Black Lapel

What Black Lapel does

Black Lapel crafts high quality made to measure custom suits, shirts, pants, blazers, tuxedos and accessories online. With the finest fabrics and an expert tailoring team, Black Lapel aims to consistently deliver customer satisfaction by getting the details right. Shipping is always free worldwide and all products are backed by their Flawless Fit Promise. Based in New York, Black Lapel was founded with the idea that men of all shapes and sizes can be their very best by looking their very best. Having great style and having the confidence to achieve great things are inextricably linked. Black Lapel aims to further this ideal by not just providing the tools to achieve great style but the knowledge to use those tools effectively via their style blog, The Compass.

Name

Black Lapel

Website

http://www.blacklapel.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Black Lapel designs custom suits, shirts, pants, blazers, tuxedos, and accessories for men.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Custom Menswear

NAICS

Clothing and Clothing Accessories Retailers (458110), Apparel Manufacturing (315)

SIC

Retail-Apparel & Accessory Stores (5600), Men's & Boys' Furnishgs, Work Clothg, & Allied Garments (2320)

akta.pro primary industry

Men’s Apparel Retail (CRAAABAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

Luxury & Couture / Small-Batch Cut & Sew (IMAOAEAL)

Keywords

• Custom menswear
• Made-to-measure suits
• Custom dress shirts
• Bespoke tailoring
• Custom blazers

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Custom Menswear Sales: One-time purchase model for custom-made suits, shirts, blazers, dress pants, tuxedos, and outerwear. Each garment is custom-made to customer specifications with no recurring subscription component.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Black Lapel designs, manufactures, and sells made-to-measure custom menswear direct to consumers, including custom suits, dress shirts, blazers, dress pants, tuxedos, and outerwear. Customers specify fit through a self-service online sizing survey and choose fabrics and customizations, with garments produced to individual measurements and shipped to the buyer.

Product overview

Black Lapel is a custom menswear company offering made-to-measure clothing through a digital-first model. The core product portfolio consists of Custom Suits, Custom Dress Shirts, Custom Blazers & Sportcoats, Custom Dress Pants, Tuxedos & Formalwear, and Custom Overcoats. These are complemented by specialized sub-brands including Easy-Care Custom Shirts, Natural Stretch Custom Shirts, Thomas Mason Custom Shirts (premium Italian fabrics), Campus Oxford Shirts, and Vitale Barberis Canonico Custom Suits (luxury Italian mill fabrics). Additional offerings include Custom Tailored Knit Shirts, a Loyalty Dividends Program, and Gift Cards. The company differentiates through its sizing survey (3-minute self-service measurement), the Flawless Fit Promise (complimentary alterations or remakes for first garments), and premium fabric sourcing from heritage mills. Orders ship duty-paid to the US with delivery timelines ranging from 2-3 weeks (super expedited) to 5-6 weeks (standard for orders under $200).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• 234 verified customer reviews with 4.9/5 average rating
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Vitale Barberis CanonicocoreTechnology or IntegrationPremium fabric mill partnership offering Italian worsteds from one of the world's oldest mills (established 1663). Fabrics from VBC feature balanced drape and timeless style, commanding premium pricing in the Black Lapel collection.
• Thomas MasoncoreTechnology or IntegrationItalian fabric mill partnership through the Thomas Mason collection, woven by Albini Group in Italy. Fabrics feature refined yarns and precise finishes for premium custom shirts.
• CavanicoreTechnology or IntegrationPremium suit fabric supplier offering contemporary styles and quality construction. Cavani fabrics featured in multiple suit and blazer collections.
• ShopifycoreTechnology or IntegrationE-commerce platform powering the blacklapel.com online store. Platform handles product catalog, customization options, checkout, and order management.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Indochino: Indochino is the leading online made-to-measure menswear retailer with 12% category share. It competes directly with Black Lapel on the same value proposition: custom suits and shirts ordered online with guided measurement, at accessible price points in the $400-$700 range.
• SuitSupply: SuitSupply sells made-to-measure and ready-to-wear menswear with a strong direct-to-consumer and showroom model, holding 10% category share. Its mid-premium price positioning and emphasis on Italian fabrics closely parallel Black Lapel's VBC and Cavani-led assortment.
• Proper Cloth: Proper Cloth is a direct-to-consumer custom dress shirt maker with a digital sizing survey similar to Black Lapel's 3-minute survey. Both brands compete for the same online custom-shirt buyer with comparable price points ($99-$150 range) and fabric-led differentiation.
• Alton Lane: Alton Lane is a custom menswear brand offering made-to-measure suits and shirts through a hybrid showroom/showroom-by-appointment model. It targets the same professional and wedding-party segments as Black Lapel at similar premium accessible price points.
• J.Hilburn: J.Hilburn is a custom menswear brand using in-home or virtual appointments for custom shirts, suits, and pants. It addresses the same self-measurement friction Black Lapel solves digitally, competing for the professional and wedding segments.
• Knot Standard: Knot Standard is a custom menswear and womenswear brand combining digital ordering with showroom fittings. It competes for Black Lapel's wedding-party and professional customer with a similar made-to-measure service model.

Broad incumbents

• Brooks Brothers: Brooks Brothers is a broad menswear incumbent with 9% made-to-measure category share. While its core business is ready-to-wear, its custom suiting program targets the same professional and wedding occasion buyers as Black Lapel.
• Hugo Boss: Hugo Boss holds 7% of the made-to-measure suits category and is a global premium menswear brand. Its custom suiting line competes with Black Lapel's higher tiers (VBC collection, $1,000+ suits) for premium brand-conscious buyers.
• Mr Porter: Mr Porter is a global online luxury menswear retailer carrying premium ready-to-wear suits, shirts, and accessories. It overlaps with Black Lapel's premium-tier buyer and competes for the same menswear-enthusiast segment across a much broader assortment.

Emerging players

• Todd Snyder: Todd Snyder is a menswear brand emphasizing American style, premium fabrics, and customization. It addresses a similar menswear-enthusiast segment to Black Lapel's 'Menswear Enthusiasts' persona through ready-to-wear and made-to-order pieces.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/blacklapelcc
• YouTubeyoutube.com/c/blacklapel
• Facebookfacebook.com/blacklapel
• Instagraminstagram.com/blacklapel
• Pinterestpinterest.com/blacklapel
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/black-lapel

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Black Lapel