Is the ‘Traxedo’ the future of tailoring?
A collaboration between whisky maker Woodford Reserve and The Bespoke Corner puts forward a new innovation in the tuxedo's nearly 200 year history
By 
SARTORIAL SIGNS of the times have been best observed in womenswear. The long-held hemline index, for instance, is a theory that correlates the strength of the economy with women’s skirt lengths – minis in a bull market, midis in bear.
Menswear, on the other hand, hasn’t offered much of a bellwether in its shirt, pants and jacket. Least of all tailoring, which hasn’t changed its layered configuration in about 300 years. But perhaps we should judge it against another metric: comfort.
Enter the ‘traxedo’, which, as its portmanteau suggests, is part tuxedo, part tracksuit. What it may signal in athleisure’s further convergence with tailoring remains to be seen, but it does sound as though the ‘snoafer’ (aka New Balance’s viral Frankensteined sneaker-loafer) has finally found its match.
The lovechild of Kentucky whisky maker Woodford Reserve and tailors Miles Wharton and Rami Mikhael of The Bespoke Corner, the traxedo is premised as “designed for stylish nights in”. Giving men a chance to slip into something more comfortable, perhaps? I picked it up one cold rainy evening at TBC’s Paddington store in Sydney, in hindsight, the ideal backdrop to demonstrate this MO.
“The traxedo is a one-of-a-kind piece we’ve never attempted before,” says Wharton, “blending the precision of bespoke tailoring with the ease of loungewear.”
(The traxedo never truly existed before; Google search results instead showed Halloween costumes of T-shirts with trompe l’oeil bow ties and bibbed pleating.)
Post-launch I took it back home to wear while conducting the Netflix-and-chill that the traxedo promises to elevate. For those who purchase this hybrid offer, you’ll also walk out with a bottle of Woodford Reserve Old Fashioned Cocktail Kit and a limited-edition bottle; the bourbon comes with the traxedo’s $2000 price tag.
Cut from a soft wool jersey, bark-hued Dormeuil fabric, the borrowed formal elements read in the shawl lapel on the jacket, while the elasticated drawstring trousers aren’t dissimilar to sweatpants. Where the two meet in the middle is the jacket’s deconstruction, its absent lining making it remarkably breathable. So far, so good.
Once I slipped on the trousers and jacket, and the fit is immediately felt: it’s what you might call slim. Personally, when I want to go for a relaxed fit, my go-to is an Italian 50. When it comes to the traxedo, the “large” sizing here still hugged arms and shoulders, the button whiskered when fasten. The bottoms also taper, as tracksuit pants often do, and they cling to my calves.
To be fair, this particular style is the favoured look amongst the finance bros who call Paddington home, after all, so TBC is simply leaning into their clientele here.
The thought is indeed there in the fabrication and construction, though the slim fit makes you feel as if you never left work. Still, it is Woodford Reserve’s first foray into the lifestyle category, dreaming up how else to savour its bourbon. But where might one wear the traxedo, but to accept an Academy Award over Zoom?
How clients can get their hands on the traxedo for themselves, they can meet with Wharton and other TBC tailors by appointment to go over sizing and tailored adjustments.
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