<p>EK, my H and S are both broad shouldered and slim hipped (though considerably taller) and I agree with you–it’s a good look on a man. I suspect my H may feel as idad does about my “offering” my opinions but OTOH like your H would be a deer in the headlights shopping on his own. I second the suggestion of an earlier poster that you make it evident to him (as only his DW can) that you appreciate how fine he looks in his new suit. For my guys, Hugo Boss is reliably a good fit with minimal alteration. Very pricey at retail but almost always available at the Rack or if you have one nearby at Barney’s Warehouse. In general any European maker will offer a more tailored fit. If you want to make a smaller investment, I agree with the suggestion to buy a really nice navy blazer–it’ll get plenty of use, and your H will look (fill in your own adjective), with jeans and a crisp white shirt for a night out. Also second the vote for Ecco shoes, light, comfortable, sharp and last forever.</p>
<p>Most importantly, congratulations on your daughter’s upcoming marriage! We are all so happy to hear there has been a thaw in that difficult relationship.</p>
<p>average height of an American male adult is just under 5’10".</p>
<p>When you go shopping at a major retailer like Macy’s, you will not find many, if any, suits that fit a 5’ 7" guy, at least not with a slim waist.</p>
<p>Your H may be ‘larger than life’ to you and the kids ek, but to manufacturers of men’s clothes, 5’7" is the average height of a 14 year old boy… :)</p>
<p>btw: my 26 year-old-son is 5’7", slim waist, so we’ve been suit shopping for ever since his first prom (36" jacket). Macys, Nordstrom, Bloomingdales’ et al just don’t carry them that small.</p>
<p>The main problem may be that since the bulk of the suit market is centered around the 38" waist range, there may be slim pickings in the smaller sizes that your husband needs.</p>
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<p>Actually, obese men may find the off-the-rack selection better, since that is where the market is in the US.</p>
<p>We were recently looking for a cheap suit for my younger son who forgot that he needed to wear one for a job fair. (He has a made to order one he got in India that is very nice.) We found it very hard to find anything for a 32" waist, much less smaller than that! </p>
<p>I agree that Men’s Wearhouse would be the way to go.</p>
<p>We actually have exactly the same issue in our house - wedding coming up and dh and older son have no clothes. My sister-in-law has okayed gray flannel pants with an existing navy blazer for the kid. We haven’t decided what dh is going to do. I know my brother (father of the groom) will be in a tux because he’ll wear it any time he has half an excuse to. (Actually, he’ll probably only wear it to the evening dance, because I believe you are supposed to wear morning suits in the morning.)</p>
<p>As a man who hates to dress up but has to for business reasons:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>A strong second for Men’s Wearhouse. They get a lot of guys like this.</p></li>
<li><p>Another vote for Ecco shoes. I wear the Business Comfort shoe. Wide toe box. well made. comfortable.</p></li>
<li><p>I hate my wife to shop with me. One too many variables.</p></li>
<li><p>Use google beforehand. Have a basic strategy. Get a style that is middle of the road so it will not go out of fashion.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>An alternative measure of health risks of obesity is to divide waist by height, with 40-50% being the target for health. This avoids classifying muscular laborers and athletes as “obese” simply by weight (although laborers and athletes can be obese if they have high body fat as well as high muscle).
<a href=“http://www.ashwell.uk.com/shapechart.htm[/url]”>http://www.ashwell.uk.com/shapechart.htm</a></p>
<p>I.e. the middle 50% ranges from 35.6" to 43.1". It should not be surprising that stores stock the bulk of men’s trousers in those sizes.</p>
<p>If you look at by age and note that 20-29 year olds are less commonly suit buyers, the men’s waist size profile looks even more dismal for smaller trouser sizes. For 40-49 year old men:</p>
<p>Since we have a good amount of Asian - Americans in this area, who tend to be shorter than European- americans, I think we should be able to find his size.
Although Ds bf is Japanese- American, and his dad is about the same height as H, he is actually about 6’2".</p>
<p>Echo the comments about the ease of finding the right fitting suit. It won’t be simple. At 5’7", you are likely looking at the “short” sizes, regardless of leg length.</p>
<p>For the love of God, don’t by a “regular” size instead of a short. You’ll get the Chris Christy effect where the length of the jacket itself will make you look like you borrowed the jacket from a much larger person, even if it fits in the shoulders and they shorten the sleeve length. There’s nothing they can do with the overall jacket length. The jacket bottom should fit into your cupped fingers as your arms hang at your sides. Even an inch or so lower than that will give you the “Dad’s suit” effect.</p>
<p>As someone who has bought suits at both Norstrom and Mens Wearhouse, I would suggest Nordstrom if he can get one of the Hugo Boss suits (cut well for his build) on sale. The majority of the stuff in their store is going to be over $1000, not what I would recommend for someone unlikely to wear it often.</p>
<p>Mens Wearhouse is good, will have more selection at prices that won’t make you gag, and they do have some stylish selections, but try to get the oldest guy in the place to help you. They tend to have a bunch of young, inexperienced guys working there. I bought my last suit at their Bellevue store, a grey summerweight wool with colorful stripes.</p>
<p>We bought that off-the-rack Macys suit linked earlier for my oldest before he headed off to college. It’s cheaply made but adequate for a 19-year-old. </p>
<p>For shirts, I would stick with a crisp white, traditional collar. Dress it up with a colorful tie, not a colorful shirt. For shoes, I like Johnston and Murphy, leather soled and built for patrician feet. One of my pairs is 20 years old. Rubber soles with a suit is a pet peeve of mine.</p>
<p>I recently thinned out the closet and donated 6 tailored suits, 38 jacket/30 pants.</p>
<p>1) 100% wool only
2) make sure the jacket/coat fits, and do not allow the ‘tailor’ to fix it. In other words, if your hubby is a natural 38 regular, but you find a 40 short in the style/price that you like, don’t accept that response that, “we can make the alterations for you to make it fit.” No they cannot. (It would take a bespoke tailor to pull that off.) Once they pull the shoulders out, the coat will never lay the same.</p>
<p>We’ve bought the last couple of Hugo Boss suits at Norstrom Rack for under $400. You can pay less at Men’s Wearhouse but if a man only has one suit why not get one that makes him feel good and look sharp.?</p>
<p>Jos A Banks is another option. There are also athletic or trim fitting suits at both MW and JAB. I agree with the comments from bluebayou and others re. the coat must fit in the shoulders… period. The fewer the alterations on everything else, the better. Make sure you ask to have the extra hem fabric returned with the altered suit (in case you need to have a hole rewoven down the road) and store the wool suit in a moth-proof zipper bag.</p>