For some grooms, their wedding day is one of the rare occasion they put on a formal suit, and hiring makes perfect sense. For others, every time they hire they kick themselves that they didn't buy the first time they needed a suit as they would have recouped their money by now.
So, to hire or buy? We have an easy check list to help you decide:
Hire if:
- You are getting married in an unusual colour or style suit, such as a frock coat.
- You are not currently at your normal weight or build, for example if you have spend hours in the gym recently.
- You want the convenience of knowing the suit will be clean and the shirt well pressed.
- You want to minimise costs in the short term.
Buy if:
- You have 2 or more occasions where you know you will wear the suit.
- You are the first of your peer group to get married - whether it is a morning suit or a DJ, if your friends are likely to have a similar tone to their weddings, that suit will come out again and again.
- You are considering a DJ rather than morning suit for your wedding as the initial cost is lower and the opportunities to wear it again are higher.
- You are a hard-to-fit size. Most suits can be adjusted for a made-to-measure fit, but only if you are buying, not hiring.
- You would like a bespoke suit, perhaps with an unusual coloured lining or buttons.
Depending on the supplier, buying a suit costs at least 2-3 times the cost of hiring and you will need to factor in the cost of dry-cleaning if you own the suit. Most occasions you wear it are likely to involve dancing!
There seems to be no end of awards nights and black tie catwalk shows for the Guides for Brides editorial team to attend at the moment, so we were grateful to Formal Tailor for kitting out one of our team in a smart dinner jacket.
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