I’m tall and thin, and yes, I did used to play semi-professional basketball! Since my teens, I’ve been struggling to find clothes that fit me – let alone, clothes that I like that fit me.
Tall jeans have always been a particular problem
I know I’m not alone. If you’re tall and thin – or have tried to buy clothing for someone who is tall and thin – you’ll know how difficult it is to find clothes that fit in normal retail outlets. Even the specialist stores rarely deliver the goods because the equate ‘tall’ with ‘big’. So, when jeans or trousers are long enough, they can have folds of extra fabric just where you don’t want it. They look horrible, and so do I.
Then things get even more bizarre, with some not-so-extreme inside leg measurements being particularly difficult to find. If you have an inside leg measurement between 33 and 38-inches, you may be worse off than if you’re 38-inch plus.
There’s so little choice for the tall man
We’re told so many times that modern retail is about choice – but not if you’re tall and thin. I’m sure you’ve been relieved to find a shop that stocks your size, only to find that there’s the choice of just one pair of jeans, and usually in the most boring style conceivable.
Style hardly comes into it. Where are the straight cut, boot cut and (fashionably) loose fit styles? Not to mention stonewash, dark and light denim. If you can find them in your local high street or mall, please let me know.
So where do you buy jeans for tall men?
A few years ago, I resorted to regular trips to the US, just to buy clothes. I found places that gave me some choice and style, but it was hardly convenient and had the small problem of the travel and accommodation costs, plus the stress on my credit cards as I tried to buy all the clothes I needed for the coming months.
Nowadays, though, there’s the Internet. Although most vendors still talk ‘big and tall’, there are a small number of specialists focused on the needs of tall thin men and women. At last, we have some choice of properly fitting clothes without having to make a trip abroad or find a mail order company willing to ship to Europe – and having to pay Customs charges.
At last there’s some real choice – of clothes that most people will feel really good in – without trekking halfway across the world and causing heart seizure when your credit card bill arrives!
Fed up with the clothes available on European high streets, Justin Edison set up his own Internet-based business. You can find tall men's jeans at http://www.altoclothing.com - and a whole lot more.