In recent discussions around menswear and sustainability, visible mending on business suits has emerged as both a practical solution and a cultural statement, raising questions about style, masculinity, and societal expectations. Josh Spero’s personal experience repairing a moth-eaten cuff on a charity shop suit brought these issues into focus while exploring the broader implications of visible alterations on formal attire.

Spero approached Loredana Vlad, a tailor at Loyal Clothing Surgery in Dalston, east London, to repair a large hole on the left cuff of his blue patterned Paul Smith suit jacket using a length of silk wrapped around the cuff as a binding. While Vlad noted this approach was unusual—particularly given the suit’s colour and pattern, which would make the repair particularly noticeable—she agreed to perform the work for £15. Spero’s preference for mending and extending the life of garments stems from an inherited distaste for waste and a broader rejection of fast fashion’s disposability. He highlighted his enjoyment of visible repairs that reveal an item’s history, emphasizing that these marks of wear express individuality rather than detract from it.

However, the notion of visibly mending a business suit challenges ingrained ideas of power and masculinity embedded in traditional menswear. Business suits are typically designed to project success, authority, and polished invulnerability. According to Martin Crawford, a consultant at the Savile Row tailor Anderson & Sheppard, subtle visible mending on suits can be likened to the patina on well-used furniture, exemplified by repairs made for clients including King Charles III. The monarch is known for his commitment to sustainability, often having his clothing maintained or patched distinctly, and openly expressed a preference for preserving rather than discarding garments.

Despite this, Crawford expressed reservations about obvious repairs on classic business suits, noting that while casual garments like tweed jackets can be acceptably embellished with leather patches, an evident fixer-upper look is generally at odds with the formal suit’s intended aesthetic. This perspective underscores a widely held consensus in bespoke tailoring that visible mending on dress suits may undermine the clean, unblemished image associated with traditional business attire.

Erin Lewis-Fitzgerald, author of *Modern Mending: How to Minimise Waste and Maximise Style*, suggests masculinity plays a role in resistance to visible suit mending. She observes that men often lack the freedom to experiment or personalize their clothing openly, especially within formal sartorial norms, where a pristine suit conveys professionalism and power. The idea that visible repair hints at vulnerability or fallibility runs counter to the armor-like role business suits have historically played.

Spero’s reflections conclude that a visibly mended suit disrupts the conventional narrative of an impenetrable, flawless exterior, instead acknowledging imperfection and frailty. While this may conflict with established professional dress codes, it also allows for a more authentic expression of wearers' histories and a call for greater empathy towards human fallibility. His repaired suit cuff, lined with petrol-blue silk from a Marylebone ribbon shop, may not align with Savile Row orthodoxy but affirms his ownership of his personal style and values.

Ultimately, the conversation around visible suit mending encapsulates wider shifts in attitudes toward sustainability, individuality, and masculinity in fashion, balancing respect for tradition with the realities of wear and the desire for self-expression.