When’s the last time you did yoga in a suit?

It’s common across industries for a problem to be invented so a solution can be sold. In menswear, athleisure and fast fashion brands like Lulu Lemon, Rhone, and xSuit market their suits, sport coats, and pants as a solution to traditional tailored clothing, labeling them as uncomfortable and too expensive.

These solutions employ synthetic fabrics that are stretchy, water-repellent, and machine washable, devaluing the most socially important article of clothing a man can own by reducing it to a track suit.

When you understand a suit’s purpose, you’ll realize a problem doesn’t exist.

In a socially complex world that can be difficult to navigate, a suit is a uniform that simplifies the question of appropriate attire. Worn for business, celebration, and mourning, the purpose of a suit is to be a reliable ceremonial outfit. 

Ingrained in human culture, ceremonies represent special occasions that provide the opportunity for a person to contribute to their social equity - positively or negatively; a time to wear their most valuable, ornate, and unique garments.

The suit has become a garment of tradition capable of expressing sincerity, professionalism, honesty, loyalty, or respect without the wearer having to say a word. Its inherent value is determined by its nuanced, yet incredibly important, attention to proportion, silhouette, and fabric drape - all features that solution-based clothing lacks.

Some of the most expensive clothes you own will be the ones you wear the least, but some things can’t be cheapened without sacrificing their inherent purpose. Buy the best you can afford, tailor it to your proportions, and your investment will serve you well.