Made in China'
That's very disappointing'
I expect quality manufacturing when buying expensive bond related clothing.
At least the levis' billy Reid and tom ford jacket were all made in Italy and the Barbour made in England.
Can't justify £600 for a made in China jacket even if it is bond related
Gutted
When you buy Varvatos you're paying for the name. Most of Bond's clothes other than Tom Ford are not designer clothes, though Daniel Craig has worn more designer clothes than any Bond from before. The clothes from luxury brands (Barbour, Smedley, N.Peal, Church's, Crockett & Jones, John Lobb) are worth their prices whilst the clothes from designer brands (Billy Reid, Levi's, Armani, Varvatos) have a premium attached to them for marketing the name, even if some of the clothes may be of good quality. Tom Ford is so expensive because you're paying for both quality and the name.
When it comes to "luxury" goods its all subjective about what they are worth.
I think it's fair to say no luxury good is worth its value if you break down the cost - Tom Ford, Apple, Rolex / Omega, Range Rovers lol
Just by looking at the Varvatos pics on here (mine aint arrived) I'm 100% sure it will be miles better then a high street shop product regardless where its made! E.g. a Zara or Topshop suede jacket
Cost / worth it?? Thats solely depends on the individuals status! A discussion that will be eternal and well, pointless {[]
Cost/ worth: it' isn't so ambiguous
If it's made in a country like England / Italy / USA and so on' by a long established company who manufacture all their own products with skilled craftsmen and use quality material ( like Crockett and Jones / smedley etc) then it's worth it regardless if you like the products or not' these type of companies don't just stick an arbitrary price on a peice because they know it will sell just because of the designer name tag. Companies like Armani/ Burberry etc might use good quality material but as long as the label says (made in China )which is just a byword for cheap s#%t then they can never be worth it.
By the way' the name is "James St. John smythe" I'm English
Cost/ worth: it' isn't so ambiguous
If it's made in a country like England / Italy / USA and so on' by a long established company who manufacture all their own products with skilled craftsmen and use quality material ( like Crockett and Jones / smedley etc) then it's worth it regardless if you like the products or not'
So any Rolex / Patek watch is worth it to you regardless if you like it?
Sorry I was referring how much I paid in my second reply.
Sadly it was too small - was my Bond grail
Instagram - bondclothes007
Asp9mmOver the Hills and Far Away.Posts: 7,489MI6 Agent
China produces some fantastic quality products. You can't label all Chinese made items as low quality and poorly made, because this is far from the truth. The sad fact is that China has some of the best manufacturing on the planet, unfortunately it also has the cheapest because of the low labor costs. But this shouldn't be confused with low quality, although they do have that end of the spectrum too.
Osiris, you are right about designer clothing not being arbitrarily priced, but certainly not all high-end designer clothing is priced on a cost-basis, and thus one cannot simply conclude that it is "worth the price" because of the location of production Also, a good is only worth as much as the market is willing to pay.
Researching the Sanders boots etc there appears to be a dispute about the "Bullit" boots. Found this on a McQueen site - sure some of the experts here will have more input
the boots he wore in the 60s/70s were Huttons Original Playboys. Hutton invented the style and method of manufacture in the 1930s. They were made in England but hugely popular in the USA and Scandinavia. The company went bust in the 70s, but the Original Playboys name was licensed first by a Swedish company and then by a Danish one which still exists today. During the 80s and 90s their shoes were made by White and Co of Earls Barton for export only to Scandinavia due to legal problems with the Playboy name but were sold in the USA and elsewhere as 'Players'. Sanders and Sanders did not make 'official' playboys and have only been making their version of these shoes/chukkas for a few years. The originals (and the Original Playboys brand now made in Spain) use the goodyear welt construction process and a special method to bond the crepe soles to the uppers. The Sanders are not goodyear welted and the soles are cemented on to the uppers. The Sanders are great shoes, well made in the UK at a great price, but they were not worn by Steve McQueen, I'm afraid.
with regards to the Rolex being worth it question' I don't know much about them'but producing a fine Swiss watch will have taken someone a long time to complete apprenticeship' it's a real skill. In England they only take on 8 apprentices a year to cover all fine watches (produce and repair) the course is in Manchester it was set up because there is a chronic shortage in skilled fine watch makers'
So I suppose there are expense because of the high skill required to produce one' so in my option they are worth it regardsless if you like them
By the way' the name is "James St. John smythe" I'm English
nice surprise to come home to both my Sanders chukka boots And my KirkPatrick shoulder holster for waiting for me.
