Club Monaco's stuff is overpriced, but you can find stuff marked down a lot if you hunt and/or are lucky. Their dress pants fit me well and they sometimes use nice material, like cashmere.

When Zara has a sale, their stuff is a decent value. Wool sweaters for $30 that will last a couple of seasons? You can't beat that. However, after a few washes, their dress shirts will wear.

BR is overpriced (even more so than CM), but okay when they have sales. I find that their shirts are still not slim enough and that I need to get them altered. Their pants fit well, though.

I think BR = Club Monaco in terms of quality. The fashion however is totally different. Some of my female friends say that it trends towards metrosexual - they basically say it looks gay - whereas BR is more traditional.

As for Mexx, the quality is on par with Zara. I hear bad things about Mexx and Zara but I own lots of these and I like them. As for the style, I find Zara a lot more trendy than Mexx.

Quality: BR = CM > Mexx = Zara
Trendy: Zara > CM > Mexx > BR

As with all things men's fashion, it depends on how you carry it

fit is diff.
zara has a lot of european styles that I like. they are sort of more unique than GAP, CM, Mexx where there are tons of outlets. This translates to people wearing the idential jackets as you do. I see people tons of people with the same Gap Sailor jackets everywhere.

mexx is by far lesser quality than banana. i find banana's style are boring and way too normal.

banana republic clothes is so soft

BR Has the best quality of the 4 you mentioned. And I would choose BR products if Limited to your choices due to their timeless designs. You can get some decent suits for under $600 (there is actually a cool glen check suit there now with a peak lapel).



Zara will be the more popular choice among the RS crowd. Their dress shirts and suits are good for fit and copy popular designers quite well-- Reminds me either of Boss Jam Sharp fit or Gable Vegas. Throw away fashion and good for a couple wears. They like to use acrylics, cheaper cotton and polyester.

Quality blows though but not a big deal if do not mind wearing polyester blend suits and acrylic.

We need a J Crew up here, they would blow all 4 out of the water

http://www.jcrew.com/index.jsp

:haha:

Every store has its gems, although i would have to say BR. Popularity is subjective. Ed hardy is popular, but i wouldn't wear that.

I agree with you 100% on this. I used to like there clothes but now it just sucks.

Zara & Club Monaco

for style: Zara

for quality: BR and Mexx

would AX fit into this category too? descent price for AX stuff.. ($35 for a t-shirt)..

AX t shirts are very good quality. I have a bunch of shirts from high school about five years ago that are still in good condition

I definitely like Zara the best. Best range of styles and pretty cheap prices. Club Monaco and Banana Republic are better quality but the styles are a little too...mature for my liking (my mom likes these stores). Mexx is just...meh...in price, quality, and style.

i prefer club monaco. too expensive for what it is though

zara & banana, zaras quality's gotten better i think. i bought a jacket about 3 years ago and the buttons started falling off like a few months after. i bought a couple jackets about a few months ago and nothings fallen apart...yet lol

I don't have anything from any of those stores, but if I were tempted to buy something it would be from Banana Republic. :)

i like shoppin at zara. they've got some nice jackets n bought a tee from there the other day. starting to grow onto mexxx

IMHO,

Quality wise: Club Monaco > BR > Mexx/Zara

Price wise: Mexx(Always get discount here for no reason) > Zara > BR/Club Monaco.

Mexx is my favorite store to buy nice clothes, I always buy from the outlet in langley or the queensborough one

what is the fit like on BR's slim fit shirts? Zara's are perfect for me because I have broader shoulders but a slim torso.

^ I have one and it's still kind of too boxy, definitely not for tall & lean types but shorter / thicker body types.


For me, I would pick Zara = H&M > BR > CM > A|X > Mexx. But that is just a part of what I value in clothing as each has their + and -.


BR - Pros: Extremely durable construction, great place to pick up work clothing, classic staples that you cannot go wrong with for work

Cons: Overpriced for what they are, boxy american fit, not very stylish. Also skip the monogram collection, for those prices you can definitely get it from a better label.


Zara - Pros: Stylishly European, cheap especially when on sale, selection changes all the time so less likely you will be wearing what someone else is wearing, sales very common and overall always a good place to pop in. Fit is very slim, great for the tall + lean types.

Cons: Quality noticeably bad and stuff doesn't hold up very well over time. "Cheap" image.


H&M - Pros: See Zara, except I find their stuff to be a little more "conservative" and "safe", and there is a wider availability of basics and less "avant-garde". Looser fit overall.

Cons: Sales not as ridiculously good as Zara.


Club Monaco - Pros: Occasionally great pieces, have been surprised a few times. More modern styles than Banana Republic and better construction than Zara.

Cons: Ridiculously overpriced at retail value, even moreso than BR.


Armani Xchange - Pros: Decent fit and construction, I like their casual jackets. Good sales.

Cons: Nasty logos everywhere, again ridiculously overpriced at retail value.


Mexx - Pros: Good for absolute basics when on sale.

Cons: I get a very "eurotrashy" feel from their store. Take themselves too seriously (at least at Robson Mexx). Found their quality to be very poor and fragile.

I like Mexx's stuff more but their regular prices at times seem kind of a rip for their shit. Zara does in fact have a better balace between price and quality but unfortunately I don't really see shit I like there too often. BP I hate and CM is a thing of the past for me like HS days lol clubmonaco sweaters

Zara tends to do nearly direct rips of the season's fashions from higher quality brands
that being said, for the price you get a cut that in some of the more expensive brands would cost much much more.
I tend to go there to grab a shirt every now and again, and I've bought stuff on sale before too
H&M's cuts in general arent quite as nice as the Zara ones, IMO

The only thing I can buy from Mexx is their dress shirts. Their pants are ugly as hell and can someone explain why their pockets are like jean pockets and not dress pant pockets? Drives me nuts...their sweaters are ugly as hell too and NOT soft like they should be.

Zara is the best. Cheap and clothes that actually look good for both the office and for casual wear.

H&M has SOME nice stuff, but overall, I find their style to be too young...I don't want to look like I'm from Gossip Girl or whatever it is kids watch these days.