Win: Spier & Mackay’s Neapolitan Cut Is Better Now

This season, I bought a linen-silk suit in the perfect color tan from Spier & Mackay. It has a subtle herringbone pattern and the fabric blend has a wonderful texture. I’m very much looking forward to wearing the jacket on its own, and it will be nice to have the trousers for the full suit as well. It replaces a beige Spier jacket I bought last summer in my decade-long quest for the perfect tan summer sportcoat.

When I first threw the jacket on, it looked more balanced on me than last summer’s. I couldn’t put my finger on it, though. Even side-by-side, it was difficult to see what differences there were, if any.

I did know one change that had taken place which improved it: they raised the armholes on the contemporary fit by 2cm, resulting in a vastly better-fitting and looking jacket. It has better range of motion when moving your arms, and feels higher-quality (like jackets from higher-end Italian makers, rather than lower-end department stores).

Grabbing the yard stick, I then measured a few subtle differences from last season; they add up to greater than their sum, creating that overall improvement in visual balance. Upon asking Rick, the founder/president of Spier & Mackay, he revealed to me that they moved their ready-to-wear tailoring production to the same factory that handles their made-to-order products. While they did not change the patterns, changing factories often results in slightly different execution. In this case, the new execution is an improvement.

It’s great news all around, and makes my recommendation of Spier’s goods even stronger.

Worth mentioning is that the armhole change was disliked by some, so after receiving that feedback, Rick split the difference and lowered it 1cm—meaning it will be 1cm higher than it was before the change. That 1cm difference is taking place sometime this season—the 2cm-higher armhole change took effect for all of the jackets in the Fall/Winter 2021 collection, with some Spring/Summer 2022 jackets already in production when he adjusted it again to the 1cm change. This linen/silk has the highest armhole (which I am glad about).

Let me walk you through the differences between this year’s tan jacket and last year’s from before the factory switch and armhole change, just as an FYI.

• The center button placement is about 1/4 inch lower.
• The buttons themselves are spaced 1/8 inch or so further apart.
• The patch pockets are about 1/2” taller, so they sit 1/2” closer to the hem.
• You’ll also notice the lapel has a better, more 3-dimensional curve to it. That makes a big visual impact, too. That’s due to a slightly stiffer interior canvas; though it doesn’t feel heavier like it’ll wear warmer.
• Another change, which isn’t necessarily a positive or negative, is that the breast pocket is 1 inch higher. This happened when they raised the armhole, but wasn’t a requested change. This is reverting to its old position with the new 1cm jackets.

I apologize for the junky closet photos and video stills in this post—I’ve already taken the suit in for alterations and it won’t be ready until early or mid-May, and didn’t take the time to get photos.

Why I like Spier & Mackay’s stuff

I rep Spier & Mackay a lot, because they make a decent-quality product in fabrics that are very appealing from high-quality mills like Vitale Barberis Canonico, Lanificio di Pray and Marling & Evans. The only other maker doing the same thing is Suit Supply, which is a great maker though I find their product a little more generic-looking—which, hey, might be good if you don’t want to stand out as the “menswear guy.”

In particular I like Spier’s Neapolitan cut (which this jacket is cut in). It was developed to simulate the softness of Italian tailoring, taking inspiration from both Neapolitan tailoring (soft shirtsleeve shoulder construction with the grinze waterfall effect, open patch pockets at the hips) as well as Florentine (inwardly curving lapel—which no Florentine tailors actually do though their straight-cut lapels do curve from the lapel roll, creating the effect of an inward curve—swooping down into rounded quarters to create a crescent effect from top to bottom). It’s half-canvas, meaning parts of it have fusing—a glued layer that gives it structure and shape—while the chest has canvas sewn in, which is the traditional and best-quality method of making a jacket.

Most of my wardrobe of tailored clothes is made up of Eidos jackets, so I don’t buy a ton from Spier; but I’ve always felt that if I’d gotten started building my wardrobe later, I would probably have been buying lots from them.

Take a look at my recommended picks from this season at Spier & Mackay here. And check out some outfit ideas using some of their goods this season here.

(Help support this site! If you buy stuff through my links, your clicks and purchases earn me a commission from many of the retailers I feature, and it helps me sustain this site—as well as my menswear habit ;-)  Thanks!)

Shop my clothing from this post and every other post on the Shop My Closet page. If you’re just getting into tailored menswear and want a single helpful guide to building a trend-proof wardrobe, buy my eBook. It doesn’t cost that much and covers wardrobe essentials for any guy who wants to look cool, feel cool and make a good impression. Formatted for your phone or computer/iPad so it’s not annoying to read, and it’s full of pretty pictures, not just boring prose. Buy it here.