Very nice! Whats first impression of the Sanders? Mine are in the post!
I like them alot, they're comfortable very good quality. I was a little Leery of the heel from the pictures but as soon as I open the box up I was impressed. I think they look great.
I want to give props to Mijon at John Varvatos customer service. I contacted them about wanting the jacket in a large. Because I am in the US, he located one in one of their retail stores. They held it for me and it is being shipped to me as we speak. Incredible service.
Same here. Mijon found a Medium for me in another state and they are now shipping it my way! Their customer service is truly phenomenal.
nice surprise to come home to both my Sanders chukka boots And my KirkPatrick shoulder holster for waiting for me.
Very nice! Whats first impression of the Sanders? Mine are in the post!
The soles aren't squidgy, they are reassuringly firm, the heels suffer from driving ( the foxing starts to get rubbed away) and the toe box comes up a wee bit narrow but I think that will improve with wear like many shoes. They look great and the uppers are of a high quality too. I'm pleased with mine but they can't be resoled (had it confirmed by Sanders) so it will be interesting to see how durable they are. If you look closely at the various 'Bullitt' pics you'll see the foxing on these is considerably higher than on McQueens shoes.
My name has changed! I’m no longer dufus......now I’m DB6
For those still wanting the John Varvatos Racer Jacket, the JV store in Detroit has a medium and and extra large available. Still at the sale price. The website has raised it back to full price prior to restock.
Comments
When you buy Varvatos you're paying for the name. Most of Bond's clothes other than Tom Ford are not designer clothes, though Daniel Craig has worn more designer clothes than any Bond from before. The clothes from luxury brands (Barbour, Smedley, N.Peal, Church's, Crockett & Jones, John Lobb) are worth their prices whilst the clothes from designer brands (Billy Reid, Levi's, Armani, Varvatos) have a premium attached to them for marketing the name, even if some of the clothes may be of good quality. Tom Ford is so expensive because you're paying for both quality and the name.
I think it's fair to say no luxury good is worth its value if you break down the cost - Tom Ford, Apple, Rolex / Omega, Range Rovers lol
Just by looking at the Varvatos pics on here (mine aint arrived) I'm 100% sure it will be miles better then a high street shop product regardless where its made! E.g. a Zara or Topshop suede jacket
Cost / worth it?? Thats solely depends on the individuals status! A discussion that will be eternal and well, pointless {[]
If it's made in a country like England / Italy / USA and so on' by a long established company who manufacture all their own products with skilled craftsmen and use quality material ( like Crockett and Jones / smedley etc) then it's worth it regardless if you like the products or not' these type of companies don't just stick an arbitrary price on a peice because they know it will sell just because of the designer name tag. Companies like Armani/ Burberry etc might use good quality material but as long as the label says (made in China )which is just a byword for cheap s#%t then they can never be worth it.
Lindy Hemming said so: https://www.mi6-hq.com/sections/articles/bond_21_lindy_hemming_interview.php3
So any Rolex / Patek watch is worth it to you regardless if you like it?
Sorry I was referring how much I paid in my second reply.
Sadly it was too small - was my Bond grail
Wether you despise them or not their hardware quality is superb (e.g take a look at a macbook pro body)
Mass produced in China (in crazy quantity)
How about those trousers?
Very nice! Whats first impression of the Sanders? Mine are in the post!
Researching the Sanders boots etc there appears to be a dispute about the "Bullit" boots. Found this on a McQueen site - sure some of the experts here will have more input
So I suppose there are expense because of the high skill required to produce one' so in my option they are worth it regardsless if you like them
Just been confirmed!
£10.99
Going by Osiris's previous posts about "Made in China" items I'd put this down as a rather obvious joke.
Same here. Mijon found a Medium for me in another state and they are now shipping it my way! Their customer service is truly phenomenal.
The soles aren't squidgy, they are reassuringly firm, the heels suffer from driving ( the foxing starts to get rubbed away) and the toe box comes up a wee bit narrow but I think that will improve with wear like many shoes. They look great and the uppers are of a high quality too. I'm pleased with mine but they can't be resoled (had it confirmed by Sanders) so it will be interesting to see how durable they are. If you look closely at the various 'Bullitt' pics you'll see the foxing on these is considerably higher than on McQueens shoes.