How Much to Dry Clean a Suit?
Unless you have a penchant for dressing dapper daily, suits are normally worn on occasions when people want to make a good impression. With it being psychologically proven that wearing a suit can help people think differently, they often act as a power outfit for many different events.
The last thing you want is to show up somewhere wearing a suit that is not properly clean or pressed, as it makes quite the opposite impact to what was hoped for. Dry cleaning is the go-to solution for refreshing suits due to the materials used and the structure the garment requires to maintain. As there are many reasons why dry cleaning should not be attempted at home, the assumption is that the process is costly.
As expert dry cleaners, we are here to set the record straight and let you know how much you can expect to pay for a sharp-looking suit in return. Keep reading to find out!
Why Is It Important to Dry Clean Suits?
Although for many the era of home or hybrid working is still in full swing, sales of suits in the UK are predicted to be worth $0.91bn in 2023. With a sleek suit comes great responsibility to keep it in great shape, which people should only have to re-purchase often if a new style is wanted. With the price of a good suit ranging from a few hundred pounds to thousands, it is essential to maintain them properly.
Dry cleaning is the recommended refreshing process for suits for the following reasons:
- Dry cleaned clothes last longer between cleans, which means less pressure is put on the fabrics. For suits, this is important as the complex material patterns require lots of needlework, which runs the risk of becoming loose over time. When treating suits, the cleaning and finishing methods ensure they are more resilient to dirt and odours, meaning they shouldn’t be cleaned as often.
- No water is used when dry cleaning. Instead, a special machine rotates items pre-treated with the right chemical solutions to return them to a fresh and stain-free state. The finishing process also involves steaming for suits. Both treatment methods are important as suits are susceptible to shrinking or losing their structure, which dry cleaning prevents. This is important to consider as suits are often made from multiple fabrics, with wool, felt, cotton, and silk often included in one garment.
- Dry cleaning is also known for treating stains more effectively than washing. If you have ever been in a high-pressure situation wearing a suit, you will know that sometimes sweating can happen; we are all only human! You are then left with a dreaded sweat mark and odour, which can be tough to eliminate. Dry cleaning is known for removing armpit stains and other marks, as the chemical solutions treat problems thoroughly and safely.
We often get asked in general if it is better to wash or dry clean and the topic of suits is the perfect example to demonstrate how various garments require different care and attention. Now you should understand why dry cleaning a suit is essential, not just a nice thing to do.
How Often Should You Send a Suit for Dry Cleaning?
This will depend on how much you use your garment. You may also choose to treat the components of a suit separately depending on how often they have been used.
For everyday wearers like business professionals, dry cleaning should occur every 1-2 weeks and more often if the conditions require it. For people who only wear suits a few times a week, once a month should suffice. More casual wearers can get away with it every few months.
There are also ways to look after a suit in between dry cleaning, including steaming, using fabric refreshing sprays and leaving it to hang where a flow of fresh air is available. Suits should also be stored correctly when not in use in a cool and dry place, ideally in a specially designed suit bag. If they are not looked after between wearing, dry cleaning may be required more often.
What Is the Cost to Have a Suit Dry Cleaned?
Now, for the reason you are here, how much does it cost to have a suit dry cleaned? Industry experts Check-a-trade confirm that the price range for a two-piece suit is £9 – £14.65, and a three-piece suit is from £13.24 to £18.74. We are happy to confirm that we fit nicely within these price brackets but also offer better value for money thanks to our collection and delivery services.
The Love2Laundry pricing is broken down into an easy-to-assess structure, which gives you a clear view of what you will pay. Single components start from £4.95 for a tie dry clean and increase to £9.00 for a dinner jacket treatment. Our cost for a two-piece suit is £12.95, and a three-piece is £17.50. We also offer a bundle deal ideal for daily wearers, which provides the dry cleaning of one suit plus five shirts for just £25.50.
Not all dry cleaners offer bundle service for suits, which would work out at better value for money. At Love2Laundry, we offer a five x two-piece bundle for £58.75, a twenty x two-piece bundle for £175.01 and a 10 x two-piece bundle for £97.50.
Compared to how much you can stand to pay for a nice quality suit, we don’t think the cost of dry cleaning amounts to much when you consider the ROI that one garment can provide.
How Does Dry Cleaning a Suit Work?
Dry cleaning is a method of water-less washing that requires specific cleaning solutions to be used that can remove stains and refresh fabrics. Industrial machines are used to gently agitate clothing so that the solution is activated and fibres are loosed in a controlled way. Dry cleaning is ideal for delicate materials and larger household items, such as curtains, which can be a nightmare to wash in a traditional machine.
Dry cleaning is ideal for suits as it provides a complete refresh in a safe way that does not damage the materials. Some people find that clothes have a distinct smell after dry cleaning, but we can assure you that it is simply the freshness that the products create. As normal fabric fresheners and washing pods are not used, an artificial aroma is not caused, which helps suits last longer.
Suits are then pressed and steamed after treatment, providing a sharp-looking finish and ensuring the shape is maintained between cleaning as the fabric fibres have been set into place. Although you can steam a suit at home, it is hard to achieve the result that a professional dry cleaner can provide.
Choose Love2Laundry’s Suit Dry Cleaning Services
As we have now established, the average cost for dry cleaning a suit is much less than the price of buying a new one or having to pay for repairs.
Our app for dry cleaning makes getting a suit cleaning simple and easy. All you have to do is choose your service, include a collection and return address then we will do the rest. With no need to leave your home, you have no excuse not to get your suits professionally treated. Whether you are on the road, in the office, or working from home, we have got you covered.
If you want experience with this streamlined service, check out our online dry cleaning service. To find out more, get in touch with the Love2Laundry team. A constant supply of dapper suits is achievable thanks to our mobile laundry services.
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