(Professional reviewers agree: “Shopping there is a task you wouldn’t wish upon your worst enemy because the fits were terrible, the fabrics were poor, and it equated the act of buying a suit with all the sophistication of buying an evening gown from a Dress Barn,” begins Jian Deleon in his review of the shopping experience on Complex. “I walk in there and feel just dejected by life,” says Vishaal Melwani, a third-generation tailor who wants to revamp the suit-buying business for a younger generation with his suit startup Combatant Gentlemen.
![rent the runway men rent the runway men](http://www.crash.fr/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Prada-Uomo-Donna-FW16_-1.jpg)
There are also new options for men looking to buy affordable suits rather than rent–and were also inspired by the despair experienced at Men’s Wearhouse. The millennial in me wasn’t just looking for a suit, but also an experience.
![rent the runway men rent the runway men](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/f3/1c/fe/f31cfe05e0587efa2664a32fffc0f1d6.png)
To return, just pop in the mail using a prepaid label. If something doesn’t fit right, just send it back for something in a different size. The outfit, including any additional trappings like dress shirts, bow ties, cuff links, and shoes, arrives a week before the event. For those who don’t know, the site has a tutorial system to help renters measure their own lengths and widths. After picking a style, shoppers enter their measurements. (Blackmon claims that Men’s Wearhouse rents the the same garment 40 to 80 times Men’s Wearhouse declined to comment for this article.) Tux rental takes just a few clicks. It offers five classic styles: three tuxedos and two suits, renting each one out an average 15 times before retiring it. Without the overhead of hundreds or thousands of brick and mortar stores and middlemen taking a cut at every step of the way, these startups aim to deliver an affordable suit that doesn’t look like a beige sack.
![rent the runway men rent the runway men](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/72/12/41/721241c318c041b276795187b7637a67.jpg)
Much like Warby Parker, these companies own as much of the production, design, logistics, and manufacturing process as possible. The Black Tux works like Rent the Runway for menswear, and is one of a growing cadre of direct-to-consumer, online native retailers that aim to elevate the experience of shopping for or renting an affordable suit, tux, or related accessory. “It’s common knowledge when you rent for prom or a wedding that you’re just gonna look funny.” At this point, Blackmon was realizing he had the germ of an idea for startup of his own.Īfter Blackmon’s wedding fiasco, he and Coyne started The Black Tux, which last week secured $10 million in funding. “We look back at the photos and it was 10 guys swimming in tuxedos,” added Blackmon, who was working in startups at the time.