Most subtle sale ever on Brooks Brothers Black Fleece.

   (Looser fit, lower price: Madras suit $2100 last spring, $1400 this season.)

Anyone else notice Thom Browne's Black Fleece line at Brooks Brothers has been devalued without actually going on sale? The line isn't found in outlets and the F/W 07 collection was only just taken down from the website as F/W 08 drops to 50% off and the S/S 09 goes up. (The S/S 08 completely disappeared out of stores and online without any major discount.) And as all this happens, subtle changes are afoot. Without any change in quality, shoes that have always been $800 are now $550 - $650. Even last season's shoes have been re-priced at $550 from $800 without being added to the sale section as if they were really that price all along. Look at this post from Luxist from April of last year:

"Highlights of the men's looks include a "Fun" red, green, yellow and blue patchwork seersucker jacket for $1,900 with matching pants for an additional $700; a suit of cotton madras plaid (jacket $1,500, pants $600); a $2,500 morning coat with grosgrain tipping meant to be worn with a top hat; and an Irish linen trench coat with grosgrain tipping for $2,000."

This season the same "Fun" jacket is $1200 and matching pants are $500. A madras jacket is $1000 and pants are $400, a morning coat is $1200 and a Mackintosh is $1000. Everything is still made in Italy, the construction and linings haven't changed, but the prices certainly have. If like us, you're one of the few for whom Black Fleece is a good fit, this is a bargain (although you'd think it's owed to us after looking at the absurd mark-ups of season's past,) but you have to wonder how this line is going to survive having signed on Thom Browne through the earliest predicted end of the recession in 2011.

Comments

[Steve]

Black Fleece suits were recently available for $700 on the Brooks Brothers website, and have also been available at their warehouse sale for the same price (still going on, I think). They announced these changes to the retail price a couple of months ago--related to improved sourcing, I think.