CUFF OR NO CUFF

Menswear aficionado Daniel George knows his worth and isn’t shy about acknowledging it. He began his career in San Francisco with gigs at Saks and Alfred Dunhill London when he realized, “I ain’t half bad when it comes to custom clothing.”

He launched his own business in 1998. After “kitting” out such clients as Oracle CEO Larry Ellison and California Governor Jerry Brown, Daniel sold his business in the City by the Bay and moved to Chicago to launch Daniel George Custom Suits in 2012.

Today, his portfolio includes shops in Chicago’s River North, San Francisco, and come October—a new showroom in Lake Forest.

Serious about suits, but quick to admit, “we’re not curing cancer,” Daniel is a voluble storyteller with the ability to produce the kind of media-ready quips many companies pay ad pros top dollar for. When a man ponders price before quality, he tells him, “Imagine having a mansion with no furniture, or a Bentley with vinyl seats. It doesn’t make sense. At Daniel George, you’ll spend a little more and appreciate the value.”

When a gentleman visits a showroom, Daniel wants him to know, “We’re not a bunch of uptight stiffs.” But even more, he wants him to know that the Daniel George experience is not ordinary.

For instance, Daniel and his design team use specific tools to properly capture a gentlemen’s measurements and physical traits before walking him through the latest seasonal collection of fabrics from mills such as Loro Piana, Dormeuil, and Scabal.

Daniel recently met with a gentleman in San Francisco and during the consultation asked, “are you ready to argue? Because I can make you pants that fit the way your pants fit now, below the belly, or make you a more flattering silhouette if you’ll consider wearing them at your navel.”

Plenty of us don’t know a fig about fit, but thanks to a stylish dad, Daniel has long been able to read the architecture and drape of a garment.

“He was the quintessential Playboy man, and yes, he read the articles,” shares Daniel. “He wore silk pajamas, monogrammed slippers, and smoked a pipe. I learned refinement from him, so much so that, one day, he took me to his preferred menswear store and told his salesman, ‘This is my son Daniel and he is going to assist me today.’ I was probably 10.”

As a young man, Daniel turned to Ralph Lauren for his suits before making room in his closet for pieces from Oxxford and Brioni.

“I was pretty precocious in my twenties, considering that those suits cost $1,000 to $2,000 back then,” says Daniel, adding that when he meets a client today, he susses out the phases of a man’s career to zero in on what he’s worn in the past and what he may be in the market for now. “I know that a 65-year-old dude who’s been in banking for 30 years probably spent his first bonus on Zegna or Canali — Armani was too expensive.”

Daniel can also spot a man who’s done well, but simply hasn’t opened his wallet in a while. “You see a seasoned gent whose pants are too short and think, ‘Is he a Boston preppy, or a Savannah lawyer?’” says Daniel. “But no, it’s a frugal guy who hasn’t bought a suit in 20 years.”

So Daniel talks him out of the center vent and introduces him to a properly tailored garment that is flattering and comfortable. As for his younger clientele, Daniel encourages classic tailoring and a trimmer silhouette—not to be confused with the “skinny suit”, which tends to appear cheap.

“A garment’s silhouette is paramount,” stresses Daniel. “It can make the average man appear 15 pounds lighter and an inch taller.”

Educating his clients is central to the pleasure Daniel takes in his work. But with the advent of fast fashion, his tutorials take a little more preparation.

“Fast fashion drives me nuts because everybody is selling cheap custom suits. I can tell a guy where to get a better readymade suit,” he says.

Nonetheless, after nearly 30 years in the business, Daniel still loves making men look good.

“When a guy comes in and doesn’t know much about clothes, we don’t take his $1,500 and make him a $1,500 suit. We explain to him why he’s going to spend more and thank us later with future business,” he explains. “And if he is displeased and doesn’t get compliments daily, he may return it for a full refund. I tell people, ‘I’m your sartorial attorney. When you get pulled over by the fashion police, you’ve got my number’.”

For more information, visit danielgeorge.com.