Salary cut vs dress code: a third of workers would accept

Last fall Lululemon's design team noticed something unusual. Wall Street men flocked to the store on Brookfield Place in the financial district to buy On the Move pants, which look like chinos but are made of the same soft, stretchy, moisture-wicking material used in the brand sportswear. That's right: Finance executives were finally ditching their suits.



According to Fast Company , Lululemon isn't the only one that has noticed that suits are no longer in style. After two years of living through the pandemic — spending long periods working in tracksuits from the comfort of the couch — the way we dress seems to have changed significantly, perhaps even permanently.



Brands, retailers and analysts have found that consumers are ditching suits, silk blouses and other formal workwear, opting instead for pieces that look professional but feel like the loungewear they wear. they have become accustomed to wearing.



Salary cutoff vs dress code

In a way, this change is part of a broader Chile Mobile Number List trend. For decades, Americans' wardrobes have become increasingly casual. In the '90s, progressive workplaces had "casual Fridays," when employees could trade in their suits for khakis.



In the 2000s, it was normal for workers in technological or creative professions to wear jeans to work. Outside of the office, many of us began wearing leggings and sweatpants for more than just gym workouts, inspiring a category that became known as athleisure.



salary cutoff vs dress code

This change occurred over decades. But Juliana Prather, chief marketing officer at retail analytics firm Edited, says the pandemic has accelerated the trend toward casualization.



The firm's data shows that consumers were gobbling up sweatpants in the past two years, even as other clothing categories, such as suits and party sets, declined in popularity. In 2021, even though lockdowns had largely ended, the market was flooded with 53% more sweatpants than in 2020, and 41% of them sold out.



For years, the story has been that workers wanted to be comfortable at work.



But after living in loungewear for two years, most people can't conceive of going back to professional clothing that's even remotely uncomfortable.



Juliana Prather, chief marketing officer at the retail analytics company.

It's something that Stitch Fix—a styling service that delivers boxes of clothes to 4.2 million customers—has also seen. In October 2021, their customers were ordering “back to work” clothing at a rate 39% higher than in the same period in 2020. But their idea of ​​work clothes had changed significantly.



In a survey of 1,000 consumers, 45% wanted to ditch the business suit, while 31% never wanted to wear a button-down shirt or dress pants again. In fact, almost a third of consumers said they would rather reduce their pay by 10% than have to get dressed for work every day.





Pay cut vs dress code trend

Loretta Choy, general manager of women's clothing at Stitch Fix, says this has given rise to a new category of workwear that prioritizes comfort but also looks more presentable than a hoodie and leggings. It is such a new trend that there is still no agreed upon term for it; some describe it as “business convenience” or “work leisure.”



Brands are designing workwear with elastic waists and stretch fabrics.



Men wear polos to the office instead of oxford shirts, and there's a trend for blazers made from soft knit fabrics that feel like sweatshirts.



Loretta Choy, general manager of women's clothing at Stitch Fix.

How Suit Brands Adapt

Even suit-focused brands are trying to adapt to this increased demand for comfort. Take Argent, a women's workwear brand founded in 2016.



Sali Christeson, founder of Argent, launched the brand fully aware that the workplace was becoming more casual, but notes that there have always been different expectations around what men and women can wear to the office.



Women have always had a different level of demand in the workplace. Many women feel the need to project professionalism in interviews and meetings, and a suit can convey that.



Sali Christeson, founder of Argent.

salary cutoff vs dress code

Women have been especially affected by the pandemic, with nearly 1.8 million of them having stopped working since March 2020, having to shoulder the burden of caring for children when schools were closed. Many women are now eager to return.



Christeson says that after months of declining sales, Argent has seen an uptick in demand for suits in summer and fall 2021 as women want to look their best when going to interviews and starting new jobs.



But Christeson recognizes that women also want comfort, so Argent designers have created new stretch garments. For example, in the latest collection, Argent sells knitted sweaters with collars and turtlenecks that look good under a jacket or with pants. In his images, Argent also combines jackets with jeans, t-shirts and even jumpsuits.



This has been true in the broader world of workwear. MMLaFleur—another company focused on women's professional clothing—has brought out a ton of cardigans, woven blazers, and knit dresses, in addition to suits and dresses.



Men's suit companies such as Brooks Brothers, Hugo Boss and Mizzen+Main have promoted casual collections that include many sweatshirts and polos. "It's a hybrid way of dressing," says Edited's Prather. "As people have increasingly hybrid lifestyles, going back and forth between work and home, they are combining work and home clothes."



Del athleisure al workleisure

Lululemon was at the forefront of the athleisure trend. When it launched two decades ago, its high-end yoga leggings gained a cult following, and many customers began wearing the brand's activewear outside the studio.



Over the past decade, in some industries—particularly tech and creative professions—it has become increasingly acceptable to wear sportswear to the office. Lululemon customers have opted to wear yoga pants with a button-down shirt to work, while men have opted for skinny joggers instead of khakis.



Sun Choe, Lululemon's chief product officer, says the company began actively designing pieces for this market segment. He created button-down shirts made from the kind of materials you'd expect in a workout outfit, rain jackets designed like trench coats, and, of course, On the Move pants, which first hit the market seven years ago.



Choe says the pieces were designed to look more professional than the brand's activewear, but still allow freedom of movement; all of them have worked especially well over the last two years.



We design these garments for people who actively commute to work, such as those who ride a bike and don't want to have to change when they get to the office.



Pants were very popular among technology professionals, but in the past they were too casual for finance professionals, who still wore suits to the office. But these clothes flew off the shelves during the pandemic.



Sun Choe, product manager at Lululemon.

salary cutoff vs dress code

Leland Drummond, co-founder of a new underwear brand called LDMA ("Life Deserves More Action") with Michele Thomas, notes that the pandemic not only increased consumers' desire for comfort, but also blurred the lines between different activities. of our life.



Working from home means exercising before the Zoom call and then taking the kids to the playground. Consumers are looking for clothes designed for activity, but that allow them to still be presentable.



Leland Drummond, co-founder of a new underwear brand called LDMA.

Drummond launched LDMA for women who wanted comfortable underwear for working out, but also breathable and moisture-wicking so they could wear it after a workout. (Her team also focused on making sure panty lines didn't show through leggings and tights, as this is a sure violation of office professionalism.)



Since launching in mid-November, Drummond says the brand has sold out months' worth of inventory in a matter of weeks, and has had to reorder products much sooner than expected.



Many retailers and clothing companies don't expect suits to return, even if the pandemic recedes and people return to the office. Stitch Fix's Choy says brands are designing far fewer suits for next year, focusing instead on "work-leisure" pieces made with materials we're used to seeing in loungewear and sportswear.



Lululemon, for its part, is putting its R&D into creating clothing that meets these demands.