not only 6 new coats, 6 new blazers (Tweed!) were added as well, along with a couple of new shirts. Read on below for more details and  measurement advice on outerwear. 

Outerwear

6 new outerwear items, from peacoats, to topcoats and trenchcoats, with prices ranging from 329$ to 349$ (that is quite fair, isn't it?). They all feature padded interior lining for extra insulation and a couple of them have a front zip pocket as a nice style detail. If you are wondering about the fabrics, all of the new items seem to be made of wool/cashmere blends.

I have been wondering which one of those coats I should get, at the moment I favor the Navy Peacoat.  Not only do I like how it looks, I can also imagine wearing it with a casual outfit. Whatever I will go for, it will also be the first Indochino item I can order for "free", because some of you have been so nice to use my referral code on their first purchase, which used to give me 50$ store credit (referral program is now stopped)- so let me take the opportunity here to say a big thank you! Read on below for more info on the new collection.

Another big step forward for Indochino - The Indochino Pop-Up Store Vancouver

Exciting times for Indochino and their customers. Yesterday, Indochino announced the first ever Indochino pop-up store, to be opened from November 16-19 in their hometown Vancouver, Canada. This marks a big step for Indochino, so far their whole business has been online. While many of the more traditional brick-and-mortar stores are moving their businesses online, Indochino is a pure online business attempting to grasp a foothold in the offline world. 

As a special incentive, Indochino is also offering a free dress shirt and 2 free accessories & free style advice for those who attend the fitting event. I see this move as a logical next step, after introducing digital cutting in a message recently. I am sure this is only a first try to test the market, if this works out (and more than 80 people have already registered for the event via Facebook), I am sure that more major cities in Canada and the U.S. will follow. Who knows, perhaps a real, permanent retail store is in the plans too. 

The benefit for the customer (aside from the freebies) is clear - you can be sure Indochino trained the tailors present to take the measurements exactly as needed, so your suit should turn out great by all means.

For more information on the event check http://www.indochino.com/traveling-tailor-vancouver and read about it on Facebook. I wish I could go myself, but Vancouver is just a bit too far away. However, I hope I will be able to cover the event on the blog, would be cool if someone here could share some impressions! You can always reach me at lorenz@indochino-review.com or via Twitter or let me know in a comment if you are planning to attend!

New linings from Indochino

Some new patterned linings for your suit

With all the buzz about the message from the founders on Tuesday (digital cutting!), I completely missed the 4 new lining options introduced yesterday. There are 4 new choices, available for every suit (except the Traveling Collection, because of the special features). The same kind of pattern comes in different colors, ranging from gray and blue to pink and brown. I like the subtle pattern, it is a welcome change from the solid colored options available so far. Not sure if those new linings will be online permanently, but I am sure it will be a popular choice. 

Great news in a message from the Indochino founders

Indochino today released a new video (see above and Facebook) - a message from the founders, Kyle Vucko and Heikal Gani. They covered three topics:

• Digital Cutting
• Ready-To-Wear Packing
• Traveling Collection Insights (bigger/longer boxes, less wrinkles)

Digital Cutting aka. "consistency, consistency, consistency"

I had been very outspoken about this in the past and I had seen it as THE one point where Indochino needed to improve - I am talking about consistency. Previously, there was this margin of error that could make suits come out slightly different, even if you didn't change any of your measurements. I am very happy to learn that this risk has now been eliminated. Indochino is using state of the art technology to digitally map your patterns and cut them with lasers. They are using Gerber machines and I have heard they are the best you can get for this job.

What this means for customers: Once you get the fit right - follow the guide - you can now be sure your suits will fit exactly the same way. Yes, you might need some alterations on your first suit, or perhaps even a remake - but patience pays off for the next orders. I really believe this is a huge step forward. 

The Traveling Collection

I had been writing about it before (and I also ordered the Navy Traveler Suit) and I think the Traveling Collection is pretty cool - lots of pockets (don't use them for heavy stuff), one even especially for touchscreens, zippers, earphone ports, teflon-coated fabrics...pretty innovative! There has been quite a lot of cool stuff coming from Indochino lately anyway, I enjoy the new outerwear (write-up here) too - they have upgraded their fabrics compared to last year, so this time the outerwear should be suitable for colder climates too.

Traveling Collection features

[EXPIRED] Indochino Coupon Alert: Autumn Shirt Promotion (23% discount)

Indochino just launched a special promotion on their shirts - use the coupon code OCTOBERSHIRTS at checkout to get 3 shirts for 229$ (normal price 297$ at 99$ per shirt, resulting in around 23% discount overall). I do own quite a few of their shirts and never had any problems, they hold up well, I wear them regularly and bring them to the dry cleaners every week.

There are currently around 40 different shirts available, so choice shouldn't be the problem. I would recommend against the wrinkle-free shirts - I got 2 of them recently and I just read up on the chemical process (formaldehyde) used afterwards. So, if you can, go for the normal cotton shirts and accept they will get a bit wrinkled.

It doesn't really say about the duration of the promotion, but judging from the coupon's name, I would say it's valid until the end of October ;)

Fresh ideas: Indochino's new Traveling Collection

Key features of Indochino's Travelling Collection

Nicely timed with the presentation of the iPhone 4S, Indochino released their new collection, named the "Traveling Collection" yesterday. A set of 3 suits and 1 blazer, reasonably priced at 349$ - 499$ showcase some fresh ideas that I want to highlight below: