Travis Kelce and Tom Marchitelli in suits designed by Marchitelli

Courtesy of Tom Marchitelli

Menswear MVP

From Kelce to Gronk, star athletes are sporting the suits of Tom Marchitelli ’04.

How in-demand is fashion designer Tom Marchitelli? Let’s put it this way: His custom garments fill the wardrobe of the highest-paid player in the NFL, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott. “He hasn’t repeated a suit in nine seasons,” Marchitelli said. “There’s 150 suits, and another fifty casual sets.”

Marchitelli has outfitted five hundred or so athletes across the NFL, MLB, NBA, and NHL in his custom menswear brand, Gentleman’s Playbook, for red carpet events, late-night talk show appearances, and arena arrivals on championship game days. Marchitelli’s striking ensembles, including wool and silk suits covered in bold plaids, hot pink pinstripes, gold marbling, and even tiger stripes—a design that was fittingly for Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow—have led to coverage in such publications as Sports Illustrated and the New York Times. “I always want to push the envelope on styles, designs, and colors,” Marchitelli said.

Tom Marchitelli in Some of His Custom Designed Menswear

It all started in 2013, when Marchitelli was working as a hedge fund accountant. Seeking a creative outlet, he combined his interests in sports and men’s fashion to launch Gentleman’s Playbook as a Tumblr blog where he critiqued the outfits professional athletes wore on red carpets. Then came his Instagram account, where he shared photos of himself in stylish suits he had accumulated over the years. “I’ve always had a penchant for custom tailored suits, since I was a little guy,” he said. “I still remember what I wore to the BC formal my senior year: an all-black suit with a red tie, because I saw someone on The Sopranos wearing that.”

Marchitelli’s social media exploded. He quickly gained one hundred thousand followers, including a ton of professional athletes. Among them was NFL quarterback Chase Daniel, the first person to ask Marchitelli to make a suit. Though he’d never designed before, Marchitelli couldn’t pass up the opportunity. In just weeks, he learned how to measure and connected with a tailor in California to craft a suit he’d custom designed for Daniel. Ever since, athletes have been recommending him for his formal and, increasingly, casual designs.

“The first guy that ever asked me to make a bomber jacket was Travis Kelce,” Marchitelli said. “I remember thinking, Can I make a bomber jacket? I’m not saying no, I’ll figure it out.”

Today he travels the country to measure each high-profile client for the perfect fit and act as a stylist, advising them on shoes, watches, and other accessories. Marchitelli says clients give him full creative control over outfits that tend to cost at least $3,000 each. “They really open it up to me,” he said. “They say, ‘Tom, what is your vision for this season or event?’ And I love that.” 

“I just don’t want to stop,” he continued. “I think I can do this for another thirty years.” ◽

Here are three of Marchitelli’s favorite stars to style

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