Lardini

For a lot of menswear enthusiasts, yes, because you are buying genuine Italian factory tailoring at a relatively sane price. Lardini is one of the country's most respected suit manufacturers, and its jackets are known for proper construction, premium Italian fabrics and the hand-finished details that define good tailoring. If you value craftsmanship over a flashy logo, a Lardini blazer tends to feel like an investment piece.

It is well regarded among people who care about how a jacket is built. The house produces roughly 1,600 garments a day from its own headquarters and is trusted enough that other major brands have it manufacture their tailoring. The quality of its better jackets, including its fully-structured tailoring, is praised for shoulder construction and clean finishing, which is exactly what you want from Italian sartoria.

Because it does. Lardini is famous for manufacturing men's tailoring for a roster of major fashion houses, including Dolce & Gabbana, Salvatore Ferragamo, Versace, Valentino, Etro and Burberry. That behind-the-scenes role is part of why insiders rate its own-label line so highly, since you are essentially buying from the factory that dresses bigger names.

The lapel flower. Creative director Luigi Lardini's garments are recognisable by a signature lapel flower constructed from wool, a small, distinctive flourish that has become the brand's calling card. It is the kind of quiet, hand-finished touch that signals the house's sartorial sensibility.

Lardini was founded in 1978 by three siblings of the Lardini family in Filottrano, in Italy's Ancona Province. They were strikingly young at the time: Luigi was 18, his sister Lorena was 19, and his other sister Andrea was 21. The family business has remained rooted in that same town ever since.

Right where it started, in Filottrano, in the Ancona Province of Italy, where the company is headquartered and produces its garments. Around 60% of its annual output is exported. That single-location, made-in-Italy production is central to the brand's identity and its reputation for tailoring.

Luigi Lardini, one of the founding siblings, is the brand's current creative director. He has steered the house's aesthetic and is the figure behind its signature wool lapel flower. His hand keeps the label rooted in the family's original sartorial vision.

Lardini's tailoring tends to run a touch generous in the body and is often described as cut for a slightly more classic build, so it is worth trying your usual size against the next one down. As with any structured jacket, the shoulder and chest fit matter most, and getting those right is what lets the house's construction do its work. When in doubt, check the garment's measurements rather than relying on the label size alone.

Yes, the house has stepped beyond its own collections to create a line with Nick Wooster, the influential menswear figure known for his sharp personal style. It is a fitting pairing, bringing a recognised tastemaker together with a factory celebrated for the kind of tailoring he champions.

Lardini retails its ready-to-wear tailoring from its showroom in Milan and a small number of monobrand boutiques outside Italy, including locations in Antwerp, Milan's Via Gesu, Tokyo and Moscow. In East Asia it is also stocked by leading luxury department stores. The relatively limited distribution suits a brand that trades on craftsmanship rather than ubiquity.

It is one of the more sensible starting points. You get authentic Italian factory construction and the house's hallmark finishing without stepping all the way up to the priciest sartorial labels. Begin with a versatile navy or grey blazer, the workhorse of any tailored wardrobe, and you will get a clear sense of what the brand does best.