Evgeny Filippov, Managing Director of STForex Company
- How did you come to the conclusion that you need a custom-made suit?
- Realization of this came in parallel with career growth. Cases obliged me to meet with people who held high positions in business. At this moment, you understand that you need to look appropriately for the suit to fit. Given my figure, not all ready-made suits, even from expensive stores, fit well. Colleagues recommended the Indever custom tailoring studio. Being very attentive to detail, I appreciated their costumes. This is how an acquaintance happened. Before that, I had never made a custom-made suit, and this was the first experience. And when you get to them, it is already impossible to leave.
- How extensive is your wardrobe today?
- While I ordered only suits and shirts, the coat has not yet reached: it is in the plans. Indever helps you pick up everything else: ties, scarves, cufflinks. In case of the slightest doubt about what to wear, I know where to call.
I have a total of five single-breasted suits. All triplets, but all different styles: there is no identical vest or jacket. The brightest is a blue plaid with a double-breasted vest. It is well suited for public speaking and less formal occasions. The next step is to try switching to double-breasted suits.
- You travel a lot. How do you think about what to wear on the trip?
- Everything, of course, depends on where, when and for what purpose. We prepare a suit or suits for the trip in advance, especially since they are all different. There are classic, muted tones, and there are bright ones: it all depends on the format of the meeting and the impression I want to make. Gray and dark blue - for business meetings in Moscow, in the office or outside. I often take bright suits on business trips around the country, where there are fewer formalities and communication is more direct. The regions are said to be conservative, but that certainly doesn’t apply to the people who specialize in financial markets I meet. Therefore, I can afford to experiment. We decide on the suit, and then we add a white shirt, bright unusual accents - a tie, cufflinks and so on.
- How easy was it to convince you about your wardrobe?
- They tried to break me, or rather, my stereotypes, from the very beginning. I used to be pretty conservative. The first suit I ordered was, of course, black, but they were very reluctant to sew. But on the other hand, they made a funny lining with Marilyn Monroe in it. The work on details such as buttons, cuffs, buttonholes and more is a special achievement of Indever. That is, they managed to make something extraordinary out of the most conservative thing. Actually, a gray suit appeared as an alternative to black. They said to me: "Let's sew, and you look with your own eyes and tell me what you think." I just always thought gray was dull and conservative, but now it is the color of my favorite suit. Despite the smooth gray Loro Piana fabric and the severity of the image (although the vest is sewn in the style of the 1930s), I try to wear it primarily to informal events.
Recently, I am ready to experiment. Even if I doubt something, I know that it is better to agree, because they know better. The last time they sewed me shirts with a higher than usual collar, which I see almost as a new stage in the evolution of my own style. I think I'm going to experiment with color. And, probably, hands will finally reach the coat.
From the difficulties: we are faced with the fact that one day I gained dramatically in weight. I had to alter, arrange. And twice! The second time was when I returned to my normal weight.
- Where else do you buy suits?
- I am sure that a person who once bought a custom-made suit will never choose a ready-made one - even if it was created by a world famous designer. Everyone was convinced that my gray three came from Tom Ford. I went to a boutique and out of curiosity tried on a suit: the fabric is excellent, the cut is fashionable, but it doesn't fit. Moreover, even if it were taken in the right places, it will not sit in the same way as the thing created for you sits.
Pavel Teplukhin, Chief Executive Officer of Deutsche Bank in Russia.
- What was your first experience of ordering a suit?
- In about 1997, Indians came to my office in Potapovsky Lane with a suitcase full of beautiful fabrics, offering to sew a suit and seduced me on the first try. At first, I didn't even really understand what is the difference between a suit made to order and one bought in a store. At that time, the main thing for me was to save time. And here everything is delivered to the office - you don't need to go anywhere. Buying a good suit is also a responsible thing, but I am a rational person, so for me the practical benefits were obvious.
Subsequently, it turned out that the Indians, who sewed, as they themselves said, costumes in the best English traditions, used old patterns. I realized this after getting to know the Indever salon. In fact, this difference was very striking.
- What is the principle of your wardrobe?
- From Indever I order suits with an eye on two cities, each of which has its own wardrobe. In what I appear in the Moscow office, it will be at least strange to come to the London headquarters: my colleagues would not understand. This is almost a revolution for them. In London, even a tweed jacket must last forever to be passed on to grandchildren.
- What is the fundamental difference between Moscow and London office styles?
- Both here and there I always prefer suits in blue and gray colors, but such nuances as shade, texture and pattern of the fabric are important. For example, a contrasting stripe on a suit in a Moscow office is quite acceptable, but in London it should be barely noticeable, differ from the fabric by only half a tone. In the British capital, it makes no sense to divide the wardrobe into summer and winter, so all the suits are made of dense, often smooth English fabrics. If you want texture, then only the classic English herringbone is allowed.
The Moscow wardrobe is more Italian in style, with suits in soft silhouettes made from lighter and finer fabrics such as Loro Piana. The new summer suit with contrasting mustard stripes was sewn from it. I was persuaded to do this color experiment at Indever. It is, of course, only for Moscow: in London they would definitely not understand me. Here, I can even afford to make a bright lining for an office dark blue suit, for example, with Turkish cucumbers or in a contrasting flower. In the English wardrobe, such liberties are unacceptable.
Together, they have created an impeccable wardrobe for London, where they are met by clothes like nowhere else.
- Do you also sew shirts to order? Is it easy to pair them correctly with a suit and tie?
- Shirts I sew exclusively in Indever. In the beginning, it took some time to find the most comfortable collar shape. They even redid it several times. But now I know that no one can sew better. We mainly stick to white and blue colors, as they easily match any suit, and then it's up to the details: a tie as a bright accent, unusual cufflinks, and so on.
- How easy is it to convince you in the choice of style or color?
- I myself love bright colors. In Moscow, I have blue, light blue, gray, brown suits. The latter, by the way, made me love Indever. Here the cashmere blazer in a cage, which I wear constantly, played a role. I don't have a single black suit, I don't like this color. When I ordered the last tuxedo, I didn't even have to be persuaded about the color: I settled on dark blue, although before that I had sewed classic black here.
Maybe one day I will dare to their proposal and put on a shirt in a cage. But to take this step, you need to overcome yourself. It's not that easy.>
