| -- End Ad Box ---> | | | | more space it needed, but they put me in touch with |
| Outfitting Matthew Tullis used to be a tall order. | | | | Janine and she told me how she thought the shirt |
| At 6 foot 7 inches tall, he frequented the big and tall | | | | could be changed. She also talked to me about some |
| dress shirt departments of local retailers in West | | | | of the other little things I might like," says Matthew. |
| Jordan, Utah, just outside of Salt Lake City. But even | | | | New York Designer Janine Giorgenti, owner of Best |
| when the size seemed right, the look was all wrong. | | | | Custom Shirt. Com, spent time helping Matthew |
| "I'd go to Nordstrom's or some other store and tell | | | | define his own preferences, tastes he was previously |
| the clerk my neck size and sleeve length, 16 and a | | | | unaware of. Working together, they pinned down the |
| half neck and 37 sleeve, and I'd always have trouble | | | | particular look Matthew sought for his shirt's collar |
| with the shirt. I'm a thin person, and the shirts | | | | and buttons. |
| weren't made for people like me, so either the | | | | Ten days after Matthew's initial Internet foray, he |
| sleeves were too short or the neck was too big. And | | | | was the proud owner of four handsome, well-made, |
| the shirt was always baggy in the body. I began to | | | | crisp white shirts — precision-tailored to his |
| think that bad fit was just par for the course," | | | | proportions. These big-and-tall men's dress shirts |
| shrugs Matthew. "It got to the point where I really | | | | were big on style, but, even better, these were the |
| didn't care. I wasn't very picky." | | | | first shirts he worn that genuinely fit his frame. |
| As a church leader and a father of three, though, | | | | Suddenly, all the little discomforts he'd taken for |
| Matthew felt an increasing need to ensure his | | | | granted with standard men's dress shirts vanished. No |
| appearance matched his growing responsibilities. | | | | longer did he have to contend with a baggy chest, |
| "I've never been very worried about what other | | | | too- short sleeves or ugly collars that just didn't lay |
| people think, but in this case it came down to | | | | right. |
| something bigger than me; my religion. When it had | | | | "Now, if I raise my hands right above my head, the |
| to do with my church calling, I felt it was important | | | | shirt doesn't pull, so I'm glad about that. And some of |
| to look my best and to set a good example," | | | | the other options, like a collar without any buttons, |
| explains Matthew. | | | | made me really happy," says Matthew. |
| Desperate for a better answer, he turned to the | | | | He credits extraordinary customer service for his |
| Internet. Somewhere out there, he reasoned, had to | | | | extraordinary results. |
| be well-priced, good looking shirts for big and tall men | | | | "The people I dealt with were very good, very nice, |
| who were more tall than big. The option of | | | | and very easy to work with," smiles Matthew. |
| custom-made clothing never occurred to him. It | | | | He now feels the shirts help him to do his best work. |
| sounded too expensive and difficult. | | | | When he presides over church group meetings, he |
| When he stumbled upon Best Custom Shirt, the | | | | looks and feels like the leader and role model he is. |
| made-to-order option seemed so affordable it was | | | | He never has to worry whether his polished |
| almost too good to be true. | | | | appearance will disappear when he takes his jacket |
| "I think the terms I put in the search engine were | | | | off. |
| something like, 'cheapest, nicest dress shirt' or | | | | Now that he's a made-to-order shirt fan, Matthew |
| something similar. I don't remember how many links it | | | | ready to take on another challenge: color. |
| returned, but one of them was Best Custom Shirt. | | | | "This time, I just wanted white shirts. Now that I |
| When l looked it at the site, I thought the prices | | | | have all the white shirts I need, I'd like to add some |
| were really good. So I immediately compared them | | | | cool colors. I love blue and may even want to get a |
| against five other online stores that had big and tall | | | | maroon shirt. And I'm thinking about custom-made |
| men's shirts," says Matthew. | | | | slacks, too," remarks Matthew. |
| Matthew shared the news with his wife, who did her | | | | The ease of caring for his custom shirts makes them |
| own online comparison shopping. The result, says | | | | all the more appealing. Matthew finds the garments |
| Matthew, was that she was happy, too. | | | | look just as good after machine washing as when |
| "She enjoyed the fact that she didn't have to go buy | | | | they first arrived. His over-the-counter dress shirts |
| them. And when she looked at the price, she thought | | | | never stood up as well. |
| I should go ahead and do it. Frankly, at that point I | | | | As a newly-savvy shirt buyer, Matthew intends to |
| was sick and tired of spending so much time | | | | approach garment purchases with a more exacting |
| comparing everything. I figured I would just order the | | | | eye. He also plans to apply the same high standards |
| shirts and see what happened," recalls Matthew. | | | | to dress-up clothing for his three sons; six-year-old |
| Matthew's first custom shirt arrived within days. He | | | | Landan, three-year-old Dalin, and Alex, who's just a |
| enjoyed the look and feel, but still wasn't totally | | | | year old. All, he laughs, are destined to inherit their |
| satisfied with the fit. So he called a customer service | | | | father's hard-to-fit stature and build. |
| expert and described the problem. | | | | "They'll be big and tall like me," smiles Matthew. "I like |
| "I told him this was my first custom-made shirt and it | | | | to look good and I'm sure they'll want to look good, |
| seemed to pull across the back when I touched my | | | | too
in shirts that really fit. |
| elbows together in front. I didn't know how much | | | | |