Wedding Day Tuxes and Poor Fitting Suits

I haven't written a post in a while. I started looking through my business letters for some inspiration and remembered this little doozy from my wedding day. I wrote the CEO of Men's Wearhouse back in September of 2013. I'm not sure if is still the CEO or not. I do know there've been similar stories from others, not just with Men's Wearhouse, but all different tux and suit providers. This is what you specialize in. Why is it so hard to get a fitting done right? Dear Mr. Ewert: I am sending this letter to make you aware of some poor customer service and quality issues we recently experienced with your store. Unfortunately, I am writing this letter after the fact, so there isn’t much you can do to rectify a situation that has already occurred. My wedding was August 30, 2013 in Los Angeles. In March, my now husband and his best man went to Men’s Wearhouse, Burbank location, to choose a tux style and have an initial fitting. We had 8 men renting from Men’s Wearhouse stores in California, Rhode Island, and Minnesota. My husband communicated with all the men, letting them know what they needed to do and by what date. Everyone followed the instructions and got their fittings, as requested. A few of the men traveling to LA from other states, scheduled to pick up their tux in Burbank when they arrived. In early August, my husband went back to the Burbank location to be refitted, because he had lost 25 lbs. He scheduled the pickup date and confirmed the out-of-towners who would be picking up their tuxes from the Burbank store. Two days before the wedding, as scheduled, my husband and four others drove to the Burbank store to pick up their tuxes around 4PM. When they arrived, they were told that none of the tuxes were ready. The store was under the impression that they were there for a fitting, not for a pick up. My husband tried his tux on, which was incredibly wrinkled, and the pants had to be hemmed significantly. My father’s first fitting was at one of the Rhode Island stores. The Burbank store also had my father try on the pants, but not the jacket or the vest. My father-in-law’s shoes were way too small, which they didn’t bother having him try on at his first fitting which was in St. Paul, Minnesota. My husband reiterated that the wedding was on Friday and it was now Wednesday late afternoon. They needed to finish alterations by the end of the day and he would be back to pick up everyone’s tuxes (we were leaving the next morning to stay at a hotel close to the venue). The store responded, “we will see what we can do.” The store said to come back at closing and they hoped to have everything ready. There was no immediacy on the part of the store, no concern; not a big deal. Their attitude was unacceptable! We were hosting a dinner that night at a restaurant for all out of our out-of-town guests and my husband and groomsmen had to leave during the dinner to go back to the Men’s Wearhouse and pick up their tuxes. The tuxes were ready, but my father-in-law’s shoes had to be ordered, so they needed to be picked up the next morning. My husband did not stay at the hotel that night, so he could go back to the store and pick up the shoes in the morning and bring them to his father before the ceremony. My father put his tux on the next day, the day of the wedding, and the vest was two sizes too small, pants were too tight, his coat wouldn’t button, and the suspenders would not clamp and needed a pin. It was as if he never did a fitting in the first place! I’m not sure how something like this happens. A few recommendations for you, since you are in the ‘wedding industry’: 1. Advise your stores that when something isn’t ready when it’s supposed to be, it does cause havoc on a bride and groom, and it IS a big deal. When something like this happens two days before your wedding, yes, it is the end of the world and yes, it is critical that the issue be resolved with respect and grace. 2. If you offer the option of picking up at another store, the stores should be communicating with each other. 3. Teach your stores how to take measurements, the CORRECT way. The Burbank store should’ve been jumping through hoops to make sure things were right, as all other wedding vendors do. This isn’t something we should’ve had to worry about; in fact it’s the last thing we should’ve had to worry about. It would’ve been nice if the tuxes were ready when they were supposed to be. My husband should not have had to make three separate trips there and cause panic and uneasiness with both of us nevermind the rest of the groomsmen and our fathers. My father was so uncomfortable all day and he tried to make the best of it. I can only imagine what my photos will look like. Your reputation is definitely on the line. We have friends getting married in a few months and I will be advising them to go elsewhere. I would never recommend the Men’s Wearhouse to anyone. I will also make sure that my friends, family, colleagues, wedding coordinator friends, and social network contacts know about these issues. Men's Wearhouse response two days later: Dear Mrs. Gibis, Thank you for contacting Men's Wearhouse. We would like to offer our sincere apologies for the issues you experienced with your tuxedos on this most important day along with any inconvenience that we may have caused you. We are committed to providing top quality service and products to every customer. When picking up your tuxedos and your final fitting, it is routine for at least one return trip. We request that our wedding party members visit the store two days prior to the event date, try on the complete tuxedo, so that we can ensure accuracy and the best fit. We have informed the appropriate management of your concerns for their review and training purposes. A Manager, Elina will be in contact with you shortly, regarding the fit of your wedding party tuxedos. Men's Wearhouse has applied 1500 points to Tom's Perfect Fit Rewards account. This will generate three $50.00 reward certificates that we will mail to the home address the week of October 6, 2013. If you have additional questions or comments, our Contact Center Team is here to assist. Simply call us at the number listed below or you can respond to this email. If you would prefer to chat, click on this link http://www.menswearhouse.com/support and choose “Live Help”.

My postings have gotten away from me, but I will be posting some soon. Stay-tuned.