For grooms who want to look effortlessly sharp, Jim’s Formal Wear delivers timeless style with a modern edge. Their curated collection of suits and tuxedos blends quality craftsmanship with accessible luxury, ensuring every man walks down the aisle looking and feeling his absolute best. Southern Bride chats with the Jim’s Formal Wear team about the latest groomsmen trends and the quality craftsmanship shaping their collection.
Brand & Legacy
Jim’s Formal Wear has been a trusted name in tuxedo and suit rentals for decades — how did the company get its start, and what has helped it remain successful in the wedding industry for so long?
The current version of Jim’s Formal Wear began in 1964, but we actually started in the 1920’s as a small formalwear retailer in Trenton, Illinois. After about four decades in the formalwear business, we saw nearby retailers had an interest in offering formalwear rentals but didn’t have the financial resources to add formalwear into their inventory. So we started building up our inventory to support a small group of retailers throughout the Midwest. Today, we serve more than 4,000 independent retailers across the country.
Style & Trends
How have groom and groomsmen styles evolved over the past few years, and what trends are you seeing for the upcoming wedding season?
There are three trends that have been most prominent over the past few years and will continue into next year. The first trend is more grooms wearing suits in their weddings. While tuxedos remain popular, we have heard from more consumers and retailers that having more suit options in our collection is important, so we’ve increased the number of suits in our lineup over the past few years.
The second trend is colors. For the longest time, black was about the only color choice for grooms. Now, there are a wide variety of colors available and we see that reflected in what grooms order from us.
And the third trend is the option to rent or buy. We’ve increasingly heard that more grooms prefer to buy their suit or tuxedo while the groomsmen prefer to rent. And that’s why we have more than 30 purchase styles in our collection, including 13 rent-or-buy styles, so the groom can still buy his look and the groomsmen can rent that same look.
Are there particular colors, fits, or fabrics that are especially popular with couples right now?
Tan is incredibly popular among grooms right now. All of our tan styles are in high demand. We’re also seeing growing interest in navy, so we have multiple navy styles in our collection. And interestingly, Black has come back in vogue, so either the full party is in black, or the groomsmen wear black and the groom wears a different color – such as tan, for example – to stand out. In terms of fit, we’re seeing growing interest in suits and tuxedos with a more modern fit, so it provides a little more room while still being fashion-forward and flattering. For those grooms who plan to wear boots for their wedding, the modern fit pants work really well with a boot look.
How does Jim’s Formal Wear balance classic, timeless looks with modern fashion trends?
We’re fortunate to work with more than 4,000 retailers across the country, so they provide us a lot of feedback on what’s popular and where trends are headed. We also get feedback from end consumers on what they expect to see in our collection. Our merchandise team takes in all this feedback and does an incredible job of curating a collection that ranges from a timeless look, such as our Michael Kors Legacy Tuxedo, to more modern suit styles in a wide range of colors such as tan, navy, hunter green, white, ivory and a variety of blues and greys.
Experience & Service
What makes the Jim’s Formal Wear experience unique for couples compared to other formalwear providers?
What makes the Jim’s service offering unique is the ability for customers to choose either a completely in-store experience, an in-store experience combined with the convenience of home delivery, or an online referral option that combines a consultation with a Jim’s retailer with the benefits of our Jim’s website, where the customers can provide their measurements online, pay online, and get their orders shipped to wherever they prefer. When you consider these choices along with a network of 4,000+ retailers, we feel we have the most comprehensive offerings to meet any wedding party’s formalwear needs.
How does your team ensure a perfect fit and a stress-free process, especially for large wedding parties or out-of-town groomsmen?
We conduct measurement training with all of our retailer partners so they know how to currently size the orders. We also have one of the most-experienced customer service teams in the industry to provide measurement assistance to our retailers and to customers when needed. And if there’s a need to get an item replaced, we can often take care of it within a day or two at no charge to the customer.
Innovation & Reach
Jim’s Formal Wear partners with retailers nationwide — how does that network benefit couples planning their weddings in different locations? And how has technology (like online ordering or digital fittings) changed the way you serve today’s couples?
What we’re excited for more wedding couples to know is that any Jim’s Formal Wear retailer can work with any wedding party, even if the party members live all across the country, and technology is playing an important role in making this happen. For example, our online referral option includes a digital measurement tool, so the party members don’t have to go to a store to get measured. They simply open the measurement tool on our website, take a couple of photos, and their measurements are calculated in about a minute. So we’ve taken an offline process – measurements – and made it an online convenience, which greatly benefits the customers. It also allows our retailers to focus their consultations on looks and colors that will go perfectly for the wedding couple’s special day.
Inspiration & Advice
What advice would you give to grooms when choosing their wedding attire to complement their partner’s look and the overall wedding theme?
First and foremost, talk with your bride! Make sure the two of you are aligned on the colors that will make you look and feel your best for this memorable moment. Then we encourage customers to look at the Jim’s Formal Wear website and our social media accounts to get inspiration from other customers who have worked with us and our retailers. It’s amazing to see how creative couples have gotten by leveraging the wide variety of colors and suit and tuxedo options we have available. Lastly, talk with your groomsmen about whether they prefer to rent or buy their looks – this will help determine the specific suit or tuxedo styles you select. And after you decide your looks, be sure to enjoy your big day!
