Business
Precision
Made
A custom clothier must
have it right for his clients,
and for himself.
SUZANNE CHESSLER
Special to The Jewish News
teve Rusgo sometimes finds it
more difficult selecting clothes
for himself than for his clients.
That's because he wants to cre-
ate the right image while making busi-
ness calls.
As co-owner of Paul Cicchini
Custom Clothier of Birmingham,
Rusgo spends most of his days showing
lines of custom-made apparel one-on-
one in offices and homes. Appealing to
people who want to steer clear of malls,
he offers styles that run the gamut from
conservative to high fashion.
Deciding which outfit to put on
each morning takes into account the
people he will see that day. Rusgo
wants to showcase what he believes will
catch the eye of prospective buyers.
"It's always a challenge to dress the
part," says Rusgo, who joined forces
with Rick DePanicis eight years ago to
acquire the retail operation from its
original owner.
Cicchini, who had been in business
for 40 years, was not ready for full
retirement and continues to work on
garments made completely from
scratch.
"We offer men's and women's tai-
lored clothing, including suits, sports
coats, pants, shirts, ties, topcoats, rain-
coats and accessories — just about any-
thing needed for a business wardrobe,"
Rusgo says. "About six of us go out to
show samples from custom houses
located on the East Coast."
Stanley Eisenberg, a stockbroker for
Merrill-Lynch, has been a Rusgo client
for five years.
"I'm 6 feet 3 inches tall, and off-the-
rack clothes just don't fit me," says
Eisenberg, who learned about the cus-
S
11/20
1998
104 Detroit Jewish News
,
Paul Cicchini and Steve Rusgo go over some details of a suit.
Steve Rusgo of Paul Cicchini Custom
Clothiers.
torn service through a promotion that
won him two shirts. "Now, everything
I buy fits perfectly.
"I also hate to shop, and I never go
to malls anymore. My wife, Cindy,
buys what I can't get from Steve, who
supplies the suits I have to wear for
business."
When Rusgo and his sales staff call
on customers for the first time, they
spend about 15 minutes explaining
how the ordering process works, do a
wardrobe analysis to understand client
preferences, show samples, recom-
mend appropriate lines, select details
and take about 30 different measure-
ments.
Clothing generally arrives six weeks
after orders are taken. New garments
are delivered and checked for fit. If
necessary, items are taken back to
Birmingham for final alterations and
delivered again.
"At that paint, we update our
records and complete the patterns,"
Rusgo explains. "Unless there is a
weight change, future outfits should
come out right on the money.
"What's really nice about our busi-
ness is that it's really simple the second
or third time around — just a matter
of picking out fabrics and styling them
out. We basically see our clients twice
a year to handle clothes for spring and
summer and then for fall and winter."
Rusgo offers three different lines.
The custom collection, half hand-tai-
lored and half machine-made, ranges
from $595 to $795 per suit. The sig-
nature collection, totally hand-tailored
at the custom houses, runs between
$900 and $1,300 per suit. The bench-
made clothes, made from scratch at
their Birmingham premises, start at
$2,500 a suit and go up to $6,000.
"We have more than 400 years of
tailoring experience among our staff of
eight," Rusgo says. "Our tailors can
•
z„,, , ,:*4& •-•-- ,
Paul Cicchini Custom Clotheirs in Birmingham.
•