A “long-held rule in the marketplace” is that an ounce of gold, historically, has been able to buy a decent suit.
That’s what it says on this cute press release I just got from Canadian investment management company, Sionna,
Sionna’s research shows “the cost for an ounce of gold in 1967 was C$35, exactly the same price as a decent suit from Eaton’s, a prominent Canadian retailer at the time. In 1975, gold weighed in at C$100 an ounce, a 1:1 ratio with a decent suit from Eaton’s during the same year. In 2009, the price of an ounce of gold in Canada soared to C$950, or the price of a decent suit at leading tailors during the same 12 months.”
Gold hit $1880 today, so I popped across to English Cut, a blog maintained by Thomas Mahon, an English tailor with a large American clientele. I like Tom becasue he tells great stories, his prices are pretty reasonable, compared with Savile Row, and because I was one of the first people to cover the launch of his blog.
An ounce of gold won’t even get close to a bespoke suit from Mahon (pictured above), who charges GBP2260 ($3616) for a two-piece. An ounce of the yellow stuff won’t even get you a blazer!
Which means you’ll have to go shop off the rack, I’m afraid, old boy!
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