The Art of a New Suit

Do clothes make the man? They certainly help.

The epiphany of my experience at Satori Amici came on a Wednesday afternoon, when I went to the shop on Miracle Mile to pick up my new suit. “Pick up” is an understatement. It was more an unveiling of my new public persona, reflected it the mirrors before me. Sebastian Garcia, the owner, deftly pulled a sleeve, adjusted a collar, and tugged at the lapels. He was like a painter looking over his canvas, deciding whether it was finished. Then with a nod, he smiled.

“How does it feel? Because I have to tell you, it looks great,” he said. And he was right. All my life I had avoided custom tailoring; my deepest venture into fashion was a Michael Kors from the racks at Macy’s. Now I was wearing something tailored just for me. If the clothes make the man, I was made.

Most of Garcia’s customers would shake their heads at my neophyte sartorial wonder. His clients are loyalists who have followed him for years, including to his Gables shop. And he attends to all of them, like a whirling dervish of multitasking. If he were an old mainframe computer you would call it time sharing – a few minutes with one customer, a few minutes with another, so none feel neglected.

Garcia says he developed his work ethic from his father, a refugee who came from Cuba as a Pedro Pan child. He worked in retail and then opened his own clothing shop. “I grew up with a father who was always working… To get my father’s attention was through work, because my father worked retail and that meant working weekends… So, I get my work ethic from wanting to make my father happy.”

As a young man Garcia nearly went to Mozambique as a Peace Corps volunteer, but an illness derailed the trip, and he couldn’t reapply until the following year. So, he started working at his father’s men’s wear store, learned the business and decided to strike out on his own.

“I started studying the competition, seeing what else was out there, and how we could differentiate ourselves. I noticed a big part of what we were doing were weddings and [the demographic of] Men’s Warehouse,” says Garcia. “So, I created a brand called My Groom’s Room, which was straight to the point.” Setting up shop in Doral, Garcia created wedding packages that were comparable to rentals but for purchase. “I told the client, ‘Hey, for a little bit more than a rental, you get to keep this. And I’m gonna give you free lifetime tailoring. You lose weight, you gain weight, you bring it back to us.” Despite razor-thin margins, the gambit worked and built a clientele.

His next inspiration was to solve the tux dilemma: Buying one is impractical, because you rarely use it. But renting one means wearing a used suit “that is ill fitting, for one of the most important days of your life.” His solution: The Lapel Project, which transforms any suit jacket into a tux jacket via a satin lapel. He presented the idea on Season Eight of TV’s The Shark Tank and Mark Cuban invested. The product is still selling.

Finally, Garcia decided to open Satori Amici in the Gables two years ago and hasn’t looked back. Which is where I found him, brimming with energy and ready to transform me. “Our clothing really elevates our clients,” he told me. “With a good suit you exude your best self.” Depending on fabrics (all Italian) and customization, prices to exude range from $800 to $2,500.

Sartori Amici
225 Miracle Mile
305.964.5073